The Dark Side of Social Media

Social media has allowed us to connect with each other no matter who we are or where we are located. But all good things come at cost. How does social media influence our mental health? Does it actually allow us to connect better with each other or is it a poor alternative for real human relationships? Which is the worst one: TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat or Instagram? Are any of these social media platforms good for you?

[Ayanda]

My addiction on watching videos which adress the dark side of social media is just something else

[GrEeCe_MnKy]

Entertainment becomes addiction when you don't use it as a source of entertainment, but to escape the present, the reality.

[onesunnyday]

I've started reading & studying again to widen my deceased attention span. It's a struggle I never imagined.

[dj_bubbs-TXQ]

It’s been 2 years since I left social media. I have no regrets at all.

I got sick of people gossiping, drama, negativity & people faking their lives & friendships and sharing everything that should be private or craving attention with provocative pictures & selfies.

A number of things I realised:

1. People who added me as “Friends” didn’t really care about me. They were “So called Friends” just to increase their friends list.

2. When people were going through their hardest times of anxiety, trauma and upset, I went out of my way & made an effort by helping & supporting them. But when I was going through my hardest times, including anxiety, trauma and stress. The people who I helped & supported never reached out to me to help or supported me even when I struggled. Everything has become one sided.

3. Certain posts or videos get blown out of proportion or completely taken out of context even if it’s nothing negative.

4. People lie about the amount of friends they REALLY have. Who in the REAL world has 100s or 1000s of friends WHO??

5. Communication is very one sided. The same person had to make the first move to start a conversation as the other person doesn’t make an effort themselves or just can’t be bothered.

6. People lie about their lives, they only show the positive side of theirs lives which doesn’t show the real truth about the person. You can’t tell and don’t see if someone is REALLY depressed, upset, isolated, lonely, feeling suicidal or what’s actually going on in their actual lives. Even if people post how they really feel, people don’t always care or not interested.

7. It makes people fake and insecure. It’s not just school kids or teenagers in schools, colleges, universities or workplaces doing it, but adults as well are also being fake & insecure, especially managers.

8. People compare themselves to others just to get loads of “Likes” & comments.

9. Social media has increased loneliness, isolation, anxiety and depression which can be severe.

10. Due to social media and the increase in technology, it’s causing destruction & destroying peoples lives in the sense of their is no sense of unity, community, love and nobody wants to help each other. If they see someone doing something constructive and productive and they’re doing well in a community or society, people will laugh at them in an act of ignorance, and cannot wait for them to fall down. Social media is dividing people, not bringing people together.

11. Having a proper conversation or being real is considered not normal and people think it’s creepy. People don’t like having real conversations.

12. It’s made people to be narcissists, self entitlement, ignorant, prejudice and bullies.

13. People can say things or make comments that are abusive, racist, sexist, ignorant, prejudice, misogynist, homophobia, xenophobia, discrimination openly online, rather than to your face. People troll others on social media.

14. I have seen Boys & Girls take provocative, selfies / pictures to get attention from so called friends / strangers, sometimes in a negative way, for example, woman having their boobs / chests hanging out, body image, men & women showing off muscles, six pack & more.

15. With social media & the young generation with regards to friendships, people feel that if they add someone as friend request and they accept it, or meet someone & they click with them they automatically think that’s “friends for life” people need to realise that’s not how friendship REALLY works.

Friendships are & should always be a 2-way street. Real friendships would make the effort to support & be there for each other through the good times, fun times, hard times, sad times, upsetting times & more. Communication & making an effort should be equal on both sides. Not the same person who always makes first contact. The other person should also make an effort too.

We need to ALL learn the skill set of when we suffer from stress, anxiety, trauma, facing problems & more, that we should reach out to our friends or professionals for help & support, NOT social media.

16. Our young generation has grown up addicted. They have been addicted to mobile phones, alcohol, drugs, social media & more at a young age It’s very sad.

I never had TikTok, Twitter or Instagram. Glad I didn’t sign up to any of them. Facebook was the only social media platform I had and it was recommended to me back when I was in my teens.

I only use YouTube as I can look at interesting things like cooking recipes and motivation videos and music videos of festivals & concerts and more fun stuff.

I enjoy going out in nature walks, bowling listening to music and learning new hobbies and watching movies.

Since leaving it’s been the best decision of my life. I enjoy life more, I can now enjoy doing the things I do or want to try without being judged or told what to do without being made to feel guilty.

I feel more happier and a massive weight has been lifted off my shoulders.

I think if social media disappeared forever, I can guarantee people will spend REAL quality time with friends and family. People will know who their REAL friends are and that they will do things together and have a good time doing it. I also feel that people will have proper conversations and listen and engage.

I do feel sorry for our young generation. The young generation is lost. There is so much talent and ideas in young people and they need to show that in a positive & constructive way. We can make change for the future. The young generation needs real positive role models to look up to, for them to succeed in life & beyond.

[chico]

One of the dark sides of social media is the non stop bombardment of advertisements rammed down ur throat, tv was and still is bad enough but cant even listen to a 3 minute song withput listening to 2 ads at the beginning and then one at the end then all over again for the next song.

[iBridgee]

Social media can be a real double-edged sword—eye-opening and terrifying at the same time. 😟

[escound]

During a rough time with my ex girlfriend, my Instagram reels feed changed to partners cheating and lying to eachother. This is literally fd up

[TinhcaBolero]

The dark side of social media can be unsettling. It's where cyberbullying and toxic comparisons thrive. I've felt the weight of negativity and the pressure to curate a perfect image. But it's a reminder to use social media mindfully, focus on authenticity, and prioritize mental well-being. Choose positivity :)

[Cam_]

I was a young teen when social media appeared like Bebo, MySpace, and then FB. The way people faked their own personal lives and fought about pointless things taught me to stay far away from it. I truly feel bad for kids these days...as if commercials, movies, magazines, and normal teenage life isnt hard enough already.

[fideldisalvo]

TikTok has taken the absurdity of social media to new heights, fb was bad, but TikTok was the final nail in the coffin for humanity. Game over chaps

[melissazadrozny]

I've watched 7 minutes of this video so far and I'm going through and deleting all my social media, I'm so tired of the damage it does to my mental health.

[darienodette]

People are incredibly cruel on social media, to the point where it's ridiculous. I have been cyber bullied relentlessly by simply commenting on a meme. Not a political meme, not a controversial meme, just like...a damn SpongeBob meme. It's absurd.

[sophiaisabelle]

We appreciate how well you've articulated your thoughts on this topic. I too have no shame in admitting that I'm addicted to scrolling a lot. Pretty sure I get distracted quite easily by everything I see online.

[whysohappy]

Never been on tiktok
Never been on Twitter
Used Facebook and insta a little but mostly on youtube watching interesting videos.

I don't have any complaint against social media but MYSELF.

I used to write songs, poetry even draw just few yrs ago but now I've lost control of myself and have let these side elements like social media rule me.
So the fault lies within me.

[skummcdum]

We all have so much more potential than we realize. We are meant for more than flicking our thumbs at blinking screens. Our time is MORE valuable than money ever could be and we are being harvested. It truly makes my heart ache. Today i decided that ive had enough. While it may be unrealistic in todays social climate to completely null social media, there ARE things that can be done. I didnt delete my accounts but i deleted the apps off my phone. I started a progress journal, and have it marked every 2 weeks on my calendar where i may check sm for under 30 minutes. My social media addiction is embarassingly bad but thats how its designed to be. 5+ hours a day for years down the drain. No more.

[monkeking_]

A few days ago I redownloaded tiktok, I deleted it because I knew how bad it was, and I couldn’t believe how addicting just scrolling is. It’s always ‘I’ll just find one more good video’ then it just keeps going and going

[Complecx]

You started talking about "hey you've stuck around long enough to watch this video" and I had to move my mouse to make sure I hadn't just blanked out on everything due to lack of attention
It's definitely a line that caught mine for sure, thanks man

I know people that have had to step away from social media for longer and longer periods of time just because when they go back the constant stream of posts (both positive and negative) starts to get insanely overwhelming
Tiktok is definitely a factor, and so is the way that you're fed posts. Even FB will start to hide peoples' posts if you don't talk with them often in favor of someone who you may actually rarely talk with but they post so often and get so much interaction that you just HAVE to see it or you're missing out. Even just thinking "god I'm missing out on their lives so much" when in reality you go back and everyone's still talking about the same stuff (plus or minus some life events) and really it's just that you were missing out on a constant stream of posts by them for the same level of dopamine that you get from seeing new
it's a whole separate level of FOMO in the worst way

[MuseSunflower]

That was a good piece on OF. I roll my eyes every time someone says they’ll just go on there to make money.

You’re so right the outliers that make a good living are either celebrities or people with large social media followings from something else. Even then, you still need to do outrageous publicity to stay relevant and drive traffic to your content. It’s not easy money at all

[Mmmmmmmmm.mt]

Not only do you get a shot of dopamine from each scrool, but it also makes you do it again and again.Its such a complexs process that keeps you hooked.By the way i love your ideas for videos

[MuseSunflower]

I had to take TikTok off my phone because my algorithm was full of red pill, women bashing, man haters and fake relationship gurus. It made me so anxious and triggered all my old fears

It really gets addicting watching bitter people. I’m more peaceful now that I’m not on there and limit my Instagram time too