Social Media and self identity

Social media enables identity, expression, exploration and experimentation. It is most influential for teenagers (we are more impressionable as we are younger) and particularly young girls. Social media is beneficial, as it is an easy way to keep in touch with friends, post about our lives and meet new people. However, it is also extremely damaging to our mental health. For example, the picture below shows the percentages of US teens who say that they have experienced negative effects due to their use of social media:

One of the main issues of social media is the superficiality of it. We put our best image of ourselves on social media, in an attempt to glorify our lives and make them seem aesthetically pleasing to others. We see others posting with designer clothes, perfect bodies and luxurious lifestyles and feel the need to defend our lifestyle, as a way of putting ourselves on an equal platform with other users.

Constant use of social media platforms can lead to depression, isolation or self esteem issues. This fact isn't exclusively about teenagers either, as most users of social media no matter the age are likely to experience the same issues. Our main problem is due to the fact that we as a global community are addicted to social media. We are socially programmed to use social media even though we are aware of the damage it causes to our mental health. This could be because most of our generation have grown up with social media and have never experienced a life without it, therefore we cannot imagine ever living in a world where our lives aren't centered or dependent on social media.

We are all aware of how toxic social media is, especially Twitter, as most people see it as an opportunity to belittle others without enduring any repercussions. The video below shows some more information on the amount of people who have been exposed to cyber-bullying on social media.

Another issue that many people have developed through their use of social media is being antisocial and ending up with strained relationships with others. We become so engrossed in the lives of others that we tend to ignore whats happening around us. This may not be the case for some people, but I can take from my experiences that my family tend to all sit on our phones when in a room together instead of engaging in any form of conversation. By my example alone we can understand that it isn't just teenagers that have this issue, but people from older generations as well.