The always on, and entirely frictionless nature of social media has completely revolutionised the way children experience being a kid! It started as a way to stay in touch and now it has quickly turned into one of the medical profession’s biggest worries globally. The relentless pursuit of “likes,” the chase after the next big hit of dopamine, the overwhelming pressure of responding to a constant stream of notifications — none of these phenomena is lost on Parennial children, who are witnessing an alarming uptick in mental health problems including anxiety and depression, among their peers.
It’s not only the child psychologists and pediatricians that are now issuing warnings but sounding alarm bells. There is a clear consensus among medical experts: the psychological toll of too much, unsupervised and passive social media use can be severe, resulting in depression, anxiety.
The Comparison Trap: How Perception, Work Contexts and Power Impacts your Personal and Professional Inner Life
Among the most pernicious was what child psychologists like Dr. Kate Eshleman describe as the trap of social comparison. Social media is by definition about performance, not real life. Children and teenagers are bombarded with carefully edited highlight reels — not just of vacations that took weeks to plan, but bodies that take hours a day of workout and restrictive eating to maintain — from those not living messy lives themselves.
According to Dr. Eshleman, this can easily make young people feel less-than and compels them to compare themselves (and fall short) of these unattainable ideals, which harms their self esteem. A teenager scrolling through seemingly flawless moments thinks to himself or herself, “Why isn’t my life that perfect?”
Research has also shown that teenagers who are glued to screens for more than three hours a day are twice as likely to experience poor mental health outcomes and suicidal ideation, anxiety and depression.
The Sleep Saboteur: An Essential Process Under Siege
Pediatricians repeatedly identify sleep disruption as a primary adverse outcome attributable to social media use. Instead, Dr. Rodgers, a pediatric specialist, stresses the importance of the night being entirely taken up by no digital time. Overuse, especially before bedtime, disrupts the production of melatonin, the sleep hormone, by the bright light of screens and the cognitive stimulation provided by notifications and scrolling.
Consistent sleep deprivation in adolescence, a key time of brain maturation, has negative effects on cognitive function, school performance and emotional regulation. Children who are perennially tired are at much greater risk of irritability, inability to concentrate and inability to handle even mild stress — meaning fertile ground for anxiety.
The Cyber Shadow: Bullying and Alienation
Although social media can help draw isolated and segregated users together the seamy side of going online there is all but too obvious. There is a different and particularly merciless challenge in cyberbullying, because it never goes away. Unlike schoolsyard style harrassment though, this harassment can be taken home by those being bullied providing no safe retreat for the child. And because bad news travels fast and far, the emotional hit is multiplied.
The Doctor Is In: Open Dialogue and Boundaries
Doctors are not calling for a blanket ban but for a measured response. The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests parents and kids create a Family Media Plan. Key strategies recommended by public health professionals include:
- Screen time limits: I want to limit unnecessary screen time to one or two hours a day.
- Establishing Screen-Free Zones: Taking devices out of bedrooms at night and prohibiting them from family mealtimes.
- Open Communication: Parents should have open conversations with interested questions, e.g. How does social media use impact how you’re feeling day to day?to foster non-judgmental discussion about experiences online.
- Modeling Behavior: Parents should model for their children that they use social media in a healthy way.
