Social media addiction linked with anxiety and depression in young adults

The negative impact of social media use on the lives of young people has been a major concern in recent years. Studies have linked heavy social media use with higher rates of anxiety and depression in young adults. It gets worse. A more recent study shows that social media addiction also affects their relationships with parents.

Social media addiction linked with poor relationships between young people and their parents

The study analyzed 435 Canadian young adults with a median age of 19. The participants reported their symptoms of anxiety and depression as well as the quality of their relationship with their parents in terms of satisfaction, conflict, and equality.

Young adults with higher levels of social media addiction had stronger symptoms of anxiety and depression and worse relationships with their parents. They reported high conflict, low satisfaction, and low equality with their fathers, and high conflict and low satisfaction with their moms.

To think that something as indispensable as social media could hurt relationships between parents and their kids, it's beyond distressing. And scientists still don't know the mechanism of it all—the HOW. If we knew how it works, it perhaps would be a tad easier to remedy.

For now, the best we can do is to educate our young ones about the dangers of social media use. To be forewarned is to be forearmed. Just knowing about the negative effects can prepare one against them.

Since social media has become something we cannot do without (it has its good sides, too!), our fight is against its addiction. Schools, families, and mental health professionals must encourage our youths to avoid social media addiction by educating them about its dangers to their health and interpersonal relationships.

Author

Satu H. Woodland, PMHCNS-BC, APRN Satu Woodland is owner and clinician of Hope Mental Health, an integrative mental health practice located at Bown Crossing in Boise, Idaho. She sees children, adolescents, and adults.  Ms. Woodland with her background in nursing, prefers a holistic and integrative approach to mental health care that addresses the mind and body together. While Ms. Woodland provides medication management services in all her patients, she believes in long-lasting solutions that include a number of psychotherapies, namely cognitive behavioral therapy, exposure and response prevention therapy, attention to lifestyle, evidenced based alternative psychiatric care and spirituality. If you’d like to gain control over your mental health issues, call Hope Mental Health at 208-918-0958, or use the online scheduling tool to set up an initial consultation.