People tend to share everything that they encounter on social media. They will be updating their activities, the foods that they eat, and their feelings. If you are one of them, it doesn’t mean that it is terrible. In fact, it makes your routines easy to track. You will also feel that it is easy to keep updated on your relatives’ daily routines through social media. When you meet one another after a long time, you will have various topics to talk about, and it is a simple way to make conversations interesting.
But going on social media tends to be a double-edged sword. Anyone who puts content online has to face public scrutiny and curiosity, and for many teens, it could mean cyberbullying. It makes them self-conscious of their well-being. The research revealed that 61% of teenagers bullied because of their physical appearance.
The Effects of Cyberbullying
The victims of cyberbullying often have psychiatric and psychosomatic disorders. These disorders often cause sufferers to spiral downward; around half of the suicides among young people are due to cyberbullying. In other cases, they will have an unhealthy obsession to change their appearance. They will starve themselves to lose some weight or using dangerous products to improve their look. Many require professional help from therapists, counselors, and family members to cure themselves of those obsessions and disorders to become productive members of society.
There are various ways to help the sufferers to recover from their trauma. It varies according to each victim’s needs and preference. For many families, they find the following strategies helpful in helping victims of cyberbullying get their lives back.
Explore a new hobby
Sometimes, you waste too much time on your social media that you forget about your hobby. Turn off your phone and start spending more of your time doing your hobbies. If you love cooking, try the new recipes from the older generation of your family. If you love writing, start writing your imagination and publish it on online writing platforms or send it to a publisher. And there are many other activities that you can do to make yourself feel better. Make use of your free time to upgrade your skill through your hobbies. Instead of feeling insecure about other people’s comments and fancy routines, you can start treating yourself better.
Exercise
Have you ever wonder how many miles have your thumb scrolled on the screens? Turn them into your jogging tracks. According to research, running has many benefits. It is the cheapest exercise and prevents the development of several diseases. These include cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. Running will distract your mind from social media and give you time alone. Running triggers your brain to release endorphins and endocannabinoids, hormones that make you feel positive and happy. When you are suffering from anxiety and depressing thoughts, running will be a good exercise. And, obviously, it is better to run on the jogging track instead of running away from your problems. But what if your thoughts are wilder than what you can handle?
Reach out to the professionals
When the weight on your shoulders is too heavy for you, reach out for help. You are not obliged to keep everything inside and suffer alone.
Sometimes, cyberbullying can cause people to binge on food since eating also releases hormones that improve mood. But sometimes, you find it difficult to stop yourself from stress eating. When you can’t control yourself from stress eating, it might be a sign of a possible binge eating disorder. You need to see a therapist to help. There are many other psychological effects because of cyberbullying, like anorexia, self-harm, and social anxiety. Understand your symptoms and prioritize your well-being first.
Maintain a healthy social media circle
When you are ready to go back to your social media, it is better to start fresh. You can choose what kind of content you want to see. And you can limit the interactions. Maintain a healthy circle. Set your account on private if you feel uncomfortable being overexposed. You can be selective in choosing your followers and who to follow. You can go back when you’re ready. Or you can enjoy your life offline for a while longer. Once you find a peaceful way to enjoy social media, that’s the right time for you to be back. Be kind to yourself and prioritize your happiness. You cannot make everyone happy, but you can choose to make yourself happy.
You don’t have to rush yourself to overcome your trauma. Take your time until you are ready to get back to use social media.
