Social Media, Bullying, And Self-Image

Social media has a lot of certain effects on us today. It is a part of a variety of people's daily lives yet has negatives that come with using it. With social media being such a big influence in our lives it does include discrimination and criticism. There are 2.47 billion social media users today and it continues to grow rapidly, it is also said that 88% of teenagers have had problems with social media and the way it has made them feel towards themselves and others. Social media affects your life immensely, with comparison, bullying, and self-image.

Social media has been said to have caused a lot of personal problems. When scrolling through social media we stop and look at those who "live better lives" than us, the ones who spend their time

It is a major obstacle that many teenangers face, it includes being called unpleasant things, people posting negative comments, and sending pictures to someone through their screens yet not saying it to their face. Teenagers are the main target of getting bullied through social media today, Jung agrees when he writes "kids especially are vulnerable to the practice of cyber-bullying in which perpetrators, anonymously or even posing as people their victims' trust, terrorize individuals in front of their peers" (Jung). It can also make those being bullied develop mental health issues which can then affect them later in life. When you get bullied it can make you think of yourself in a negative way, could also possibly make you think you did something wrong, or make you stop and think that you are different than everyone else. It can lead to depression and many other mental health issued. Jung states "The devastation of these online attacks can leave deep mental scars" (Jung). Being bullied is something that you will not forget and can leave a big impact on your life. It is only getting worse, hurting more and more people each and every day, it was remarked that "Cyberbullying has spread widely among youth, with 42% reporting they have been victims" (Jung). Cyberbullying will be a problem as long as there are social media and deeply hurts those who have had to face

Social media can help you stay connected and let people know what is going on throughout your life, and see how other people are living theirs. It can help express how to feel to many people at once, letting you have an immense audience to it. A school in Australia stated that "Social networking services can be used for organizing activities, events, or groups to showcase issues, and opinions, and make a wider audience of them" (reachout.com). It is also a good way to communicate with fellow peers. We are lucky that we can do so, because we are the first generation that has had the privilege to enjoy and discover something so big. Social media can also make you feel confident and admirable about yourself at times by getting positive feedback, Leopold agreed when he wrote, "studies have shown that getting "likes" from Facebook posts actually results in a release of dopamine, a brain chemical associated with pleasure" (Leopold). It can also guide you to having more confidence when you do post something that draws people's attention, Liu stated that "Social media provides this unique gratification, as soon as you post something, people are showing you their support, approval, and admiration" (Liu). Even with all of that, the unpleasant things that are commented on social media can never be forgotten, and how it makes you feel about yourself is something