Depression as a social media phenomenon

BY EDISON MARTE SICAD

RECENTLTY, there were news reports about teenagers and young celebrities in relation to depression that would sometimes lead to suicide. There were also FB posts about depression suffered by people from all walks of life. Understandably, these situations are alarming, which require professional and institutional response.

However, there were some cases of depression that could have been merely self-induced, blurring the line between serious mental health problems and trivial personal expression. But since there is a cathartic effect in publicly gaining support from social media, some individuals may have inadvertently developed the habit of learned helplessness.

I wonder if social media declaration—and support— has solved such problem; or just made some people use depression as an excuse to avoid personal responsibility. The loop is somehow insidiously circuitous.

The Cobra Effect Analogy

There is this anecdote about the Cobra Effect coined by German economist Horst Siebert. It warns us about the unforeseen effect of giving incentives in solving a problem.

As the story goes, the British Imperial government offered a reward for each cobra caught by the natives. But instead of decreasing the population of venomous cobras, the people just bred more of them as a source of income. Eventually, the government realized its mistake and stopped the program. In retaliation, the people released the cobras from captivity. In the end, instead of solving the problem, the situation just got worse.

Could there be an analogy to this with regard to digitalizing the giving of pity and support to those who are expressing their concerns and problems in social media? For social media have the effect of exaggerating the issues. In other words, what we focused on expands. The more we talk about depression, the more depression there will be and not the other way around.

In a way, life with no problems is an illusion brought to us by some sectors of society or industry trying to convince us with the logic that buying this and that, being popular and having “likes”, are the means to happiness.

Facing problems could be the way to happiness—solving it if possible; finding ways to make things better; not denying such negative emotions but at the same time not making such emotions as the excuse, the main reason for giving up.

Here now is the danger of social media:

Some social media posts crave attention as a source of strength. I am not saying that we shouldn’t ask for help; what I’m emphasizing is for the person to be self-reliant. Do not expect to be happy all the time; courageously face your disappointments or frustrations; face it as a man. As my friend would always retort, “Indi sagi biningit.”

I would dare say that most of these depression posts were not “entirely” true. These were just the usual complaints that were triggered and exaggerated by social media. These words may be harsh. But there is a tinge of truth into this.

Generally, the youth of today wanted not only to be heard about what is right; they want to be believed that they are always right. The youth of today do not just want to be free from problems; they want the problems to be solved—ironically by someone else—immediately.

Mentoring Program

In one private school, it has a unique educational service known as Mentoring Program: a student is assigned to one teacher who will serve as his mentor. They discuss about personal issues and concerns affecting the student: studies, friends, relationships, parents, bullying, grades, failures, and life in general.

The sharing or the chat between the mentor and the mentee is guided by the school’s philosophy: ordinary daily activities can be sanctified and thus are heroic acts that can be offered to God; and the power of prayer as the most effective means of “maintaining sanity” so to speak.

This is no quick fix approach; the mentoring chats focus on norms of piety or simple acts of faith. Prayer has a way of mending the troubles of the heart and giving strength in the midst of suffering.

This writer believes that more harm can happen when personal problems are coursed through social media attention; for the giving of advice is not a social media activity: call a friend; talk in private; have self-reliance; be tough enough to withstand the “slings and arrows of outrageous fortune.”

I suggest this book for any reader who wanted to enrich his or her ideas about facing responsibility as an antidote to depression.

12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos by clinical psychologist Jordan Peterson./PN