Social Media Is Not Your Therapist

At least once a day, I hear “someone posted on social media…” followed by a quote or message. This is often shared to convey a point or idea. The post seen on social media is usually “a word” or something catchy that can be true. It might give us pause and make us reflect for a moment. This is not necessarily good or bad. It’s great that social media is a platform and licensed therapists are present on social media. However, therapy is not being conducted over social media. Even if a therapist is posting therapeutic topics or content, it is not a substitute for therapy. And when a non-licensed person is posting about mental health and giving advice, they are merely stating their opinion or maybe even sharing their experience, which has benefits.

There are many benefits to information being on social media about mental health. The mental health stigma is shedding, and therapy is being normalized. This is wonderful. Along with this comes therapy buzzwords that get a lot of attention such as boundaries, transparency, toxicity, self-care, and authenticity. While there is a lot of inspiration on social media and trendy nuggets and jewels to takeaway, there are also traps.

Here are a few traps we easily fall into when using social media as our therapist.

1. Everything Is Meant for Me. While scrolling on social media and seeing a quote that resonates, we can really lean into that quote. The post might be ambiguous or indirect, yet we make it applicable to our own lives. As a result, we are questioning aspects of our lives or relationships that once felt content. We are also now trying to enact change in certain areas of our lives because we “should” according to the post. Eventually, this momentum will subside because the movement was initiated off something superficial like a social media post. Let’s take the social media post that says, “sometimes you have to leave relationships behind that do not serve you.” Well yes, this is true. This is common knowledge, common sense, and very practical. Reflection is very powerful, and we all can benefit from self-reflection. However, we would not want a post like this to cause you to end relationships that are not worth ending. Also, if this post is taken literally, then we enter a space of opportunism where we expect great benefits from every relationship and if it does not feel like we are getting that, then we retreat. Take it with a grain of salt and pounds of perspective.
2. It Is Not All or Nothing. When we see a word on social media, it is not absolute. We do not have to make it apply to every area or relationship in our lives. For instance, the post “if you feel drained after an interaction with them, then they are probably not meant for you.” While this is not incorrect, it is our responsibility to put it in context. Some relationships take more work than others, and in every relationship, you will feel drained at some point. This does not mean it needs to end. Yes, if you feel drained after each interaction whether the relationship is experiencing a rough patch or not, then absolutely reevaluate. When seeing such a post, just be mindful it is not an always or never situation.
3. If You Want It to Apply, It Will. It’s like when you have a headache or other benign ailment and decide to Google what it might be. By the end of your search, you have self-diagnosed a life-threatening condition. Some of us may have heard older people say, “don’t go looking for something, you just might find it.” Same thing with social media. We can make any post applicable to our lives. Again, most posts are common sense and technically “good” or decent advice. Treat social media posts life a buffet, only take from it what you like. You don’t have to eat it all.
4. Social Media Posts Are One-Way. As stated, you do not have to ingest it all. Ideally, we will not get nourishment from social media. Social media posts as such are one way. They are putting out a message. The intention is not to further engage and help people flesh out what is for them or how it applies to their lives. That work is done in therapy, a two-way relationship. When a “self-help” post is made, it is not considering each person’s unique background and experience as is done in therapy. A goal of some posts is to trigger us to think or reflect. Be mindful, social media is the epitome of easier said than done.

When scrolling on social media, be discerning and use perspective. Everything does not apply to your life and is not meant for you. Sometimes reflecting too much can be counterproductive as we live in our heads and are constantly trying to perfect areas or relationships in our lives to a fault. If you see negative patterns in your life that you want to change and are finding it difficult to change on your own, seek out help from a licensed mental health therapist. Because social media is not a real place and anything can happen on social media, we need to receive information on social media as such and not always take the advice of a social media post.

 

The content on this website is not intended to diagnose or treat, it is for informational purposes only. Please call our office at 404-618-1040 for an appointment or contact a mental health professional in your local area if you are seeking treatment.