Six percent of people are more likely to be depressed from checking Facebook and other platforms of social media late at night. Social media can have a major impact on your life too. You can go through your social media for hours late at night and completely mess up your sleeping schedule; you can look through social media and doubt yourself and how you look and feel about yourself. Social media can wreck someone’s life.

Social media can make you feel worse about your life and relationships. You scroll through Facebook or Instagram and see people with the things you only wish you had. You can see everything from nice cars and trucks, to a complete and happy family picture. Social media has negatively impacted people’s lives since it was created. A lot of people want to live as others do, and they become envious; many people who become copycats and try to live like the people they see on social media, may end up self-harming themselves or try to somehow seek others approval. 

Social media is the leading cause of mental health issues. 18% of U.S. teens and adults have symptoms of anxiety and depression. It was found in a survey that the majority of the 18% have more than one social media platform.

In 2006 alone, the U.S. spent just over $57.5 billion dollars in mental health care. Mental illness can be caused by many things, but social media takes a very large toll on the brain, which in turn can affect your mental health.

Teens on social media and mental health have proven to be directly correlated. Many teens spend a lot of time scrolling through social media wishing they had better lives or are wishing that things were better.

Some nations have confronted their mental health issues, while others just don’t have the funding to actually do something to change it. For example, China uses a national mental health plan, but other countries that are less developed are still trying to create their own mental health programs. The U.S. has created Mental Health America (MHA). This program is dedicated to building better lives for the millions of people affected by mental illness, including those with mental illnesses caused by too much social media.