I’ve just recently learnt a new term called ‘Smiling Depression’. This term is used for people who appear happy but are in actual fact not very happy. Because of social media, this condition has become more prevalent and evident in young people.
We all know of Maslow’s hierarchy of our basic needs; self actualisation is one of these needs we have as individuals and we are constantly trying to craft this image that is better than our current one. This becomes almost obsessive. We as humans are setup with the basic instincts of self improvement; and we always seem to know how to identify someone we feel is ahead of us. This creates the ‘Smiling Depression’.
Social media is an easy out to reality… To create the image of the girl who simply wakes up fresh faced, has time for make up and heads out effortlessly stylish, but how many women can testify it is that easy?! FEW if any. We need to realise that regardless of the amount of time we spent creating these social identities, we are plain simple humans. Others are just better at creating these images and facades.
So next time you are scrolling through your timeline realise the following before you slip into ‘Smiling Depression’:
- You need a time-out from social media for the rest of the day
- Confront those negative thoughts head on and ask yourself ‘Where do they come from? And how did they get into my head?’
- If social media is your boredom killer or your break pleasure, logout and grab a book or download a new language or gaming app
Let us stop this trend of depression induced by social media and reduce the chances of us passing it on to the younger ones. Remember, we all wear masks but lets not let these masks cover rot.