TikTok Therapy

Depression is more than just feelings of sadness. It is debilitating, dark, and a time filled with sorrow. Having depression makes a victim feel like a puppet on a string; not allowing them to eat, bathe, or attend work or school and be controlled by this monster inside their mind. It is normal for humans to feel dejection every once in a while, but depression amplifies these feelings, causing one to feel as though they are drowning. In extreme cases, depression can lead to suicidal thoughts or actions, causing a sufferer to harm themselves or end their life due to the extreme sadness which encapsulates their every move.

Throughout history, the stigma behind mental health, more importantly depression, has changed dramatically over the last several decades. While some generations considered depressive and sorrowful feelings to be a hoax, others found them to be impactful to the daily life of the individual battling these feelings. Numerous years ago, the mood disorder would have been overlooked and those who had fallen into the deep dark hole of depression would have been told to “toughen up.” It was not common for agonizing individuals to make their sadness known. Within recent years, depression awareness has been on the rise, creating additional resources for the people who must utilize them in order to overcome their battle.  Through more resources becoming available, depressed individuals now have multiple options to choose from when attempting to cope with depressive thoughts and emotions.

The mindset regarding depression and the way sufferers chose to cope with their desolate state have continued to change. Some choose to attend regularly scheduled therapy sessions, whereas others turn to online communities on apps such as TikTok,  made up of members who share their same struggle and sorrow to find relief. It is critical that each person who may be struggling with depression gets necessary help through therapy, or another positive outlet which they feel comfortable indulging in. When consulting a rewarding form of therapy, a person is able to move past the trapping depressive state, and resume normal behaviors and life activities. The outlet one chooses to consult may differ depending on the person. While some people choose to turn to a therapist, close friend or family member, others choose to find a group in which they relate to on social media. The aforementioned group provides the sufferer with an online community to serve as their rock during that period of time.

Various types of videos are posted on TikTok, serving as a way for users to express themselves. Through this concept, some users choose to post comedic videos, while others post about their lives, some post dances, and a majority of content creators post about a cause or experience which they hold close to their heart. In this specific case, influencers that post about their struggle with depression are extremely appealing to users that are suffering from the same mental struggle. As a depressed user of TikTok continues to interact with and view the videos of the content creator who is sharing their personal testimony, the algorithm built into the app will recognize it. Once the algorithm acknowledges the consistencies within the videos being liked by the user, specifically the videos regarding depression, videos containing information about depression are more commonly shown to the sufferer. Within the comment section, the creator and viewers are able to interact, where they can develop a friendship. With the comment section being visible to other users, they are able to join in on the conversation regarding the topic of depression which applies to them, allowing a community to be formed.

While therapy is seen to be a valuable resource for treating depression, it is not available all the time, and not all civilians suffering with depression have access to therapy due to personal circumstances such as healthcare. By having a one hour appointment once a week, it gives users limited time to develop coping mechanisms to combat their depression and even less time to speak about their feelings. Through this free online platform, users who are fighting the debilitating feelings are able to open the app at any time, and watch any video that will aid in their struggle for an unlimited amount of time. TikTok can serve as a form of therapy in a moment’s instance, whereas in person therapy must be scheduled and planned ahead of time. By having the app, serving as a coping mechanism, in the palm of the hand of a user suffering from depression, it allows relief to be almost instantaneous.  Once the content consumer finds an influencer who helps them battle their struggle, they are able to open the app directly to their page and find a feeling of peace and escape from the depressive thoughts consuming their mind. A therapist may not always be able to be there for their patient in a time of crisis or breakdown, but TikTok is constantly available on the screen of a viewer, allowing them to calm themselves with a video posted by their favorite creator. 

Once the content within the app known as TikTok is able to cure or lessen the dark and depressive thoughts of a user, they have the ability to share their story. If one chooses to, they could also make videos discussing their battle with depression and what methods pulled them out of the situation. By a recovered depressed individual creating and posting a video on the platform, it will then continue to reach others who are sharing that same struggle, allowing for a sense of community to be formed. Through this process, more and more content consumers struggling with depression are able to be reached, enhancing the therapeutic component within the app. 

If a user is not comfortable making videos or sharing their story regarding their previous, or current, depressive state, they have the ability to comment on videos, which will still reach their intended audience. Through captivating the audience in the comments, the user will still be able to share their story without having to verbally speak or show their face on the platform. Connections made between users in the comments and the influencer who posted the content, a community can be formed which addresses the struggle with depression. Each member of the newly developed online depression community has the ability to lift the other users up through their testimonies, reminding them they are not alone within this dark period in their life. The TikTok group is also able to share coping mechanisms which helped them recover from their depressive state or episodes, overall bettering the lives and mental health of those who associate with the community.

Due to the continuous expansion and popularity of social mediums, teens feel the need to spend more time viewing the popularized content. Sources claim that TikTok can serve as an addiction for teens, increasing levels of depression by seeing the unrealistic “perfect lives” of content creators. While some supporters view TikTok to be helpful for the mental health of users, other critics view it to be harmful to users, causing an uptick in depression rates amongst teens.

Numerous aspects develop opposing opinions, including, but not limited to; personal experience, research, messages through the media and word of mouth. If a person were to state an argument claiming TikTok triggered a depressive episode following use, then they have a basis for their claim. In opposition, if a suffering individual has used TikTok while feeling depressed and it made them happier, the user’s personal experience with the platform demonstrates evidence that the medium has positive impacts on the user. 

When searching the impact of TikTok on the mental health of a user on the internet, there were more pieces of evidence that appear stating TikTok content causes depression in users. By the results that were generated first containing a negative connotation, this impacts the way a person views the entire topic. Each source which appears on the screen is from a high profile academic institution or news site, leading the researcher to believe the information is true. When, it will be extremely difficult for the searcher to find any source that lists TikTok as a therapeutic agent, especially when such sources are not any of the top generated following a search. 

Media sources produced in an online search have an extremely large impact on the way the public views things, as the way messages are conveyed has the power to create a bias and sway public opinion on a particular topic. With the popularity of a well known news source, there is a greater chance that these false messages will reach millions of people, allowing their opinion to be formed based on a report from a biased news source. 

CNN recently shared a story about experts believing  TikTok is one of the leading causes of the current mental health crisis within our country among teens. Vanessa Yurkevich, the writer of the article, goes into great depth about the issues which TikTok is believed to produce. These issues range from  insomnia to distraction from other important daily life activities. Yurkevich even goes as far as to quote a high status government official stating that TikTok can serve as “digital fentanyl.” When a reader views those two, hard hitting words, they will automatically be swayed to believe TikTok is harmful, considering a government official compared it to a life ending drug. The intense language used to trick the public allows  the author to create a sense of danger surrounding the app and frames a quote in a manner which refers to the app being as addictive and harmful as drugs.

“A lot of teens describe the experience of going on TikTok and intending to spend 15 minutes and then they spend two hours and or more. That’s problematic because the more time a teen spends on social media, the more likely he or she is to be depressed. And that’s particularly true for at the extremes of use,“  said Twenge.

Yurkevich ignorantly included the quote stating that teens who spend long periods of time on the app become depressed while failing to consider the idea that content teens are viewing could be helpful or calming. Spending long periods of time on the app could be beneficial to the mental state of teens, as it allows them to feel a sense of belonging on the app, serving as a coping mechanism for their depression.

Each time a depressed TikTok user opens the app, content which is able to serve as a form of therapy can be displayed on their screen. Through the continued use and interaction within the app, the TikTok algorithm will successfully present the content of relatable influencers which sufferers long for. By viewing and engaging in the generated content, users dealing with the debilitating thoughts of depression are able to stimulate a response to the content, allowing it to serve as a coping mechanism. Through this concept, TikTok takes on a new reputation of being a positive resource in treating mental health struggles, particularly depression. Videos ranging from seconds to several minutes provide consultation for the watching sufferer, allowing them to particularly focus on content which is most helpful to their recovery. 

 While being blamed for causing depression in teens, TikTok is able to revoke such feelings through the content posted on the app by creators. Users may initially intend to spend a short amount of time on the app to give their mind a distraction from their problems, but then discover relatable and helpful content which engages their interests and aids in their struggles. While viewing comforting content for an extended period of time, users are able to find a sense of relief while watching videos of fellow creators going through a similar struggle, allowing them to feel as if they are a part of a group enduring a struggle. This allows the user to feel a sense of community, resolving any feelings of loneliness one may feel when battling their depression. This concept alone allows viewers to cope with their depression at any time, as TikTok has the ability to serve as a form of handheld therapy.

The TikTok algorithm contains a component similar to that of therapy, as it caters to the interest of the viewer, and what they find to be most interesting and helpful for their experience with the app. With this as a built-in feature of the app since its creation, some users may turn to the online platform to cure their depression, rather than a therapist or another therapeutic form. Through the help of the creators on the app, the users are able to gain strategies to help them overcome the grueling feelings of their depression, ultimately contributing to the recovery of the individual. With the guidance and first hand experience of the creator, possibly close in age to the viewer, who went through the same or similar struggles, serves as a life vest in the drowning feelings of depression. 

If the user is positively impacted by the advice and first hand account of the content creator who struggled with depression, they may continue to reference and follow along to see how the creator survives the monster that is depression. This will provide consistent relief for the follower of the content. In extreme cases, one may even comment on a video or message a creator to speak more about the method in which they have used to cope with their depression or lack of motivation. A comment on a video could reach each person who views it, allowing a community to be formed and friends or  confidants on the app to serve as theoretical therapy. Even strictly  viewing the comment section on videos could assist a user in finding others who have struggled with their own depressive battle, allowing the community to consistently grow, reaching a larger audience who will be impacted by the testimonies of others.

Word of mouth is one of the fastest ways in which information is able to spread. If a person has a negative experience on TikTok in regards to depression, they have the unprohibited ability to consistently spread negative information about the platform. In opposition, if a user experiences a positive revelation, aiding them in their battle with depression and chooses to speak on it, positive information will be spread about the app.  Through verbal communication, a user could share which content creators on the app helped with their recovery the most and served as a form of therapy in their battle. This could provide another user who is suffering from depression a starting point on their therapeutic journey. If a user chooses to connect with a suggested influencer, then they could spread the word about the positive impact the creator’s content has had on them and their battle with depression. In the comment section, the same user could suggest additional creators who they have connected with while exploring the app to aid other sufferers.

In reality, teens experience joy and happiness, by finding other teens similar to themselves, going through a dark time. Despite having a harsh reputation, TikTok serves as a space for creators to share their testimonies which will aid their followers with their own struggles. With the help of content creators sharing their encounter with darkness which is depression, awareness is able to be spread throughout the platform, reaching those who need it most. Opposite to the perceptions of others, TikTok does not divide users, but rather brings them together through posts which are relatable to the masses, allowing for communities to be formed.

When teens find a community on TikTok, it causes their depression to be reduced and even cured in some cases. The various forms of content aid viewers in their recovery and allow the sufferers to cope with particular symptoms of depression. Relatability amongst content creators allows users to feel as though they have a companion and role model to guide them through their adversity, which leads to an improvement regarding their mental struggle. Teens are able to find comfort in the short videos of the user, which impacts their mood and mental state. The more a viewer watches the content which a creator posts on TikTok, the more relief they will be able to feel, as they are connecting with the influencer. By finding a community on a platform to which a user feels a sense of belonging, the use of TikTok allows the user to feel less lonesome, causing the depression of the user to lessen.

When a teen frequently views the videos of a particular creator or videos which pertain to a specific topic, the TikTok algorithm begins to pick up on this. The TikTok algorithm will continue to generate content which is related to or similar to the content that the view found to be most interesting. As a sufferer begins to use TikTok more and interacts more frequently with the videos on their screen, the algorithm spits out similar videos. When a user shares, likes, comments, saves, or watches a video for an extended time period or even more than one time, it causes the algorithm to recognize the post as something the viewer enjoyed. The more the user does this, the more refined their content will quickly become, allowing their whole feed to be content they desire. When a user finds a content creator relatable, they are able to interact with the content of the user and the algorithm will bring them back to their sense of home and community,

References

Avella, H. (2023). “TikTok ≠ therapy”: Mediating mental health and algorithmic mood disorders. New Media & Society, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/14614448221147284Tang X, Ding X and Zhou Z. (2023).

Behar, Virginie. “Healing the Depressed Self: A Study of Social Media Therapy.” DIVA, 21 June 2023, http://www.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2%3A1771491&dswid=9058.

Towards Equitable Online Participation: A Case of Older Adult Content Creators’ Role Transition on Short-form Video Sharing Platforms. Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction. 7:CSCW2. (1-22). Online publication date: 28-Sep-2023.​​

Yurkevich, Vanessa. “Why Experts Worry TikTok Could Add to Mental Health Crisis among US Teens | CNN Business.” CNN, Cable News Network, 11 Jan. 2023, http://www.cnn.com/2023/01/11/tech/tiktok-teen-mental-health/index.html.