media work ʕ•㉨•ʔ - women’s mental health and the links to social media

On average, Around one in five women will be diagnosed with a ‘common’ or ‘typical’ mental health problem, such as depression, anxiety, etc in their life time, compared to one in eight when it comes to males. There could be many factors as to why these can occur however in general women have statistically the hardest time when it comes to talking about mental health and well-being. This is due to society pinning their issues on things like their periods, etc. Feedback like this can lead to more mental distress and issues such as eating disorders, self harm & low self esteem. In terms of eating disorders, women are more vulnerable to developing branches of eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia. Social media and the media in general are to blame for the majority of eating disorder cases and it is done by promoting an unhealthy mindset. One example is the ‘’are you beach body ready?’’ advertisement from 2015. The image is the perfect example as to why both men and women can experience body dysmorphia. The ad includes a fairly skinny/slender woman who is put into black and white, however the only part about her that stands out is the overly saturated yellow bikini & the saturated yellow background. To make this even more appealing the advert also includes bold black text which reads behind the woman ‘’are you ready for summer yet?’’. The advert was fairly upsetting to the public as it was not only standing out, but also advertised in fairly busy places such as New York Times Square. The ad in general made the public believe that you could only be summer ready if you’re skinny and living up to the beauty standards, these advertisements are one of the most critical reasons why the statistics for suicide are higher in young women than they are in older people. The statistics indicating that one in five women have mental health issues is linked to their experiences of violence and abuse. 53% of women who have those mental health issues have experienced assault or abuse. More than three quarters of women who have mental disorders have faced extensive physical and sexual violence in both adulthood and childhood, which causes life threatening trauma which lead to them eventually developing PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). Advertisements in the media in particular have a major effect on POC minorities mental health. With 29% of Black women and 24% Asian women having a mental disorder, compared to 21% White British women. However, overall young women ages 24< have the highest statistics. Three quarters of mental health issues are established before the age of 24, and young women have emerged as the highest risk group for mental illness. Suicide is the third most common reason for girls to contact a crisis team, compared to the fifth most common for boys. 72% of those who are in suicide counselling with the NSPCC are girls. Compared to males, women usually have larger social media followings, and because of that, they receive more engagement and interaction. However with more engagement spent on social media, this overall increases the negative and positive interactions that are outgoing. The negative comments that women receive tend to be more impactive than the positives due to the brain being more biased towards negative information. Due to the media and social media overall, young women in particular are advised to limit their exposure online to prevent any unhealthy mindsets.