You wake up not feeling well and decide to search up your symptoms on Tik Tok. After watching two videos, you may have already diagnosed yourself. This use of social media is increasing self diagnosis in teens.
The effects of social media on self-diagnosis gives inaccurate or misleading information about what a person is feeling or going through. With the rise of technology, social media is easily accessible to the hands of many. So, when experiencing a symptom, social media tends to sound less stressful than making a doctor’s appointment.
According to the National Institutes of Health, over one-third of Americans self-diagnose when experiencing symptoms, and 70 percent go to social media for medical information.
“Nowadays on TikTok, if you eat, sleep or act a certain way, it’s put into a label in which you automatically have an illness or condition,” junior Adrian Orms said. “If I go on TikTok or Instagram and search my symptoms, I know it’s going to give me something completely different than what I’m experiencing.”
Self-diagnosing can lead to misinterpretations of one’s mental health and medical conditions. When a viewer believes they have a certain medical condition or mental illness, this can cause an inaccurate solution, worsening the person’s symptoms.
“There are many tests online that tell you whether or not you have depression, a lot of people automatically diagnose themselves because of these tests,” freshman Massiel Sanchez said.
Social media uses algorithms to align the viewer’s interests or behaviors, creating an echo chamber where viewers are repeatedly shown the content being researched. So, when searching for medical problems online, it may incline you to believe you have a medical condition or illness because of the amount of times the content is being shown.
“I’ve seen videos on Tik Tok of people explaining things like ADHD and they explain the symptoms and some of them align with what I’m going through or how I feel,” junior Isabella Alzate said.
According to the Hopkins Medicine Organization, scrolling for mental health information can actually lead to stress and anxiety. The comparisons of one person’s experience and another person’s can influence emotional stress. The comparison may trigger a viewer, stressing them out with their symptoms and worrying them. When looking for information online, it is key to recognize when content can be negative or positive.
Social media allows anyone to sign up and post any type of content. Some of the videos people might see tend to be untrue, so when researching for information about their health, videos they see lead them to incorrect perspectives of what they are experiencing.
Content relating to mental health and medical conditions might target young teens. A young teen might see a video including a list of symptoms and put a label on it. This forces young teens to self-diagnose themselves with an illness. With the awareness of mental illnesses, it can be hard for teens to subconsciously believe they have a certain illness.
Although social media may have a negative impact on self-diagnosing, it helps bring awareness to medical conditions and mental illnesses. According to the National Library of Medicine, social media allows mental health campaigns to reach out to many people in a short amount of time. Mental health awareness encourages people to seek help.
All it takes is one video for someone to self-diagnose. It is important to stay cautious and aware of what is true and what isn’t. Instead of seeking help on social media, seek professional help.