The problem with Instagram therapy: Why 30-second healing is making us less emotionally wise

Mental health concepts and jargon are being openly talked about today as compared to 10 years ago. The society has become much more aware of the issues at heart, yet they hardly truly understand mental and emotional health. Both aspects have stemmed from the increased exposure to social media. Endless hours of Reels on emotions and feelings have educated them about what matters, but this does not mean that they have gained deep knowledge on the matter. Damini Grover, a psychologist and the founder of the I’m powered Centre For counselling and well-being, says, “Today, people can see the ways other people relate to them (psychological terms), but have a hard time dealing with their own feelings. They can repeat healing content verbatim, yet be more anxious, alone and emotionally fragile.”

What data says about mental health among youth

The biggest consumer of this content is the youth, and data shows they are also the ones with historically high rates of distress, anxiety, and depression. They have become well-versed in "therapy speak" - using terms like toxic, gaslighting, narcissist, and trauma - and are extremely aware of mental health issues and working actively to dismantle stigmas around it. The American Psychological Association (APA) states that Gen Z individuals are more likely to report mental health concerns (eg, depression and anxiety) than previous generations. A 2022 survey of 1055 Gen Z adults showed that 1 out of 4 reported having more bad days than good in a month. Up to 40% of employed Gen Z individuals report experiencing symptoms of anxiety or depression multiple times every week. But, does that necessarily mean they are suffering from depression or are just sad? Could overexposure to social media content have exaggerated simple everyday emotions?

Why 30-second Reels are not therapy

Simply quoting Instagram posts does not mean that people can genuinely work through their inner chaos based on everything they have seen online. There is a lot more that goes into improving mental health. Complex psychological concepts have been commodified and oversimplified into "viral" content. This has led to the society becoming fluent in "therapy speak", where we think we know about mental health just because we watched endless content on it. However, the truth is, merely spending time on a 30-second Reel cannot impart emotional wisdom. This is leading to the misuse of psychological language and the overreliance on simplified self-help advice.

Normal life issues being looked at through diagnostic lens

Therapy speak is creating problems for the generation that is actively consuming content from social media, believing that everything they are seeing is the end-all, since they can connect with it. But Damini says, there are plenty of ways in which society is getting negatively impacted. She says, “Of course, genuine mental health issues must be acknowledged and supported. But today, every emotional distress is being viewed through a clinical or diagnostic lens. This can lead people to be afraid of normal human emotions rather than learn to work through them.” So in some cases, “sadness becomes clinical depression, and standard nervousness is labelled an anxiety disorder” when clinically, there is much more to these problems.

Hyper-individualism

Damini says another problem with this self-help content is the “increasingly individualistic, unhealthy culture of self-help.” She asserts, “The emphasis can often be 100% on self-protection, self-preservation and ‘cutting negativity off’ sometimes at the expense of empathy, repair and relational maturity.” People are failing to see the difference between real harm and the inevitable friction that exists in all close relationships. So while trying to "protect one's peace”, we often end up cutting others off and running away at the first sign of discomfort.

What real healing looks like

The reality is that real healing looks different from what we see on social media. “It takes time and isn’t quick and easy,” Damini says. “It has ambiguity, discomfort, patience, grief, self-reflection, and sometimes confronting parts of ourselves that are not easy to accept.” We shouldn’t be diagnosing everyone or labelling behaviours, and should instead “build psychological flexibility, emotional awareness, and better coping strategies.” The solution is not to ban mental health content since it is important to talk about it, as it also makes people feel seen. What is needed is actual psychological work. “Real emotional well-being isn't about memorising therapy terminology. It is constructed by learning how to understand ourselves, communicate honestly, take accountability and engage with others with both boundaries and compassion,” Damini says.