Hunsicker 1
Paige Hunsicker
Professor Rawashdeh
English 1201 DG
5 October 2023
Journal 5: Social Media and Mental Health
FOMO, also called Fear of Missing Out, can greatly impact people’s mental well-being.
For many, social media is the leading cause of feeling this way. On apps like Instagram and
Snapchat, someone may experience FOMO from seeing posts of their friends having fun without
them, or from seeing people that they don’t even know doing fun activities. Social media is such
a huge cause of FOMO because of the way people post on social media. People share their best
moments, the most aesthetically pleasing or impressive photos, photos that make it look like their
life is nothing but positive. When others on social media see these exaggerated positive
narratives, they may feel like they aren’t living life the way that they “should be”, as their life
isn’t as fun and exciting as the (often fabricated) lives they see on social media.
I personally deal with FOMO in my own life. It is not as severe now as it has been in the
past, as a lot has changed within my life and my relationships in the past year, but it used to get
bad. It negatively impacted both my mental state and important relationships in my life. A lot of
it stemmed from insecurities, as when I saw my friends hanging out without me, I would feel like
they hated me, that they had so much more fun without me, and that they would no longer want
to make plans with me. I still to this day never say no to any plans people want to make with me,
regardless of whether I am actually interested or in the mood for the plans, because of the Fear of
Missing Out.
Hunsicker 2
Social media can influence mental health both for good and bad. FOMO is one negative
way. Another is cyberbullying and negativity, as people say mean things on the internet much
more than they do in real life. Positively, social media connects all different kinds of people from
around the world, allowing people to make new friends that they would have never been able to
meet otherwise. This allows people to build new, valuable relationships and find similar people
to them.
Social media clearly has both its benefits and drawbacks. But how can a balance between
these things be found? It is up to the individual. We can use social media, but not let it overcome
us. Look at the good, and do not take to heart the bad. Remember that someone’s social media
presence isn’t always who they really are. We must try not to let social media harm our real
lives.