Does social media have a negative or positive impact on children'smental health? Be specific and cite examples in your response.

Social media can have a positive and a negative impact on children's mental health. It depends on how you make use of it. Are you using it for a limited amount of time to socialize with family and friends here and there? Or constantly refreshing your messages and news feeds because there's nothing better to do? Now, if you use it for a limited amount of time and socialize here and there, there's absolutely nothing wrong with it because a world without socializing would be very difficult to live in, and technology is an advancement, so why misuse it? But then there's many people who will constantly be refreshing their messages, news feeds and be looking for wifi wherever they go and that's wrong because surprisingly, there's a world outside social networking! 

We're constantly torturing our brain with hours and hours of constant use of social media, and we forget the people around us we're neglecting and the nature around us we're forgetting. Personally, I believe the olden times were better where you would have to get up to go see your friend and actually get a walk/drive and refresh your mind and get work done, however now all you need to do is sit near a power outlet where there's good wifi and you can charge your phone and always be sitting in that one corner socializing all day long. 

Don't get me wrong if you're thinking I'm against socializing because I'm a very frequent user of Facebook.. Twitter... Instagram.. etc, but what the problem is that with every advantage a disadvantage appears as well. For example, watching all these pretty, perfect models out there, there's times you wanna be just like them and start hating your own self image, but don't forget, more than half the things online are edited, just like more than half the models are photoshopped! Another example, where you see all these luxurious items and go like "Omg, I wish I had this Lamborghini" or like "Omg I wish I had these shoes, or this dress", but forget to appreciate what you actually do have compared to many others who don't. We constantly compare ourselves to what social media shows us, and that definitely affects our mental health. 

Another negative impact is the constant anxiety on not missing out on anything. There's times even I have had it, and wherever I go I tend to look for wifi so I can get an update on what's going on in the world or in my friends' lives, but I forget to enjoy the time with the people around me at that time rather than sitting back with a phone right in my face. Apart from wasting so much time, new things like cyberbullying and online safety have also showed up. We all act like we know exactly what we're doing but the type of language we use, or the wrong terms to address people we use, or even the things we post, we forget that the whatever goes on the internet once can never be deleted. It may be "hidden" from friends or family, but it can be easily retrieved. Despite what we do ourselves, there are other people on the internet who can harm us. For example, people who portray themselves as your age and as a "friend" but end up being a 50 year old pedophile? It's a common crime people commit without realizing, and it's a common mistake for victims to fall for it as well, all these online safety hazards, etc also affect our mental health. 

Now the good side to every bad side, in this case the social media can also be a good source of awareness. Websites like www.gofundme.com are a great example on how the world can donate to make lives better. For example, the recent earthquake in Nepal that took away many lives, is one of the ways the world has come together in raising money and sending aid to rebuild Nepal, and help those whose lives have been shattered. If social media didn't exist, it would probably take days for news to get to places like Canada that are half way around the world, but today we're able to get the most recent news updates and actually be able to help the world and make a difference. 

Clearly, there are more negative impacts, but along with some positives. Again, I believe in how you use the social media and if the gained is worth more than the lost. However, I personally would prefer a world with decreased social media usage, but as the world advances and technology increases, I hope we would also be able to increase our knowledge on mental health and contribute to cures.