In a year where everything has appeared to weigh even more heavily than usual on our minds it’s critically important to talk about the subject of mental health.

Social media and the rise of it has also coincided with the apparent upward trend of those suffering with depression and anxiety. Perhaps this is linked with the constant need for instant gratification or likes for the overall fight towards being noticed. As a modern author I am a regular player on the social media scene and sometimes it takes its toll mentally. Whether it be from a bad interaction or a lack of ‘likes’, many times have I been pushed to the point of deleting apps and going dark for a while – that’s my coping mechanism sometimes and it can be referred to self-care which is the practise of preserving and protecting your own mental health in any way you see fit. Sometimes with social media and anything else that might cause some level of mental health trigger it’s best to take a step back.

While I’ve given social media a somewhat bad light initially, and yes it has many potential toxic and depression causing drawbacks it is also a truly wonderful tool for communication. Social media might be the modern wonder of humanity when it comes to reaching others and so with that in mind never before have we be in such a wonderful position to talk about mental health, not only to normalise it but help bring others out of the dark and stigma that its’s okay to not be okay.

From depression and anxiety caused from real world issues outside of the internet such as work, family, friends or just trying to navigate yourself through this world in which we live, all the way to that social media or virtual world triggered depression, I stand beside anyone who is not feeling okay mentally and I implore you to do the same.

Today is World Mental Health Day and while I cannot be with many of my friends and family right now, I’m still thinking of them.

We can be so much more than we are.