9 ms·

Growing up, I knew maybe two or three kids that had emotional problems. Now (as an adult with grown kids) I hardly know any families that don’t have such a per

by DougN7 3y ago

Growing up, I knew maybe two or three kids that had emotional problems. Now (as an adult with grown kids) I hardly know any families that don’t have such a person. I’m sure part of it is we’re more open, which is great, but I can’t attribute all of it to that. The rising generation is really struggling. My guess is social media, but maybe it’s environmental pollution or something similar. I live in the US for what it’s worth.

barelyauser 3y ago
The system does not care for their well being because they are redundant. Drug use was frowned upon during the Cold War because we needed people to win a industrial war against a much bigger enemy. We don't need them anymore, so the system does not care if they end overdosing in an alleyway. It is all connected, culture, social and economical.
- Racing0461 3y ago
  damn. this is it. canada just passed a law saying people can get physician assisted suicide (maid) for drug problems.
  - JellyBeanThief 3y ago
    I'm conflicted about it. On the one hand, I'm angry that society would simply give up and leave people behind. On the other hand, societies have always done that in one rationalized way or another, and at least this way is slightly more honest and compassionate.
    - Racing0461 3y ago
      Game of thrones had the wall to send unwanted men to. Looks like westeros had more compassion than canada.
logicchains 3y ago
>My guess is social media, but maybe it’s environmental pollution or something similar There are plenty of other countries that have just as much social media usage as the US but don't have the same widespread emotional dysfunction, so wouldn't that suggest that social media isn't to blame?
- rapind 3y ago
  > There are plenty of other countries that have just as much social media usage as the US but don't have the same widespread emotional dysfunction Are you sure? A quick search says otherwise. E.g Effect of social media on youth in [country]. I guess my search term is favouring a conclusion but not sure where / how to find proof of your claim.
- wordpad25 3y ago
  Cultural stigma against mental health issues is extremely ubiquitous outside the US This causes mental health issues to go unaddressed, but, ironically, it also helps in a way, because peer pressure certainly helps reinforce individual discipline to develop techniques to keep it together. Peer pressure is a very powerful motivator. For example fat shaming is certainly bullying but it's also certainly effective at discouraging overeating
  - malfist 3y ago
    > but it's also certainly effective at discouraging overeating I think you should back that statement up with a citation.
  - f001 3y ago
    Anecdotally it did not. Just introduced self-esteem issues and if anything pushed me to emotional eating. I know a few people in the same boat.
  - wolverine876 3y ago
    > fat shaming is certainly bullying but it's also certainly effective at discouraging overeating As far as I know, it just traumatizes people and discourages them from eating in front of the people shaming them. Then, as we all do, they relieve the trauma by using their usual coping mechanism - in their case, eating. It's just like hitting kids. It teaches them to avoid getting hit; they learn nothing about their behavior.
seoulmetro 3y ago
It's just a fashion to have issues at the moment. It comes with living a comfortable life. It's actually a blessing in disguise but can get annoying.
- Auracle 3y ago
  Teens literally put their (usually self diagnosed) conditions in their Instagram bios. That sort of thing used to be only something you’d share with close friends, if that. It was a big deal if someone let you know they had bipolar, depression, etc.
  - seoulmetro 3y ago
    That's because you can self-undiagnose just as easy. People think feelings are disorders.
failbuffer 3y ago
A good book on this is The Coddling of the American Mind. It argues several factors (including social media, safteyism, and the decline in unstructured play time) are responsible for the significant rise in young adult mental health issues that started around 2012. Good read.
- Toolbox1337 3y ago
  In my opinion, it's largely the result of poor economic conditions and rising inequality endemic to a broken system. Young people today are keenly aware that they will have significantly lesser quality of life than the generation that preceded them, while simultaneously having to work much harder to gain a fraction of it. Communism may have fallen over in the Soviet Union, but it looks as if Capitalism is destined to fall much the same way. It is just taking a little longer, and so, the fall will be a little harder too.
  - kridsdale3 3y ago
    The decade after 2012 was an enormously wealthy bull market.
    - DoktorDelta 3y ago
      Only for the people who could afford to gamble on the market. That accelerated the growth of inequality, which can be seen today.
  - mym1990 3y ago
    I don't know which 'young people' generation you are talking about but I don't think most of them are actively comparing themselves to previous generations. It is very difficult to accurately compare my quality of life vs say my mothers. Most people are just trying to live life and get by as best as they can. If anything, older generations belittle the younger ones with the 'you've got it easy' comments. Communism never really took off, so it didn't have far to fall. But nothing lasts forever, so surely capitalism and democracy will give way eventually(in some ways it already has).
ironic_comments 3y ago
[flagged]
anon-3988 3y ago
There's another phenomena that I have observed recently where people _want_ to be seen as "mentally ill".
martin82 3y ago
It's not social media. Mental diseases are metabolic diseases. It is the food that destroys our brains and even worse, our women eat shit even during pregnancy, so the brains of newborns already start out with defects. If we were eating a proper human diet (ie beef and eggs), we would not have these issues on this scale.
- InSteady 3y ago
  Beef and eggs cured my schizophrenia!
- jklinger410 3y ago
  Food quality, microplastics, other pollutants, unfiltered chemicals in the water supply, an inevitable outcome of late-stage capitalism, social media. Take your pick.
- merdaverse 3y ago
  Can confirm this is a bullshit theory. Eating beef and eggs did not help my depression years ago. In fact, going vegan has had a positive impact on my mental health.
jsbisviewtiful 3y ago
> My guess is social media Let's not scapegoat the real problems at play: climate disaster, the rise of authoritative leaders in democracies that use fear as their biggest selling point, crippling debt to merely exist in a healthy manner (in the US), disinformation turning friends and family into anti-vaxx Q-following idiots, capitalism squeezing blood out of every penny... The list goes on.

by DougN7 3y ago

barelyauser 3y ago

The system does not care for their well being because they are redundant. Drug use was frowned upon during the Cold War because we needed people to win a industrial war against a much bigger enemy. We don't need them anymore, so the system does not care if they end overdosing in an alleyway. It is all connected, culture, social and economical.

Racing0461 3y ago
damn. this is it. canada just passed a law saying people can get physician assisted suicide (maid) for drug problems.
- JellyBeanThief 3y ago
  I'm conflicted about it. On the one hand, I'm angry that society would simply give up and leave people behind. On the other hand, societies have always done that in one rationalized way or another, and at least this way is slightly more honest and compassionate.
  - Racing0461 3y ago
    Game of thrones had the wall to send unwanted men to. Looks like westeros had more compassion than canada.

logicchains 3y ago

>My guess is social media, but maybe it’s environmental pollution or something similar There are plenty of other countries that have just as much social media usage as the US but don't have the same widespread emotional dysfunction, so wouldn't that suggest that social media isn't to blame?

rapind 3y ago
> There are plenty of other countries that have just as much social media usage as the US but don't have the same widespread emotional dysfunction Are you sure? A quick search says otherwise. E.g Effect of social media on youth in [country]. I guess my search term is favouring a conclusion but not sure where / how to find proof of your claim.
wordpad25 3y ago
Cultural stigma against mental health issues is extremely ubiquitous outside the US This causes mental health issues to go unaddressed, but, ironically, it also helps in a way, because peer pressure certainly helps reinforce individual discipline to develop techniques to keep it together. Peer pressure is a very powerful motivator. For example fat shaming is certainly bullying but it's also certainly effective at discouraging overeating
- malfist 3y ago
  > but it's also certainly effective at discouraging overeating I think you should back that statement up with a citation.
- f001 3y ago
  Anecdotally it did not. Just introduced self-esteem issues and if anything pushed me to emotional eating. I know a few people in the same boat.
- wolverine876 3y ago
  > fat shaming is certainly bullying but it's also certainly effective at discouraging overeating As far as I know, it just traumatizes people and discourages them from eating in front of the people shaming them. Then, as we all do, they relieve the trauma by using their usual coping mechanism - in their case, eating. It's just like hitting kids. It teaches them to avoid getting hit; they learn nothing about their behavior.

seoulmetro 3y ago

It's just a fashion to have issues at the moment. It comes with living a comfortable life. It's actually a blessing in disguise but can get annoying.

Auracle 3y ago
Teens literally put their (usually self diagnosed) conditions in their Instagram bios. That sort of thing used to be only something you’d share with close friends, if that. It was a big deal if someone let you know they had bipolar, depression, etc.
- seoulmetro 3y ago
  That's because you can self-undiagnose just as easy. People think feelings are disorders.

failbuffer 3y ago

A good book on this is The Coddling of the American Mind. It argues several factors (including social media, safteyism, and the decline in unstructured play time) are responsible for the significant rise in young adult mental health issues that started around 2012. Good read.

Toolbox1337 3y ago
In my opinion, it's largely the result of poor economic conditions and rising inequality endemic to a broken system. Young people today are keenly aware that they will have significantly lesser quality of life than the generation that preceded them, while simultaneously having to work much harder to gain a fraction of it. Communism may have fallen over in the Soviet Union, but it looks as if Capitalism is destined to fall much the same way. It is just taking a little longer, and so, the fall will be a little harder too.
- kridsdale3 3y ago
  The decade after 2012 was an enormously wealthy bull market.
  - DoktorDelta 3y ago
    Only for the people who could afford to gamble on the market. That accelerated the growth of inequality, which can be seen today.
- mym1990 3y ago
  I don't know which 'young people' generation you are talking about but I don't think most of them are actively comparing themselves to previous generations. It is very difficult to accurately compare my quality of life vs say my mothers. Most people are just trying to live life and get by as best as they can. If anything, older generations belittle the younger ones with the 'you've got it easy' comments. Communism never really took off, so it didn't have far to fall. But nothing lasts forever, so surely capitalism and democracy will give way eventually(in some ways it already has).

ironic_comments 3y ago

[flagged]

anon-3988 3y ago

There's another phenomena that I have observed recently where people _want_ to be seen as "mentally ill".

martin82 3y ago

It's not social media. Mental diseases are metabolic diseases. It is the food that destroys our brains and even worse, our women eat shit even during pregnancy, so the brains of newborns already start out with defects. If we were eating a proper human diet (ie beef and eggs), we would not have these issues on this scale.

InSteady 3y ago
Beef and eggs cured my schizophrenia!
jklinger410 3y ago
Food quality, microplastics, other pollutants, unfiltered chemicals in the water supply, an inevitable outcome of late-stage capitalism, social media. Take your pick.
merdaverse 3y ago
Can confirm this is a bullshit theory. Eating beef and eggs did not help my depression years ago. In fact, going vegan has had a positive impact on my mental health.

jsbisviewtiful 3y ago

> My guess is social media Let's not scapegoat the real problems at play: climate disaster, the rise of authoritative leaders in democracies that use fear as their biggest selling point, crippling debt to merely exist in a healthy manner (in the US), disinformation turning friends and family into anti-vaxx Q-following idiots, capitalism squeezing blood out of every penny... The list goes on.