After watching Sherry Turkle’s TedTalk Connected but Alone and reading Sam Knapton’s blog post about technological loneliness I looked up why people feel so lonely when online. Of
course, it has a lot to do with wanting to be online and not having a lot of
human connection. When I was looking this up I saw an article called Are YouFeeling Lonely? Online Counseling is Here to Help.
I have seen these types of
counseling all over the internet. YouTubers have sponsored ads on their
channels and promote it on other social media. A lot of people when they were
in high school/now (in college) make friends online whether it is by video
games, discord, or chatrooms. Yet, loneliness can be found whether or not they
have friends in person or if they are online. In the article, Nicola
Kirkpatrick said: “The two main mental health disorders associated with
loneliness are depression and social anxiety.” I thought this was eye-opening
because Turkle spoke about people feeling this sense of loneliness and anxiety
which was connected to being online.
Turkle spoke about how people feel
like nobody was listening. When people feel that way they then turn to social
media like Facebook and Twitter, yet they don’t feel any better. I understand
what online counseling can do for some people. Yet, is this enabling them to
stay by themselves rather than going out and talking to someone in person?
Could online counseling be adding to their loneliness? One thing that might be
appealing to our generation is being able to open up to a professionally trained
stranger by writing to them or video chatting them online instead of leaving
their comfort zone. I keep asking myself is that as beneficial as someone going
into a counseling center and talking to somebody in person?
I think it will help to an extent
and then it is up to the client, yet that is the case with in-person counseling
as well. Although, I feel like there could be more help with in-person because
the client will be getting out of their comfort zone and off of the internet.
They could also come to a point where group therapy could be beneficial to them
too. Group therapy would generally be in person and that is a great way to know
that you are not alone, meet new people, and make friends. I believe that both
of them have great aspects, but in-person would help a little bit more. Yet,
more and more apps come out, there are a greater amount of counseling apps. Having
more is wonderful, but when is it going to be enough? Are we going to make an
app for everything we need that is there for us in real life just because it
would be easier?
I never thought that I would feel alone online, but come to think of it, after reading this I can recognize times where I felt like I was alone. Simplistically, we've created apps to feel more connected. We use social media to stay in contact with friends and family when we cannot interact with them face-to-face. The whole purpose of creating these apps for social media was to eliminate the feeling of being disconnected. As we have learned, there has been a lot more to it. I know that sometimes when I feel lonely, validation is something that I look for. Posting a picture on social media can bring attention to your online life and bring positive feedback. I know that sometimes I find myself doing this for that validation, but don't entirely receive what I want in return. I find myself caring about the amount of likes I get, and sometimes even comparing it to other people's likes. If I don't get a certain amount, the validation I wanted from the start will not fully be satisfied. This will make me feel as if I am not good enough to get the amount of likes that other people on my feed might have. This can leave a certain feeling of not being good enough. That is just a small example of feeling lonely online. Another example is that I actually went home for the weekend for a wedding, but I rarely leave Plymouth. It was hard for me to watch snap chats of all my friends being together having fun while I stay at home and try to get all my homework done. I agree with you, I feel since we have apps that serve for just about anything these days, counseling might be effective online. I feel that people are more open to share their feelings and can articulate their thoughts more when they are online. Sometimes it's hard to be completely honest during face-to-face counseling because you have the other person's reactions right in front of you. I think that it would be good to try out something like online counseling, and I have no doubt that it will become prominent in our society.
ReplyDeleteThe point you brought up about the unwillingness to leave one’s comfort zone was really good. In my opinion, any kind of counseling’s success should always begin with the resolve to change oneself for the better. If you don’t even have the resolve to leave your comfort zone, in this case your room, to walk yourself to a counseling center then you’re definitely not ready to change, which renders the entire prospect of online counseling unfruitful. While it could be argued that for many people, the anxiety associated with socializing is so severe that any face-to-face contact with another human being might become unbearable, we have wonder if counsel is truly what they need, if their situation is that bad. Any mental issue that have reached such a state would most likely require professional medical attention.
ReplyDeleteThis topic is especially relevant nowadays since many advertisements on social media are promoting online counseling for more and more affordable prices with “professional counselors” with less and less credibility. The question of whether online counseling works or not is an important one to ask, or else we might add even more to the already substantial rate of mental illnesses in the US.