“I wish that I could say I’m proud. I’m sorry.”
Those were the last words that managed to come out of her mouth, as her eyes were now dry from all the tears she fought to hold back. Slowly but writhing in pain, she dropped the android phone. That night, that very influencer on the bird app killed her. Not with a gun or a spear. Not with a knife or a rope. Not by poisoning. He murdered her that very moment he trended the “AT 23” topic. She was just an innocent lady trying to survive. He was just an innocent guy trying to get engagements. She lay there in her own pool, as she breathed her last. It was her thirtieth birthday!
Just like Tolulope, the lady up there, many are fighting depression and low self-esteem because of what they see every day on social media. From fear of missing out, to fear of being a failure, to cyberbullying, we’ve seen many confused souls pick up a journey into a life in yonder. There are perhaps, no truer assertions to the claim that social media can greatly affect our mental health. There is a fine but myopic line between SM and depression or loneliness.
Although there are lots of positive aspects of social media. The negative ones, have a way of ruining the day. Of course, only those affected can testify. Social media has a unique way of bringing in inadequacy about one’s life and/or appearance. With lots of users living a fake life online, one may be left with no choice, but to ignorantly view oneself as a waste or total failure.
New trends emerge every day that gives room for one to showcase one’s accomplishments. Instead of tweeting and leaving, most of these guys do not become satisfied, if they have not yet said a depressing thing to other guys on the social media street for not having one or two of what they feel is an achievement, forgetting the country itself is enough to bring suicidal thoughts to one’s mind.
With that we see every day online, one may be tempted to ask whether social media is a place to celebrate one’s achievement. The question itself is, Must you post it? What is your motive for posting what you want to put out? To show people that there’s no limit to what they can’t achieve or what? To pepper those you feel are your competitors? What exactly is your motive?
One the other note, it is however important to know that what rocks a neighbour’s boat, may sink one’s, and what is sauce for the goose, is most times, not sauce for the gander. The best competition is the one one has with oneself. Nothing beats that!
#SayNoToSuicidalThoughts
OKEDARA SAMUEL.
Bio:
I am a student of the Faculty of Law, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.
I’m a Mental Health Advocate, a Screenwriter, and a Storyteller.
Twitter. @s_okedara
IG. @s_okedara
FB. Samuel Okedara