Instagram, one of the largest online photo-sharing social platforms in the nation, has created a new feature to help aid people dealing with mental illness.
With the new feature applied, users will be able to anonymously flag a photo if they deem that the poster of the photo needs mental assistance.
After the picture is flagged, the poster will receive a message that reads, “Someone saw one of your posts and thinks that you might be going through a difficult time. If you need support, we’d like to help.” After receiving this message, they will receive different options to get further assistance.
In today's society, “mental illness” is one of, if not the most, taboo topics, according to Catherine Agati, a senior at Lee who says has struggled with mental illness herself.
One in five Americans struggles with some form of a mental illness daily, according to Instagram’s press release.
Those same individuals do not feel as if they can be vulnerable enough to share what they are going through with someone without feeling a sense of not being accepted, stated the release.
Brooke Weaver is the president of Say Something on campus, an organization dedicated to raising mental health awareness.
“When I found out about it, I was very shocked just because I never expected a social media site, in general, to come up with something like this,” Weaver said. “I myself never even thought of doing something like this.”
Keeping in mind the sensitive nature of struggling with a form of mental illness, Instagram has partnered with the National Eating Disorders Association and the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline in the hopes of creating a message that is reassuring as opposed to being presumptuous.
“I am encouraged to see their partnership with NSPH and NEDA, which gives me hope that the intervention would be appropriate if someone did need assistance regarding a mental health situation,” said Steve Knapp, a staff counselor at Lee University’s Counseling Center.
Knapp went on to say, “I would continue to re-affirm the most efficient intervention at that moment is for someone who knows that person expressing a mental health concern on social media to address it directly rather than have a third party intervene.”
Aside from just having the flag for review feature, Instagram has also modified the hashtag feature to help combat mental illnesses. If one searches for hashtags that associate with anything in or around mental illness, a vast majority of them will be blocked.
For the ones that are still available for viewing, mental health help options will still pop up.
Questions have been raised as to whether or not this feature can actually be beneficial for someone dealing with mental health issues.
“I think this is a gateway. No feature is going to provide all the help a person needs, but it encourages support and also provides potential resources for receiving help,” said Anna Leigh Mayfield, a Lee University student who advocates for mental health awareness.
Mayfield felt it was important not to hide behind a report button.
“Make that personal connection, and let someone know you care. If you think someone is struggling with something, don't just use Instagram, reach out and talk to them. If they are a stranger online, there is such thing as private messaging,” Mayfield said.
