Facebook Stress

27 February 2012, 06:00 | Updated: 30 March 2016, 13:50

Increasing amounts of young people in the East Midlands are being affected by stress caused by social networking sites.

This stress, often caused by bullying, is leading more young people to consider self-harm and suicide.
The research was carried out by charity Relate Derby and Southern Derbyshire.
Peter Saddington, counselor for Relate, said: "Before when children were talking about bullying it was quite often occurring in school. Other people would see, other people would be aware. There was more opportunity for adults or others to intervene.
"If things are being passed around on facebook there is no escape from it, and it becomes an increasingly difficult thing for young people to cope with.

"We're seeing an increase in young people talking about suicidal thoughts or using self harm as a way of coping with very stressful things."
The ability of young people to be able to follow people who they idolize on twitter also raised issues.
They can end up devoting a lot of time and attention to people they look up to, which can be helpful, but can also be a distraction, as it can mean that they devote too much time to this and don't get on with more productive things.
Family life and worries about the future are also contributing to increased stress in 13 to 18 year olds.
Relate is one of the largest providers of counseling for young people, and further research has shown that mental health issues are increasingly bringing more young people into the counseling room.

Emma Yates, Service Manager for Relate Derby's Children and Young People's service, Safe Speak, said: "Relate often sees young people when they have got to the point of feeling very frustrated they have many feelings they don't understand and don't know how to deal with.
"The most important thing we can offer is a chance for them to talk and express how they are feeling."
For more information or advice visit www.relate.org.uk