TikTok launched a new mental health awareness site to let users learn about wellness-related issues, engage with activists, and support organisations that offer crucial assistance.
Users must visit the page for the hashtag #MentalHealthAwareness and touch on the link in the description to access the new hub.
Throughout the month of May, the hub will be updated to feature fresh instructional videos, producers that focus on mental health and wellbeing, and groups working to increase public awareness of mental health.
The Alliance for Eating Disorders, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, Crisis Text Line, Made of Millions, National Alliance on Mental Illness, National Eating Disorders Association, and Peer Health Exchange are among the organisations receiving TikTok's over $2 million in ad credits donation.
In addition, TikTok will hold a number of training sessions to provide its partners with the skills they need to teach their communities around important times like back-to-school time or World Mental Health Day in October.
“Through continued collaboration with mental health organizations, content creators and our TikTok community, we continue to raise awareness and foster a space where everyone can feel heard and supported — during #MentalHealthAwareness Month and beyond,” TikTok wrote in a blog post.
“We believe that everyone deserves access to resources and support for their mental well-being, and we are dedicated to continuously learning, evolving, and making a difference.”
Ten creators, including @asoulcalledjoel, @dr.kojosarfo, @elainaefird, @elysemyers, @joelbervell, @lindsay.fleminglpc, @nutritionbykylie, @thepsychodoctormd, @therapyjeff, and @victoriabrowne, will be featured on TikTok as part of this initiative.
TikTok has come under fire in recent years for the app's effects on its youngest users. In congressional hearings held more than a year ago, executives from social media companies, including TikTok, were questioned by lawmakers about the potential harm that their services can do to young users. Additionally, experts have voiced worry about how TikTok can exacerbate the teen mental health epidemic in the United States.
The American Psychological Association (APA), in response to growing worries about how social networks intended for adults might negatively affect teens, this week released its first-ever health recommendation on social media. This coincides with TikTok's new mental health awareness campaigns.
The APA's advice emphasises the importance of parents, but it also criticises algorithms that steer children towards potentially harmful information, such as articles that encourage self-harm, disordered eating, racism, and other forms of online hatred.
The APA advises parents to exercise extra caution to avoid social media affecting children's sleep patterns and physical activity, both of which have a significant and negative influence on their mental health.
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