GRAND FORKS – Mental health misinformation on social media platforms has led to an increase in students self-diagnosing, according to the Grand Forks Public Schools behavioral health and wellness director.
Amy Geinert has observed a rise in students seeking mental health information from social media. She said while social media has opened important conversations about mental health, it can lead to students receiving inaccurate or out-of-context information, sometimes resulting in incorrect self-diagnoses.
“Some students are misdiagnosing themselves or self-diagnosing and don’t really have the full picture,” she said. “Instead of turning to a school counselor, trusted adult or someone that has that training, they might be looking more to social media to figure out ‘what do I do with this?’”
According to
research from the Pew Research Center in 2024
, 96% of teens reported using the internet daily and nearly half of all teenagers said they use the internet “almost constantly,” a percentage that has doubled since 2015. Along with the increased use of the internet and social platforms, a
2020 study from the National Library of Medicine
found that false information spreads faster on social media than true information. As teens are spending more time online and as false information is spreading more rapidly, they are exposed to increased amounts of misinformation.
For students on social media, they can encounter health misinformation in the form of false facts or they can be presented with experiences that are taken out of context. Geinert said social media influencers will often highlight specific traits and link those to mental health diagnoses, which can lead teenagers who exhibit those traits to feel like something is wrong with them even in cases where students are experiencing very developmentally normal emotions.
“Lots of people get nervous about a test, lots of people can experience some difficulty when they move somewhere else or experience some social awkwardness,” she said. “There can be a bit of that that all of us experience and if that’s the only thing that we’re seeing is part of someone’s diagnosis on (social media), then it can seem like ‘I’ve had that a few times in my life; I must have this diagnosis also.’”
Geinert also said that mental health information on social media is often focused on how mental health diagnoses affect a person’s life, rather than highlighting coping skills and advice for how those struggling can get assistance.
“It’s just more misinformation and nothing about what to actually do about it, how to actually help themselves,” she said.
However, it is possible for students to engage with mental health information on social media in ways that are beneficial and supportive, Geinert said. She said not all of the information online is harmful to students, and in many cases can destigmatize conversations about mental health and push students to seek help when they are struggling.
“Some of these platforms can be really liberating and can maybe help someone really feel some relief,” she said. “I don’t think that technology or social media is in and of itself bad. I think it’s all of what we do with it. So I do think that it’s opened up some more conversations about mental health.”
If students are getting health information from social media, Geinert noted the importance of checking online sources and seeking information from professional organizations to fact-check and get important context.
As the behavioral health and wellness director, Geinert trains staff on how to best engage in mental health conversations with students. She said that when students come to staff with a self-diagnosis, it’s important not to dismiss the conversation simply because their information originated from social media.
“I always encourage some openness and some empathy and understanding, some curiosity,” she said. “I think that curiosity gets us a lot further than starting with ‘never trust Tiktok.’ … We want to open up conversation so that we can provide some other information.”
For parents of students on social media, Geinert said starting conversations with their teens can be daunting, especially if they feel they don’t have all the answers. However, she emphasized that the best thing a parent or guardian can do is be curious, and that there are various resources and organizations in Grand Forks that offer mental health support.
“They don’t have to know all of the answers in order to start the conversations with their kids,” she said. “ … To start out with being curious in those conversations with their kids, that’s a great starting spot.”
Sophia is the K-12 education reporter for the Grand Forks Herald.
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