Socially Silent: my relationship with social media - Siena Wescott-Toi | TEDxYouth@Haileybury

I think this video is helpful reminder for all who use social media, but especially for teens.

1. Over the pandemic, we've seen an overall increase in tech use, which has been helpful in the short-term to manage our frustrations with the current state of the world. The presenter, reflects on her own social media use as helping her to escape, which I think we can all relate to. This relates to my work with individuals with substance use concerns, as they will often describe their use as a form of "numbing" or "escaping" from reality.

2. The presenter describes in passing that she was not mindful, while on social media initially. I think this is important for all, as high-risk tech use can come up from mindlessly/automatically scrolling through our devices.

3. This video is helpful for youth as it describes the benefits she has seen since moderating her relationship with social media, and using it as a form of communication, and not escaping. I think this can be even more powerful, as we can often get stuck in a realm of "all use is bad use", when really, out relationship matters most.