What We Can Learn From Tom Holland’s Social Media Break
The ‘Spider-Man’ actor is taking a break from social media – Tom Holland’s reason why gives us something good to think about.
The high visibility of social media comes with myriad benefits. But if you’ve been on the internet for more than ten seconds, you know it’s not all fanfic and Jorts the Cat. We all have had to find an equilibrium between using social media for good or evil in our personal lives – knowing when to step away is a valuable tool for anyone in this day and age. And it’s important to pay attention when people talk about the effects of social media on mental health.
Tom Holland is Taking a Break
On Saturday, Holland returned to social media to promote stem4, an organization aimed at providing resources and awareness to support teen mental health. stem4 is the host of a series of apps to help teenagers navigate their struggles with anxiety, depression, self-harm, and more. The organization also has a program to help schools connect with teens on mental health issues.
He’s supporting stem4 through his family-based charity The Brothers Trust, which sees all four Holland brothers working to support charities that take on everything from generational poverty to muscular dystrophy.
Tom Elaborates in Instagram Video
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“I have taken a break from social media for my mental health because I find Instagram and Twitter to be overstimulating, to be overwhelming. I get caught up and I spiral when I read things about me online. And ultimately, it’s very detrimental to my mental state so I decided to take a step back and delete the app.”
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Normalize Talking About Mental Health
It’s easy to brush off the impact of a statement like that – after all, we all take social media breaks when we need them (or try to, at least). But Holland’s use of the term mental health and his honest description of what it feels like is a big deal. That’s a really vulnerable thing to share with the world when it’s estimated that 40% of men in the UK, where Holland is from, are unwilling to talk about their mental health with friends or loved ones. An influential person talking about mental health takes some Spider-Man-level bravery and we’re here for it.
via Marvel
Holland isn’t the first Avenger to talk about mental health. Chris Evans has talked openly about his struggles with anxiety. It’s a big deal when you think about kids and adults alike loving Evans for his portrayal of an iconic American masculine hero. Andrew Garfield aka The Amazing Spiderman has shared the raw emotion of losing his mother to cancer several times, and how that grief has affected him.
When influential stars put themselves out there like that, it dispels the stigma around men and mental health. Holland may not be suiting up as Spider-Man these days, but I find his choice to care for his mental health pretty damn heroic.
