cheryl
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A Parent's Guide to Sadfishing, Explained by a Teenager - Parents
Sadfishing might not be a familiar word to you, but it is nothing new in the adolescent world. And you might actually be aware of this trend behind the name—it's been common ever since the inception of social media. Sadfishing is when someone exaggerates their emotional state in order to get sympathy or attention from an audience. Generally, this shows up on social media in different forms, whether that be in tweets, Instagram captions, or Facebook status updates. Sadfishing often capitalizes on sadness, hopelessness, and negativity, and it can be an extremely toxic echo chamber for teens to get caught in.
When I was 14 years old, my Facebook account was littered with posts stating things like, "I'm ready to just give up," or, "The sadness is too much and I just can’t take it anymore." I was depressed, but I wasn't going to tell anybody that in person. Sharing my struggles on social media was so much easier than approaching someone or asking for help, so I sought attention on the ever-anonymous and non-confrontational platform that is the internet. I'm not alone and I want to help parents learn how to recognize if their teen is sadfishing, why they are doing it, and navigate how to address it.
Sadfishing might not be a familiar word to you, but it is nothing new in the adolescent world. And you might actually be aware of this trend behind the name—it's been common ever since the inception of social media. Sadfishing is when someone exaggerates their emotional state in order to get sympathy or attention from an audience. Generally, this shows up on social media in different forms, whether that be in tweets, Instagram captions, or Facebook status updates. Sadfishing often capitalizes on sadness, hopelessness, and negativity, and it can be an extremely toxic echo chamber for teens to get caught in.
When I was 14 years old, my Facebook account was littered with posts stating things like, "I'm ready to just give up," or, "The sadness is too much and I just can’t take it anymore." I was depressed, but I wasn't going to tell anybody that in person. Sharing my struggles on social media was so much easier than approaching someone or asking for help, so I sought attention on the ever-anonymous and non-confrontational platform that is the internet. I'm not alone and I want to help parents learn how to recognize if their teen is sadfishing, why they are doing it, and navigate how to address it.