The American supermodel, Bella Habib, a 25-year-old woman, has revealed her real mental health issues on Instagram posts. She has posted her tearful pictures on social media stating that this happens to be her general state of mind in real life, morning and night. This popular celebrity followed by 47 million Instagram followers, has brought out to light the dichotomy or contrast between social media reality and real-life reality. She confirms that her life is imperfect and full of sadness for years now, the way human lives could be.
In contrast, social media portrays perfect lives. This bridge between reality and the seeming reality can be bridged only by strengthening humans through resilience training; training of their minds and making them resilient so that they can thrive in the face of the imperfections of the human lives; the imperfections that have been covered and hidden up by modern-day social media. This gap can be bridged by imparting Positive Education to children from young age.
Bella Habib has walked the red carpet all radiant and confident and looked surreal in terms of happiness and success. But the looks have been deceptive in telling her real story. As she and many more celebrities have portrayed, like Simone Biles, who withdrew from Tokyo Olympics this year, it is not easy to handle success. In spite of being at high places, these celebrities feel they are incapable of handling their emotions and performances against pressure; they lack resilience.
This shows that our education system has undisputedly missed out on such an important aspect of growing up. We teach how to be successful but not what it takes to be happy there.
There are character strengths and skills that can help people avoid or overcome such miserable plights. Resilience and prudence, bravery and honesty, and other such skills can make the arduous journey of professional competition easier. Gratitude and kudos to Bella Habib, for that she came out to talk about her mental health issues.
Having said that, in today’s ambition driven times, to give its due to Positive Psychology and resilience skills, we must take up the supportive subject of Positive Education seriously and start imparting such education without fail for lives, young lives, are too valuable to lose. In the social media-dominated world the portrayal of perfection can actually be toxic. The drawing of the line is imperative in a world where kids spend most of their free time online. Games even are online now, curbing down the real play which is indispensable for the wellbeing of kids. The physical activity and fresh air that is crucial for the growing up of children is replaced by the toxic air of social media. And the way the media affects children cannot be ignored. They must be trained well to handle performance pressures and the pressure of competition, and also be trained on real grounds. They must be able to see with clarity and master the art of perspective and judgment of what is real and useful and what is cosmetic and harmful. Young people are no longer left out of the toxic loop of stress, rather it can be said that they are the most affected today with the rising social media tantrums and stresses.
Yet, it is also to be acknowledged that social media is a useful tool and can be productive if kids are armed with the skills to use self-regulation, judgment, prudence, etc. and if they know where to draw the healthy lines.
Here are a few character strengths that can be imparted through Positive Education and can be instrumental for kids in the social media dominated environment of the day:
Prudence: Prudence is the art of making the right choices, and using restraint to avoid unnecessary risks. This is so important in the constant threat that online lives have posed to children these days. Children could use restraint and caution, and with this strength guide their actions and decisions. They would be in a much safer zone. Thus prudence is crucial for resilience training.
Bravery: Needless to say, bravery is a trait or attitude that keeps one more resilient and ready for dynamic challenges posed by social media. They would be able to interact with confidence and respond in the interest of their self-preservation. Positive Education teaches children to be courageous and speak about their issues with ease. This makes them more stable.
Perspective: Educating children to see the larger picture and broaden their perspective surely would result in less obsession and dependency on social media. They would be able to understand the importance of a balance of everything in life; and that everything has a place in life. They would be encouraged to take interest in other things like outdoor sports, and personal hobbies. When stuck in a situation of rejection, or facing the tough competition of the media, they would be able to see the situation in the larger picture and would not be driven to the edge, in turn being forced to feel miserable or take wrong steps.
Honesty: Honesty is a strength that could bring the children to grow into confident, real people portraying themselves as who they are and not faking it. This would take away a lot of pressure from the need to be someone else and match up to others. They would also be encouraged to share their experiences and social media hazards with their parents, friends etc. Honest communication can lead to much peace and resilience.
Social Intelligence: Kids should also be aware of the need to be in control of their emotions as the difference between the reel world and the real world can bring about emotional turbulence. Social media can make life lonely and this has been seen in the example of Bella Habib. It is definitely a character strength to be able to handle one’s emotions intelligently and to be able to understand others emotions at the same time, for fruitful communication.
Self-regulation: Self-regulation can team up with prudence to make a life for kids much smoother. Being wise about their choices and then being in control of their actions and resisting temptations so that they are able to act on those decisions can be taught through the virtue of self-regulation. Positive Education, in this way, lets them be calculative while using social media, and also balance their real lives with digital lives.
Self-care: With self-care, children can grow up as someone who keeps their wellbeing and sanity on priority. Through Positive Education, they acquire the habit to be in tune with themselves and learn that feeling good is their right and is also a basic necessity in life. That everything comes after them and that they are the centre of their lives; the world is well if they are well. This way, they are able to take care of themselves and focus on themselves even when things are overwhelming.
Thus, in a nutshell, the pressure of cosmetic social media is rising and as our kids grow, they would need real strengths to stay up happy there. Thus, this is the time Positive Education and resilience training is most needed. Get them armed!