Psychologist Nitasha Bajlani says that cyberbullying and sexting can affect the mental health of young people and lead to depression.
Dr Bijlani, of Roehampton Priory Hospital in the UK, says he fears that online bullying will lead to an increase in self-harm among young people and adults in the coming years.
They say that children often do not tell anyone about the abuse they are subjected to and therefore may suffer from mental disorders later in life.
NSPCC, a charity working for the welfare of children, says that in such cases, children should be given immediate help.
Dr. Bajlani says sexting is seen by some as the new way of love, but it and online bullying can have far-reaching and devastating consequences.
“There is a need to focus on how young people are made aware of the dangers of sending objectionable images of themselves to others.”
He says that the trend of sexting is increasing and we don’t know what the far-reaching consequences will be.
Dr. Bajlani’s statements are based on recent research that has shown an increase in the number of children affected by mental disorders.
According to statistics, in 2014, more than 17,000 children were admitted to hospitals due to psychiatric disorders, which is a hundredfold increase compared to the previous four years.
More than 15,000 teenage girls were hospitalized for self-harm, compared to 9,000 in 2004.
According to recent figures released by the UK’s Office for National Statistics, one in five young people aged 16 to 24 have symptoms of depression, anxiety or stress.
Dr. Bajlani says that these are the youth who are among the first users of social media.
Peter Wanless, from the NSPCC, said: ‘Increasing numbers of children with mental illness are contacting the Childline hotline and it is worrying that there are no adequate government arrangements to help them. are.’
“If we continue to ignore this problem, there is a fear that an entire generation may be affected by it,” he added.