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O2 and YoungMinds launch #OwnYourFeed

Chris_K
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Leading mental health charity, YoungMinds, together with O2, has launched the #OwnYourFeed campaign this week to encourage young people to use social media in ways that are more positive for their mental health and wellbeing.


O2 research shows that 14-24 year-olds are one of the heaviest phone user groups, yet do have a clear understanding of the impact that social media can have on their mental health – with 77% recognising the need for a better relationship with tech and the online world.[1]


Co-created with young people, #OwnYourFeed runs for four weeks in January and will focus primarily on Instagram with a different theme for each week. There will also be a #OwnYourFeed online hub featuring stories and advice from 12 youth ambassadors and tips from O2 Gurus. In the first week young people are encouraged to ‘know’ their feed by thinking about the content they see on their social media, and how it makes them feel. ‘Know your feed’ centres around an interactive quiz that young people can take to find out what kind of social media feed they currently have, and how to make it a more positive place to be. In the following weeks, the campaign encourages young people to ‘clean’ their feed by unfollowing accounts that make them feel worse about themselves, and to build positive relationships with like-minded people.

Tom Madders, Director of Campaigns at YoungMinds, said: “Social media is an everyday part of life for most young people which can offer huge social and emotional benefits. But it can also put a lot of pressure on young people and make them feel worse about themselves, especially if they compare their own lives to the apparently perfect lives that others are leading. If you feel like your life doesn’t match up it can have a negative impact on your mental health.

“Young people tell us that they love being connected with social media and couldn’t be without it, they just want to be able to be online in a positive way. They tell us that sometimes their behaviour on social media and the content they see there can bring them down, but they’re not sure how to work out what’s going wrong, and what they can do to make their online world a better place to be.

“We hope that #OwnYourFeed will help young people to make their social media experience more positive and give them the tips and advice to take control of their online worlds.”

John, 18, YoungMinds activist, says: “I’ve noticed when my mental health hasn’t been so good, that I tend to use social media as a distraction. But I, like many others, will often see things that will make me feel isolated and low. I wasn’t even aware at first how what I saw on online could affect me and how damaging it was to my mental health.

“It can be so easy to let social media take over but it’s really important that you control it rather than the other way around. It can be a really positive tool that can not only help you but allows you to support those around you too. That’s why I’m taking part in #OwnYourFeed to make my social feeds more positive for my mental health.”

Nicola Green, Corporate Affairs Director at O2, said: “We know that young people are very switched on to the impact social media can have on their digital wellbeing and mental health – and as a responsible business we have our part to play in helping them live better with tech. That’s why we’ve teamed up with YoungMinds to launch #OwnYourFeed: sharing our tech know-how to help create a peer-to-peer, youth-led, social campaign that’s all about empowering young people to have a more positive time online.”


Anyone can take part in the campaign by following along with the weekly themes on Instagram:

  • Week 1: Know your feed

Think about the content you see on your social media, and how it makes you feel through an interactive quiz. Are you:

  1. The Negative Spiral Feed
  2. The Glam Sham Feed
  3. The Energy Drain
  4. The Real Deal Feed
  • Week 2: Clean your feed

Think about what accounts you follow, and how these make you feel. Consider unfollowing or muting things that don’t support your mental health and wellbeing.

  • Week 3: Find your crowd

Build positive networks of likeminded, supportive people on your social media feeds.

  • Week 4: Say hey

Reach out to friends in a positive way through our 5 Day ‘Say Hey’ Challenge:

  • Day 1: Tag a friend in something that will make them smile
  • Day 2: Reach out to someone you haven’t spoken to in a while
  • Day 3: Tell a friend how much they mean to you
  • Day 4: Thank the person who listens to you when you’re struggling
  • Day 5: Share #OwnYourFeed with a friend

For more information about how to take part in #OwnYourFeed and to take the quiz visit www.youngminds.org.uk/ownyourfeed


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Cleoriff
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This could be an excellent initiative if handled properly and needs to be monitored carefully @Chris_K 

Problem is, with any social media account, there are internet warriors and trolls who will set out to upset the balance and the good work done by others.

I would hate to see people, when feeling vulnerable, being upset and targeted  in any way.

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Chris_K
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@Cleoriff wrote:

This could be an excellent initiative if handled properly and needs to be monitored carefully @Chris_K 

Problem is, with any social media account, there are internet warriors and trolls who will set out to upset the balance and the good work done by others.

I would hate to see people, when feeling vulnerable, being upset and targeted  in any way.


I couldn't agree more. YoungMinds are experts in their field and together, we're bringing tips and advice to young peope who can be influenced by media, celebrities, and even these trolls and internet warriors you've highlighted. After taking the quiz I've even started going through my own feeds, unfollowing accounts that don't make me feel good about myself or the world, or that don't promote positivity, make me laugh or smile.


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Cleoriff
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I have just completed the quiz @Chris_K  and apparently I'm 'The Real Deal'...

...Your feed keeps you interested, connected and inspired, and you’ve found a good bunch of people to follow. As a result, your feed authentically reflects you. It’s the real deal.

But just like everything in life – your social media use has its ups and downs. Your use of social media is pretty good, and you’re able to switch off when you need to. You’ve got this – so just keep it up!

 

I have no problem with that. Sums it up nicely. smiling

 

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Chris_K
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@Cleoriff wrote:

I have just completed the quiz @Chris_K  and apparently I'm 'The Real Deal'...

...Your feed keeps you interested, connected and inspired, and you’ve found a good bunch of people to follow. As a result, your feed authentically reflects you. It’s the real deal.

But just like everything in life – your social media use has its ups and downs. Your use of social media is pretty good, and you’re able to switch off when you need to. You’ve got this – so just keep it up!

 

I have no problem with that. Sums it up nicely. smiling

 


That's a good result, and the sort of one that we and YoungMinds hope to try and help create more of for the young people of today.

If you're over 30-odd like I reckon most of us lot are ( us lot = the O2 Community furniture joy ), we grew up without Social Media being as dominant in our lives as it is to young people nowadays. Heck, I went through my university years barely knowing what Facebook and Twitter was and there are kids in primary school that know all about them... That's scary! So while in our adult years we'll likely be better at deciding who/what to follow on Social Media, youth growing up with the media influence stronger than ever, and 'influencers' now being a full time job showing glamorous lifestyles... They might not have the most positive social media feeds.


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Cleoriff
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Oh I'm well over 30+ @Chris_K  and  very much a silver surfer. So it was a long time before I got into the whole social media set up.

I do belong to FB mainly as they have a very active Formula One group on there. I belong to a few other groups as well such as WWF, Ban Trophy Hunting, SCD etc etc.

I'm not one of those people who shares my life on FB though. I rarely post a status (Unless it's about F1 and Lewis Hamilton. rofl)

I have a twitter account but never use it. My grandson tried to get me on Instagram which I have, but just follow some people, rarely post.

I think, as you indicated, it's an age thing. My 21 year old grandson lives his life via social media!

I agree though, that youngsters should have a lot of guidance with all the social media available.

 

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liggerz87
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I just got thr negative sprliral thing is I have Twitter and facebook had MSN what's your addy haha also had bebo and left that to go Facebook but I never go on facebook and have my in months I used to be on it all the time getting lost in messages and reading stuff all time on the feed then I just left it also I'm 32 and from when the Phillip's bt cellent phone came out had that and then nokia 3310 as 2nd phone after that got into phones
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