Online toxic trolling – body shaming – bane of social media

Online toxic trolling, body shaming – has been put on a spotlight with the recent trolling of the UP Class 10 topper, for her physical appearance. It is heart breaking to see how a young bright student’s success has invited so much hatred and toxic trolling online, making this moment of celebration into a nightmare.

For a young child / adolescent, the support of family, friends and school is absolutely critical to help them not get significantly impacted by such trolling. In the absence of support it can cause anxiety, depression, and other stress-related disorders. In extreme situations, some children may resort to self harm or even suicidal ideation or attempts.

What support can parents and others provide

Parents can encourage the child to stay away from social media for a while, talk to parents if something is troubling them / share their feelings (sad, scared, confused, hopeless, worthless and more) which parents are not aware of, or seek professional help in the form of counselling for the young child / adolescent as needed.

Social media companies also need to be held accountable for what is posted on their platforms, be it hate messages or toxic trolling or the likes.

Why do people engage in toxic trolling

On the other hand, trolls in general come from a space of low self esteem or cannot empathise with the pain of the other whom they are trolling. They may be externalizing their aggression to cope with internal negative feelings. Anonymity, emboldens online trolls, to say anything online and get away with it. And they believe that they cannot be held accountable. When they succeed in getting a reaction, they get encouraged to troll more. Trolling at an extreme is a form of abuse and and harassment.

When parents and teachers can teach their wards, about the impact of their actions and feel empathy for other’s pain, the next generation at least can learn to be more socially responsible both in their online and in person actions.

Inner Dawn Counsellor / Psychotherapist Kala Balasubramanian’s views featured in the Indian Express 1-May-2024.

Click here for The article on Indian Express