A young woman who has struggled with anorexia and anxiety said social media is to blame for a spike in the number of Scots with mental health conditions.
Scotland is in the grip of a mental health epidemic, according to the latest census, which showed young women were twice as likely to have a mental health condition compared to men.
In 2022, 15.4% of people aged 16 to 24 reported having a mental health condition, up from 2.5% in 2011.
Females in this age group were twice as likely to report having a mental health condition at 20.4%, compared to males at 10.5%.
Rebecca Miller, 22, said she began suffering from an eating disorder at the age of 12.
Doctors referred her to the Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), where she underwent therapy for two years.
Rebecca told STV News: “I was in a spiralling circle. I was judging myself in the mirror.
“I wasn’t gaining as much weight as I should have been, and it turned out to be anxiety-based.
“I was really young and trying to navigate that is difficult. Going through the challenges of high school is difficult enough, never mind dealing with anxiety, having that looming over you.
“I always dreaded going to school – first period was a no-go for me. I think it took me until after high school to feel confident in my ability to combat those things.”
STV NewsRebecca was referred for further counselling aged 18, but found it difficult during Covid.
“I really struggled to engage as much as I could if I was face to face with a therapist and converse as much as I would have in person. They could probably feel it on their end that I wasn’t putting my all into it.
“It was tough for everyone.”
Rebecca now uses her platform as a beauty pageant contestant to raise awareness of mental health issues.
“My anxiety is always there. It’s never gone away,” she said. “From there I’ve developed a coping mechanism, I know exactly what to do to combat that feeling I get in the mornings.
“It has set me straight and set me into a good motion from it.
“It will come and go. I’m now at a stage where I can talk about it to other people.”
She said she believes social media has a “major” impact on the lives of young people and can leave them “vulnerable.”
“It can be 50/50 – it’s a good platform, but it can also be detrimental for young people’s lives and their mental health.
“People scroll on their phone. People find behind a screen they can say anything.
“It’s really hard to come away from as it has good and bad parts.”
She added: “I was all over social media when I was 18 or 19
“I’m now at an age where I’m comfortable with myself, I don’t check how many followers and likes I have, what filter I’m using.
“I want to settle and feel comfortable with myself and put myself out there for who I am.”
STV NewsYoung women in Scotland are being severely impacted by the cost of living crisis, suggests new research from The Young Women’s Movement and Scottish Women’s Budget Group.
The report paints a bleak picture: nearly two-thirds (65.7%) of young women surveyed feel financially worse off than this time last year and around a third (32.7%) find their housing costs unaffordable.
Over half (53.4%) said they had been relying on savings alongside income to manage rising costs over the past year.
Dr Rebecca Mason is research and policy lead at Young Women’s Movement.
She said the cost of living crisis is having a major impact on the mental health and well-being of young women.
“Young women and girls are cutting back on doing nice things with their friends, socialising. Young women in rural and island communities are staying at home rather than socialising with their friends and peers.
“The cost of attending the cinema, going to a restaurant, the rising cost of public transport. They are feeling unsafe walking home at night.
“Young women in towns and cities say the rising cost of living relating to house and say having less money to socialise is negatively impacting their mental health.”
She also said social media is affecting how young women believe they should “behave, speak and look in society.”
“We think mental health strategy and policy should be specifically tailored to young women and girls and attention should be paid to age and gender.
STV News“Young women say they have perhaps sought help for mental health issues, to be told by medical professionals that it could be hormonal and menstrual issues.
“They may not want to bother their local GP as services are increasingly burdened.
“They should feel confident to report any issues they are facing.
“Our message to young women and girls is do not suffer in silence. Speak out and seek help if they have issues.”
Dr Arun Chopra, the director of the Mental Welfare Commission, said he is “not surprised” by recent figures.
He said: “The group of people who are experiencing the sharpest rise in rates of detention are young women – some of that is attributed to an eating disorder, some related to self-harm.
“What’s probably underlying some of this is we’re still working through the effects of the pandemic and the impact that’s had in younger people.
“I think that illustrates the need to monitor where resources need to pivot towards, the investment needed and targeted to improve mental health, particularly for young women.”
Mental wellbeing minister Maree Todd said: “This new research which shows rising numbers of young women struggling with mental health issues is very concerning. We are focused on tackling mental health inequalities including through a gendered approach.
“Support specifically tailored for women includes investment in specialist perinatal care and treatment for women with complex mental health needs, prioritising women and girls for adult community mental health funding and working with our mental health equality forum to create support services more accessible to individual needs.”
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