Dan Howell offers platform-specific tips for managing mental health and social media
YouTuber talks mental health during National Student Pride 2021 panel appearance
Words: Jamie Tabberer; pictures: Attitude (Markus Bidaux)
Dan Howell has offered his platform-specific tips for managing social media and mental health.
The star’s advice coincides with his appearance at National Student Pride 2021; tonight will see the broadcast of a livestreamed panel discussion on the subject of mental health featuring Dan, hosted by Attitude editor Cliff Joannou.
The YouTuber appears alongside Drag Race UK‘s Lawrence Chaney, model and activist Munroe Bergdorf and mental health campaigner Natasha Devon. (You can watch the broadcast here at 7.30pm.)
“Sometimes you have to just un-friend your grandma!”
Speaking to Attitude backstage, the author said of Instagram: “It’s about who you follow. If you have friends who are a little too perfect, mute them. They’ll never know. You’re not blocking your best friend and creating a massive rift.
“But curate your timeline. And don’t feel you have to follow every beautiful and perfect celebrity in the world. Friends, family, dogs – that’s all you need on Instagram.”
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On Twitter, he added: “You can blacklist words. So if you don’t want to hear about ‘Trump’, just put that on the list and suddenly, your entire timeline will magically disappear overnight!”
Finally, on Facebook he said: “You’ll log on and see your grandma saying Covid is [actually about] someone injecting a microchip into your brain or something. Sometimes you have to just un-friend your grandma!”
“Don’t feel you have to share everything from your life,” added the 29-year-old, who came out publicly as gay in 2019. “Don’t let people make you feel bad by not participating.”
Dan’s book on mental health titled You Will Get Through This Night is out on 18 May 2021.
For more information about Student Pride, click here. If you or someone you know is struggling with your mental health, visit mentalhealth.org.uk or switchboard.lgbt.
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