Mental Health , Integrity and Social Media.
A trigger warning this one is a bit deep so grab a tea or coffee and settle in with me for this chat.
For those that don’t know I have a Bachelor of Arts Welfare Degree. In my previous work, I was a Youth Development Officer and Centre Manager, where I designed and implemented creative workshops, programs, and counselling that included art, music, and educational courses on many welfare issues—such as bullying, self-esteem building, alcohol and drug-related issues, and mental health.
Through this work, I have seen some of the most disturbing cases involving children. Some of these cases kept me awake with nightmares for years. I also had my own private practice in adult therapy.
So, knowing my background, let me ask you this:
Can I call myself an oncologist because I have had cancer? No. Can I call myself a mechanic because I have changed a tyre? A lawyer because I have signed a contract? A policeman because I have gotten a speeding ticket? No, no, and no again.
Then why do people feel that they can deal with one of the most important things we have—our mental health—without any training? And why do social media giants not check credentials?
As people attempt to find a “niche” or an online persona—more and more people are pretending to be something they are not for follows, likes, and views. In their pursuit of social media fame, they don’t realise that blanket, uneducated, unsolicited advice is hurting people. Or maybe they do, and they just don’t care.
Now granted, some people have good intentions. But here’s what irritates me: if they truly want to help people and know full well they are not qualified, why don’t they say this one thing?
“If anyone is experiencing anything to do with mental health, please see a professional offline—a welfare or community worker, a social worker, a psychologist, a therapist, or a GP (your doctor). Or please call these amazing helplines (I'll post Australian helplines below), or contact emergency services if you're in crisis. I cannot give advice—I am not a psychologist, counsellor, welfare worker, or art therapist.”
Why not collaborate and work in with professionals from day one?
Because it’s not sensational enough, is it? Saying, “Please seek help from a professional” doesn’t get trauma-bonded followers, or fit into a meme or reel, or boost someone’s ego or income. But it is the truth—and the best advice. Because you matter, and your journey is unique.
The reasons you might feel stressed, burnt out, or depressed are completely individual to you. Your path and your healing are also individual. People need and deserve personalised care and support.
Mental health is serious. It should not be used as a social media tagline, meme, post, or reel. "Five steps to get over anxiety while doing a viral dance in the kitchen?" C’mon now. A load of rubbish.
As someone who worked in welfare for many years, I cannot give advice—it’s not my job to. My job was to provide options, assess, counsel, support, advocate for, empower, and refer people. Never to tell someone what to do—that is dis-empowering and unethical. The only advice I could give is to refer on to doctors and psychologists and mandatory notifications of abuse and safety.
Something that may seem innocent—like burnout—can sometimes actually be something much more serious. It could even be a crisis needing emergency support.
There is a way of talking about mental health and raising awareness—and that’s by sharing our own personal stories and what helped us as individuals. That can make people feel less alone. Private—not public—support groups, or real-life support groups, are another way. But the moment that crosses over into “You should do this” or “Here is my advice” is the minute it needs to stop.
What helped me, or you, doesn’t mean it will help someone else—and in public, it can do more harm than good.
Are they qualified to assess a person? To know whether someone has a mental illness or is just overworked and tired? Are they misdiagnosing a potentially life-threatening issue by calling it “burnout”?
Mental health is not a one-size-fits-all.
Life experience is a great teacher—but again, is that person trained to see the differences in people? To assess the "worms," talk about them, and then close the can of worms safely?
Mostly, that’s a no. But there are some amazing people who’ve gone through things, done the training, and are now helping people. These genuine and qualified voices are lost in a sea of blanketed uneducated advice and viral videos.
My job was always to empower people to choose for themselves. To assist them in exploring options, to build self-esteem, to find and design their own path and healing journey. To work through personal issues and refer them to specialists even more qualified than me—psychiatrists and doctors when needed.
Blanketed advice on mental health (or life in general) on social media hurts people, simply by triggering them constantly. I have had years of training, as do all professionals in this field, on how to open a can of worms, talk about them, and close them safely, with a plan for moving forward.
Social media has become a never-ending open can of worms. It’s all we see—people talking about mental health in generalised ways with no closure, no downtime, no debrief, no safety, no accountability, no duty of care. No closure. Just worms.
Blanket advice is not inclusive. It often alienates and is insensitive to so many people. I’ll go into that more another time.
There’s a saying that “95% of people have not truly met themselves.” If that’s true, that’s a huge number of unhealed people out there giving advice. No wonder social media is a mess.
Social media used to be a positive, calming, beautiful space. Now it’s a competition. Constant ads. “You’re not enough unless you buy this. Your life isn’t enough unless you do that.” Lies. Rubbish. All designed to make you feel “less than” so you keep scrolling, keep buying, stay online.
My blog—and who I am—is here to say: Yes, you are enough. Your story is unique. You are worth more than blanketed advice. You are worth more than the trap of a niche or being “a brand.” You are worth being just you.
Integrity is everything.
As more and more people log off due to the endless life advice and mental health noise—and as more people struggle with their mental health—I hope that social media giants become accountable. That they require credentials and qualifications. So the real professionals—doing the hard work of cleaning up the mess—can be found and heard more easily.
I hope people stop giving unsolicited life advice. I hope people realise the only “niche” they ever need to be is themselves. I hope those healing can find rest on social media, instead of being triggered.
And I hope artists, photographers—everyone—remembers they are enough, just as they are. No need to change for an algorithm.
I hope social media is what changes.
Personally, I remove and unfollow anyone giving unqualified life or mental health advice—including some “big name” mental health personalities who are just self-appointed “life coaches.” I had two bad experiences with art coaches. One told me I had more qualifications than he did and asked me to help him. The other told me to quit my family business and dance teaching to be taken seriously as an artist—and that I was “too sparkly” (whatever that means).
I fired her.
I trusted my instinct. I went back to photography. Now, I’m an award-winning author, artist, and multi-award-winning photographer. Taken seriously.
My point is: a lot of life coaches don’t have real qualifications—on or off social media. A 30-day course does not replace years of professional training. It doesn’t teach people how to be non-judgemental, unbiased, and capable of handling complex life issues. Be careful out there.
I’ve started clicking “Not interested” on ads. I take breaks from social media. Namibia was awesome—rarely any WiFi. It was fantastic to just tune out the noise.
I know this was a heavy topic, but so many talented artists and photographers I know personally are logging off—or never even starting—because of it all. I just felt called to share this. To make people think. To help those who need it. To remind people they’re not alone.
We have all been touched by mental health—through someone we love, or through our own experience. Mental health deserves the same seriousness as a physical illness. And anyone suffering deserves respect, dignity, and quality care.
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If You Need Help (Australia):
· Emergency: Call 000
· Beyond Blue: 1300 22 4636 — Website for chat support
· Lifeline Australia: 13 11 14 or 116 123 (24-hour crisis line)
· MensLine Australia: 1300 78 9978
· Suicide Call Back Service: 1300 659 467
· Medicare Mental Health: 1800 595 212
· BetterHelp app is also fantastic.
If You Need Help (UK):
· Emergency: Call 999
· NHS Mental Health: Call 111
· Samaritans: 116 123
· Text SHOUT: 85258
· C.A.L.L (Wales only): 0800 132 737
(If you’d like me to add contact numbers for your country, feel free to message me on Instagram or email, and I will add them to this blog post.)
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Thank you for reading, and I apologise for taking so long to blog again. Stay tuned—my next posts will be fun ones about the incredible Namibia! I have included some of the amazing wildlife in this blog. Also check back in as over the next couple of weeks i will be adding galleries and new prints for sale.
See you out there shooting,
Toni xx
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