Citizensheep. "Michael Grimes lives in Birmingham (UK). This is his blog about anything that he fancies."

Much has been debated about the merits of blogging: as journalism; as a mouthpiece for the masses; as a platform for the literate and illiterate alike.

But what about as a therapeutic activity? Or, rather, as a creative outlet for those of us who may sometimes be uncomfortable in traditional social situations?

I’m not going to begin to try to understand mental health: I’m not a doctor and, as far as I know, I have no mental health issues; and besides it would be presumptuous to suggest that I may have even the merest inkling of how other people understand the world and interact with it. But I wonder if there are benefits of social media for people’s wellbeing, and if so how we harness them and capitalise on them.

I often feel paralyzed by indecision, wanting an outlet for something but not knowing what it is or how to vent it, and terrified of doing the wrong thing or of letting people down. This can lead to an inability to do anything: to change jobs, to tidy the house, to keep in touch with friends; and, somewhat ironically, to say the right thing or avoid letting people down.

Blogging has recently become an outlet, a channel for diverting that sense of helplessness and inertia. Of course I could easily write things down on paper, or try other creative pursuits, but there’s no motivation to; blogging, on the other hand, can be social and interactive while not requiring physical interaction, and therefore can be much more motivating.

But it can also be very dangerous.

I’m forever having conversations in my head with people about things that worry me, though very rarely do I feel able to have them for real. But I do find it very easy to click ‘publish’. That’s incredibly dangerous if you’re feeling vulnerable and are telling the world things they may not want to hear, or that you may regret saying (as I may be in danger of doing here!).

Why am I saying all this?

One of my fears of trying to bridge the ‘digital divide’ (ie between the technologically literate and the disenfranchised) is that of encouraging people into an area way out of their comfort zone and dumping them there, because we hadn’t fully appreciated the subtle but profound adjustments they would need to make and so were not equipped to support them. Therefore addressing the digital divide must be done with great care and sensitivity.

But could it also be an ideal opportunity to help people find ways of channeling their creativity; their worries, angers, sadnesses, excitements, energies, frustrations, joys, exhilerations?

If I can find social media tools (such as blogs and Twitter) to be a dangerously easy way of exposing my vulnerability but simultaneously a rewarding creative outlet, could there be a benefit in the collaboration between different specialisms: ie one that understands developing technologies and one that understands people? For example (at the risk of sounding crass) a collaboration between specialists in social media and in mental health?

I don’t mean that people should be encouraged to pour their hearts out on the internet. I do mean that maybe social media tools could be harnessed as a creative channel for those energies that might otherwise manifest themselves in negative ways.

And maybe collaborations (such as that suggested above) could inform other work which encourages people to explore social media and the internet.

• Possibly related posts

  1. Digital mentors as pastoral carers?
  2. Should we tackle the digital divide or live with it?
  3. Digital mentors?
  4. Braving the subtleties of online social interactions
  5. Buying friends’ time: when should we do it?

Digital engagement,Digital Mentors,Ramblings,Social media