A recent article noted how a lot of things trend on social media, and how many of those trending topics aren’t good. In fact, they can be pretty harmful (NyQuil chicken). But, like all trends, they capture attention for a reason — some of these popular topics even prove pretty useful.
In 2022, particularly on the subject of general “wellness”, hundreds of trends have come out or simply grown in popularity. From exercise routines to healing our inner child, many healthy trending topics are in the public eye for a good reason.
And just because they’re trending now, the article points out, doesn’t mean they need to end in 2023. If anything, they should be continued and explored more.
Lindsay Monal, a yoga teacher at YogaRenew Teacher Training, said that it’s important to follow the trends that we like and that will keep us consistent in our practice, whether mentally and/or physically.
Here are the some of the most useful of these trends in 2022, according to experts:
End of people pleasing and entering our “villain” era
The article tells us that a simple search for “villain era” on TikTok brings up thousands of videos that showcase people putting an end to people pleasing and embracing their so-called villain era.
We’re cautioned that while boundary setting and putting an end to people pleasing are both valuable for our mental health, there is something wrong with this being phrased as villainous behavior, according to Sarah Sarkis, an executive coach and senior director of performance psychology at Exos, a corporate wellness company.
“The ‘villain era’ is really an inaccurate depiction of people setting healthy boundaries,” Sarkis said. “While the trend means well, we shouldn’t be vilifying taking a step away from pleasing others to prioritize our own needs and well-being.”
She asked: “If we are always pleasing other people but never addressing our own needs, who are we actually being a villain to? Ourselves perhaps? Is that OK?” The answer: No, it is not.
She noted that burnout (due to holiday stress, work stress, family pressure and more) is a significant driver of this end of people pleasing. “We’re starting to see this shift to reverse years if not generations worth of conditioning to put others’ needs before our own,” Sarkis said.
Healing our inner child
TikTok also led to a trend where people openly acknowledged tough childhood moments and worked on coming to terms with those experiences.
“Talking about trauma more openly and really talking about inner child work, I think, has prompted a lot of conversations that I don’t think have happened at other points in time as openly and as in-depth,” said Genesis Games, a licensed mental health counselor and relationship expert in Miami.
She noted that acknowledging that our inner child needs healing is an excellent first step. Still, adult children who want to take this further can have conversations with their parents or guardians about their childhood experiences.
“I think in that specific dynamic, there’s a lot of room for healing and just knowing your parents maybe did the best they could,” she said.
Games added that just hearing your parent acknowledge your pain could mean a lot for your healing journey.
She said that the name of this trend itself, “healing your inner child,” shines a light on what served us in childhood and what didn’t — it helps us reparent ourselves to address unmet needs as kids.
“I would definitely say this was probably one of the healthiest trends of 2022,” she noted.
Rest as resistance
“I’m loving [this] trend, and I want to encourage people to lean further into the trend of resting — so literally sleeping, napping, doing things that fill you up — as a form of resistance against oppression, against patriarchy, against all sorts of things,” said Taisha Caldwell-Harvey, a licensed psychologist and the founder and CEO of The Black Girl Doctor, an online therapy and wellness platform.
Many Instagram posts and TikTok videos challenge the notion that rest is tied to being unproductive or lazy.
Rest “is something productive and active that you’re doing,” Caldwell-Harvey said. She added doing things intentionally that give you joy (like resting) is a productive use of time.
While this trend has been celebrated on social media this year, only some know how to practice it. Caldwell-Harvey said that she has to explain to many of her clients exactly what rest is — for the record, it’s not running errands, cleaning or doing dishes that you didn’t get to because of your nine-to-five. It’s sleeping, napping, curling up with a good book or doing whatever you need to fill your cup.
Openness around diagnoses
While year over year this has certainly gotten better, Games said she noticed in 2022 that more people were taking to TikTok to share their mental health diagnoses — whether it’s what prompted them to get help for bipolar disorder or how ADHD presents in them.
“I think [this] has taken away some of the stigmas, some of the shame and maybe guilt associated with seeing a therapist or around taking medication for psychological reasons,” she said.
While the stigma is not gone, these kinds of videos and posts have helped reduce it, Games added. They help put a real-life face to some of the diagnoses that hold a stigma — like autism or postpartum depression, she said.
It’s also an excellent way to remind those living with any conditions that evidence-based treatments can change your life, she noted.
We’re reminded that it’s important to remember that we can’t count on TikTok for an official diagnosis; that needs to come from a medical professional. But we can seek out education, community and support on the app.
While the stigma is not gone, these kinds of videos and posts have helped reduce it, Games added. They help put a real-life face to some of the diagnoses that hold a stigma — like autism or postpartum depression, she said.
It’s also an excellent way to remind those living with any conditions that evidence-based treatments can change your life, she noted.
Low-intensity exercise
Low-intensity exercise (like walking, yoga, hiking and swimming) is increasingly popular, and for a good reason. According to Monal, the yoga teacher, people are more drawn to low-intensity exercise lately because of the societal shift many are experiencing now. We’re probably back in the hustle and bustle of life — in-person work, social gatherings and more.
“Our bodies are burnt out, and I think more than ever now, a lot of people are waking up and realizing how they need to listen to their bodies a little more,” Monal said. “Those low-impact exercises, like pilates, yoga, even bodyweight exercises, I find a lot of people… are leaning toward more things that are going to be a little more gentle on the body.”
She added that it’s also a good fitness move because it lifts society’s changing opinion on weight loss.
“I think it’s a reflection of the way our culture has shifted around exercise and also away from ‘oh you need to lose weight’ and more toward ‘what’s going to help me move and have mobility and flexibility as I continue to age,’” Monal said.
I confess I’m not a regular TikTok viewer and don’t consider the source when I’m seeking professional advice. But “trends” as identified on these social media sites make their way to general Internet sites where all can see – and decide if there is applicability to one’s personal life.
Like pretty much everything else going on in our lives, we listen/read/view what others say, experiment and decide if what we’re trying is useful and practical.
Whatever the case, sincere best wishes for a happy, healthy and productive 2023!
Courtesy Jillian Wilson
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