Today, ahead of World Mental Health Day, we’re teaming up with Headspace to release two new in-app meditations through our Headspace Mini -- a safe space where friends can practice meditations and mindfulness exercises, and check in on each other through Snapchat.
We developed the Headspace Mini to better support Snapchatters struggling with anxiety, depression and a host of other mental health challenges, informed by research conducted last year into how our community experiences these issues. We found that a majority of Snapchatters experience feelings of stress and anxiety, and that their friends are the first people they turn to when they need help, more than professionals or even their parents. We wanted to give them new preventative wellbeing tools to use directly with their friends, in the same place they’re already communicating many times a day.
Now, many months into the COVID-19 pandemic, and with Snapchatters navigating the start of a school year virtually or continuing to work from home, we wanted to get a better sense of how the crisis is impacting them.
We commissioned a survey by GroupSolver to learn about how young people are experiencing stress and uncertainty across the US, UK and France. In each of those markets, the results show most Snapchatters are feeling increasingly stressed, with COVID-19 being a primary driver:
Snapchatters are feeling more stressed than last year and feeling stressed more frequently -- with 73% of Snapchatters in the US saying they’ve felt stressed in the last week, followed by 68% in the UK and 60% in France.
COVID-19 is a leading cause of stress (85% of US Snapchatters, with 87% in the UK and 80% in France), followed by finances (81% in US, 77% in UK and 76% in France) and work/career pressures (80% in US and 77% in the UK and France). The election/politics are also a significant source of stress for US Snapchatters -- with 60% citing it as contributing to their stress levels.
For Gen Z Snapchatters in the US (13-24), school is a leading source of stress (75% for 13-24 and 91% for 13-17), with lack of socialization with their peers, and falling behind on their education due to COVID-19 disruptions cited as major concerns.
US Snapchatters report this stress as taking a toll on their emotional and physical well being -- with 60% reporting feeling anxious, 60% feeling exhausted and 59% feeling overwhelmed. Close to 50% report feeling restlessness and 43% are experiencing increased headaches.
Taking into account that approximately one-third of Snapchatters in the US and one-fifth of users in the UK and France use meditation to cope with stress, we’re rolling out new Headspace guided meditations to directly address some of these issues including:
“Choose Kindness” - a mini meditation focused on practicing kindness which can change how we show up in the world and how we treat others. In the midst of chaos, confusion and conflict, this meditation is designed to shift our mindset and move to a place of compassion.
“Take on the School Year” - a mini meditation focused on navigating uncertainty at school. Whether students are back in the classroom or still at home, there might be feelings of worry, anxiety or even disconnection from friends. This meditation is designed to help you connect with your breath and find a resting place to ease uncertainty.
We believe that Snapchat can play an important role in supporting the health and happiness of our community. In addition to our mental health resources like Here For You, we look forward to building these efforts and continuing to empower Snapchatters to seek out support and connect with friends.