Warning: This story discusses mental health and self-harm.
OPINION: Phones have changed our lives for the better but new research shows they're doing some incredible damage too.
I don't know if people realise quite how much.
I wanted to show you some graphs, released by American researchers last week. They're looking at New Zealand girls aged from 15 to 24.
This one looks at the growth in anxiety - that's panic attacks, phobias and other disorders.
These are girls who've been diagnosed with depression.
We've all been stressed by the past few years but the mental health of New Zealand girls has fallen off a cliff.
Since 2007 they've gone from best to worst.
And what happened 10 years ago to make that line go up? Here's the guy who put this research together.
"When kids traded in their flip phones for smartphones and got onto social media, particularly Instagram and Snapchat, we began to see a collapse in teenage girls' mental health all across the English-speaking world," said Zach Rausch.
It turns out social media has a direct effect on self-esteem, self-worth and self-harm.
This shows how many girls have been treated in hospital for one of the most heartbreaking acts: Inflicting injuries on themselves.
"Childhood has moved from a play-based childhood to a phone-based one," Rausch said.
What did we think would happen?
Parents think their daughters' phones keep them safe. But everything a parent should be scared of in 2023 is on that phone.
There are millions of destructive images on the internet: The corrosive effects of looking at other girls' seemingly perfect lives and bodies, and learning to value your own body based on how many views and likes it gets from strangers.
Phones make life easier, but we need to look harder at the price of that convenience - a price that our teenage girls are now paying.
Australia is looking harder.
This week New South Wales joined Victoria and other states in banning phones in high schools to create a level playing field for parents who want to take the phone away and protect their daughters.
Here's what our Education Minister said when asked if she'd do the same thing here.
"Personally, as someone who was a teacher, no. But what schools should be looking at and doing is making certain that kids are being kept safe," said Jan Tinetti.
Now you've seen the numbers it's up to you to ask, "Is that response good enough? Is it smart enough? Is it urgent enough?"
We leave the last word to a principal who has tried this at their school.
"It gives them a complete break from cell phones for just six hours a day, so from 9am until 3pm," said Ann Brokenshire, principal at Hillmorton High School in Christchurch.
She said they're dealing with far less social media bullying at school as a result, and students are "actually interacting" again.
"The staff noticed an immediate improvement in concentration," she said. "Last year our NCEA level 1 results were well up on previous years."
Jesse Mulligan is a co-host of The Project.
Where to find help and support:
- Need to Talk? - Call or text 1737
- What's Up - 0800 WHATS UP (0800 942 8787)
- Lifeline - 0800 543 354 or (09) 5222 999 within Auckland
- Youthline - 0800 376 633, text 234, email talk@youthline.co.nz or online chat
- Samaritans - 0800 726 666
- Depression Helpline - 0800 111 757
- Suicide Crisis Helpline - 0508 828 865 (0508 TAUTOKO)
