Shaping minds: how the TikTok generation is revolutionising mental health dialogue

WE live online. From waking up and checking our phones to falling asleep to blue-lit screens, we're tethered to the digital world in ways that previous generations could never have imagined.

- VUYILE MADWANTSI

But what if our hyperconnectivity came with a shift in how we talk to each other, especially about our mental health? What if asking “How are you really feeling?” became as normal as “How was your day?”

This was the heart of the conversation at TikTok’s Digital Well-being Summit, recently held in Johannesburg, where health professionals, creators and policymakers came together to discuss how short-form content can be used not just to entertain but to empower.

Beyond hashtags, making mental health mainstream

The idea is simple but powerful: promote kindness. Imagine if talking about anxiety, burnout, or depression became dinner table conversations or classroom discussions, the same way we chat about traffic, soccer scores or school tests.

According to health economists, untreated mental health conditions cost South Africa an estimated R161 billion per year in lost productivity. The ripple effects are undeniable, not only for individuals but for families, workplaces, and the broader economy.

So, shifting how we communicate, making kindness and emotional check-ins as routine as daily greetings, could be more than just feelgood advice. It’s a public health strategy. And TikTok wants to be part of that solution.

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“You can't bring joy to people if they don't feel safe,” said Fortune Mgwili-Sibanda, TikTok’s director of public policy & government relations for Sub-Saharan Africa.