Hyderabad: Psychiatrists and counsellors are seeing a growing number of young adults who arrive with nightmares, intrusive memories and constant fear, all traced back to abuse they faced online.
Many of them have been trolled, shamed or targeted with morphed images, and some show symptoms associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to doctors cited by the Times of India.
Cyberbullying is no longer something only celebrities face. Health experts say people with little or no social media presence are now being targeted too.
Dr Charan Teja Koganti, a consultant neuropsychiatrist, told the Times of India that “cyberbullying became more common with the rise of social media and has intensified in recent years, particularly among young adults.” He said the number of patients seeking counselling has risen over the past two years, as victims and their families increasingly recognise the signs of psychological trauma and worry about personal safety.
Veerender Chennoju, founder and chief counselling psychologist at You & Me Counselling Centre, said both men and women can suffer severe emotional consequences from cyberbullying.
PTSD is triggered by continuous distress. Its symptoms include intrusive memories, nightmares, persistent fear and heightened alertness, all of which can disrupt sleep and daily functioning.
Dr Gautami Nagabhairava, a psychiatrist at Kamineni Hospitals, said PTSD can develop after various traumatic or distressing experiences, and cyberbullying can be one of them. Not everyone who is cyberbullied develops PTSD, she said, but the psychological impact should never be underestimated.
Doctors say greater awareness of that impact is pushing more victims and their families to seek professional help.
