Doctor: Self-control your selfies

A selfie can be taken anywhere

PETALING JAYA: The selfie fad has taken the world by storm but along with it condemnation from the mostly religious authorities.

World leaders have often taken time off at meetings to pose for a snapshot, be it for remembrance or sheer publicity.

At the recent Miss Universe contest, however, Miss Lebanon had to defend herself against accusations of consorting with the enemy, after she appeared in a selfie with Miss Israel.

In a most recent report, an Indonesian cleric was said to have questioned the purity of "shameless women who post their selfies."

While both the religious and scientific jurists may have their personal view on selfies, it appears that there may be some psychological effects to what appears to be a harmless hobby.

In August, a 19-year-old Briton received intensive hospital therapy after being diagnosed as a selfie addict, taking up to two hundred selfies a day. 

“It is a technology that is loved by most people and there is nothing wrong for people to be connected to the latest technology.

"A selfie also captures memorable moments that can be done by oneself,” Malaysian Mental Health Association (MMHA) deputy president Datuk Dr Andrew Mohanraj said.

However, he said excessive selfies have become a problem recently, particularly among teenagers preoccupied with taking the “perfect selfie” in order to get “approval from others" or just to post the them on Facebook to get the most “likes."

Dr Mohanraj explained that in some western countries, excessive selfies have shown strong association with narcissistic personalities and also body image disorders which can cause one to become thin and anorexic.

In some cases of anorexia nervosa, selfie could be a part of reaffirmation that one is thin, he said.

He cautioned against indiscriminate labeling of selfie-fans as ‘narcissistic.’

“Every human being desires approval from others but that does not mean we are narcissistic . Narcissism or narcissistic  personality is diagnosed only when someone has exaggerated self worth, exaggerated need for approval from others, exaggerated feeling of superiority and lack of empathy for others.

"All this should lead to some impairment in occupational or social functioning,” he explained.

In March last year, a hoax news went viral on the internet claiming that the American Psychiatric Association classified ‘selfiitis’ as a clinical disorder.

Although the story turned out to be false, Dr Mohanraj nevertheless advised that any form of addiction should be looked into and treated.

“If you are addicted to taking selfies and cannot control the urge to resist this addiction, then you may need psychological help – just like those who seek help for pathological gaming or internet addiction,” he said.

Dr Mohanraj explained that excessive selfie-taking means a behavior which leads to occupational or social impairment or distress.

In the case of children and gadgets, he advised that parents should be familiar with social media and to monitor as much as possible their children’s usage of smart phones.

“Gadgets must be used with responsibility. And responsibility comes with age. If a child does not understand the negative potential of broadcasting inappropriate images of himself or herself then it only means he or she is too young to have a smart phone,” he said.

“Parents should not give smart phones to children as a way of pacifying them or to keep up with their rich neighbours.

"They should also encourage their children and give positive comments when their children behave well or have achieved something to be proud of.

"This will minimize the need for children to see approval in positive comments on their selfie pictures broadcasted,” he said. 

“Parents themselves should show a good example in their own usage of smartphones. If parents are irresponsible  surely they cannot expect their children to be responsible,” he said.