Turns out superheroes are human too.

Or perhaps living your life under a microscope with 24-7 access to the entire world’s unfettered thoughts and criticisms of you is not good for anybody.

According to a CNN article, Tom Holland, star of Spider-Man: No Way Home, informed fans that he is stepping back from social media to prioritize his mental health.

Having been absent from social media platforms, he recently made a brief return to Instagram to inform his 67.7 million followers that he was deleting Instagram and Twitter from his devices.

“I have taken a break from social media for my mental health because I find Instagram and Twitter to be overstimulating, to be overwhelming,” Holland shared.

After the wild success of the Marvel Spider-Man movies, Holland, who is dating his Spider-Man: Homecoming co-star Zendaya, has lived his life in the white-hot spotlight. The charismatic couple understandably attract a lot of media attention.

“I get caught up and I spiral when I read things about me online and ultimately it’s very detrimental to my mental state. So, I decided to take a step back and delete the app,” he added.

He used his brief return to social media to shine a light on the UK-based teenage mental health charity Stem4 he supports through his organization The Brothers Trust.

“There is an awful stigma against mental health and I know that asking for help and seeking help isn’t something we should be ashamed of,” he added.

Holland received messages of encouragement from fellow celebrities and praise for his stand in support of mental health. “Love you man,” Justin Bieber commented.

Each time a figure in the public eye uses their platform to normalize mental health, it enables others to do the same. Mental health is health, a critical part of being human – or even superhuman, as the case may be.

Read the full article at CNN.

Owoseje, Toyin. “Tom Holland is taking a social media break for the sake of his mental health.” CNN.com, 15 Aug 2022, https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/15/entertainment/tom-holland-social-media-mental-health-intl-scli/index.html.

Photo by Gage Skidmore