I’ll admit, I’m one of those stereotypical TikTok-haters, turned TikTok-lovers. When the app first came out, I was hesitant to join. As someone who spent mindless hours scrolling through my Instagram feed and Snapchat stories, I thought there was no way I needed another mindless app. I already spent enough time on social media and thought that Tik Tok would just triple my screen time.
Pretty soon, TikTok became the talk of the town. Everyone I knew was singing the trending songs from their For You Pages or referencing the funny one-liners in everyday conversations. I shortly gave in to the peer pressure and FOMO that I felt surrounding the app. Now, TikTok has become one of the first things I open when I wake up, the app that I use before bed, and my favorite way to spend my study breaks.
We Can All Benefit From TikTok
Why? What is so appealing about it? While it is a time waster, I would argue that the app definitely has qualities that all users can benefit from. Personally, I’ve learned a lot from the quick and fast-paced videos that pop up, whether it be makeup, cooking tips and tricks, or substantial mental health and relationship advice from professionals seeking to reach a younger audience through the platform. Some of my favorite beauty and skincare gurus as well as licensed psychologists and doctors have made their way onto my feed and in my following, educating me every time I open the app.
The stigma around the app, especially for non-users, is that it is just another useless way to get “the teens” to stop doing their homework or listening to their parents. For me, it has been about the knowledge that I and so many others have gained, stretching far beyond what we could have learned in school or from our environments.
“The Anti-Anxiety Morning Routine”
TikToker Ester Taniaj, self-proclaimed “self care sister,” creates some of my favorite content on TikTok. I started following her after her viral morning routine video, focused on helping to combat anxiety during the day. By starting her day off with meditation and writing in a self-love journal, she aims to create a relaxed and clear mindset for the day, something particularly important to me as someone who struggles with anxiety. Since seeing this video, I invested in the same self love journal that she uses and have been trying to write in it every single day. With the inclusion of setting intentions for yourself every day, the journal helps get all of your thoughts out in a way that I personally find therapeutic and has minimized my anxiety on a day-to-day basis.
Plant-Based Recipes
While I do not adhere to a strictly vegan diet, I have been trying to reduce the animal products that I consume in an effort to be more environmentally-friendly. Halle Burns, well-known on TikTok for her completely vegan, creative recipes, creates content in which she uses plant based ingredients to mimic foods that are not vegan in an attempt to allow those looking to cut back/get rid of animal products in their diet to do so. Some examples of this include her banana peel bacon, vegan lasagna, home-made pop tarts, and vegan taquitos. After trying a few of her recipes, I always love how they turn out and I feel good knowing that I can make food that is environmentally friendly and tastes good!
Relationship Advice
TikTok is saturated with people giving relationship advice, whether they are licensed relationship therapists or just people who share their relationship experiences. In my past relationship, I will say, without shame, that I turned to TikTok many times for advice on how to handle certain situations in a healthy way. I felt as though I may have needed some assistance in relaying and communicating information in ways that would be beneficial and help us get through the problems together, rather than causing more harm. The things I struggled with were not always issues that I could talk to the people in my life about because I never felt comfortable or sure that I was going to get multiple perspectives and unbiased advice. By taking advice from reputable Tiktokers that had no idea who I was, I felt like I was getting the best relationship advice at my fingertips. Some of the advice accounts that I feel give the best advice include Alexis Germany, Kmac, and Toni Tone.
While it is great that Tiktok can be used as a distraction from real life, there is a lot of valuable information on the app as creators are always seeking out new, popular platforms to share their knowledge with. Whatever information you’re looking for or what your interests are, Tiktok creators are making content for people just like you. A world of knowledge is out there and you can have it with just the swipe of a finger.