Although Instagram can create paths for accessing therapy through pages like Feelings Forward, Srivastava notes the platform’s influence on her client’s perception of self.

"The ones struggling with self esteem issues or body image issues do place a lot of importance on what they see online, constant comparisons with others," Srivastava said.

Researchers from Instagram have been studying the impacts their app has on youth’s mental health and found that the platform can change people’s perception of themselves, and makes body image issues worse for one in three teen girls.

“Thirty-two percent of teen girls said that when they felt bad about their bodies, Instagram made them feel worse,” read a 2020 internal Facebook presentation, reviewed by Wall Street Journal.

A review by WSJ found that for the past three years, Facebook repeatedly found that Instagram has had a significant impact in exacerbating mental health distress, in line with the social media giant’s reputation as a platform that prioritizes profits over people.

Teenagers reported that Instagram was behind an increase in rates of anxiety and depression. From those who experienced suicidal ideation, 13% of British teens and 6% of American teens linked it to the platform.

Though Srivastava has been noticing a shift away from ‘filters’ and beauty ideals – one where people are embracing their bodies while rejecting the toxicity of unattainable beauty standards – there’s still a cyclical relationship with how apps perpetuate them.

"New filters come and your face completely looks different in them, and then when you see your face without a filter, you feel, 'Oh, I'm so ugly', it's a constant struggle,” Srivastava said.

These comparisons extend beyond beauty and body standards by creating new measurements of success and accomplishments created by a barrage of posts on workout routines, online courses, baking the perfect sourdough and learning new recipes.

Being cooped up at home can blur the boundaries of productivity, leaving people with a constant sense of unproductivity exacerbated by comparisons drawn from social media.

"We feel like, 'Oh, we have to kind of be more productive' because work doesn't feel like work," Srivastava said.