By Edwin Wanjawa and Dommie Yambo-Odotte
Research across the world consistently shows that digital violence is closely linked to mental health problems such as anxiety, depression, and suicidal behaviour. A 2024 systematic review on cyberbullying and mental health, for instance, found high levels of depression, anxiety, stress, and suicidal behaviour among victims of online abuse. Similar patterns have been reported globally: adolescents and young adults who are targeted online are more likely to experience depressive symptoms, loneliness, and self-harm.
Kenyan evidence is emerging in the same direction. A recent study among secondary school students found that both face-to-face bullying and cyberbullying were strongly associated with suicidal thoughts, plans, and attempts. While this research focuses largely on young people in school settings, its message is clear: what happens online is not “just words”—it can push people to the brink of despair. When you add gendered abuse, sexual shaming, and the non-consensual sharing of intimate images, the psychological toll on women and girls becomes even heavier.
One of the most immediate mental health impacts of online violence is anxiety. Survivors often describe feeling constantly on edge: every notification, every message alert, every friend request can trigger panic. They worry about who has seen harmful content, who is talking about them, and whether another wave of abuse is coming. This emotional hypervigilance—always scanning for danger—mirrors what is seen in survivors of offline trauma and can evolve into long-term anxiety disorders.
Shame is another powerful consequence. In many societies, including Kenya, women carry the burden of “respectability.” When their private images are leaked or their sexualities are weaponised against them, they are often blamed more than those who violated their privacy. International research on technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) notes that survivors frequently report low self-esteem, fear, and deep emotional distress in the aftermath of online abuse. Instead of being recognised as victims of a violation, they are treated as the problem. This social blaming feeds internal self-blame, making it harder to seek help.
Depression often follows when online violence persists or when the fallout is severe. Survivors may withdraw from social life, lose interest in activities they once enjoyed, or struggle with sleep and appetite. UNICEF and others have warned that cyberbullying and digital harassment can lead to poor academic or work performance, depression, and in some cases suicide. The sense of being trapped—unable to erase content, unable to change what people have seen—can create a crushing feeling of hopelessness.
The risk of suicidal ideation is particularly worrying. Studies from different regions, including Kenya, show clear links between bullying (offline and online) and suicidal thoughts and attempts. When intimate images are exposed, or when a woman is relentlessly targeted with misogynistic slurs, threats, and humiliation, suicide can come to be seen as an escape from relentless public shame. International cases such as that of Amanda Todd in Canada, who endured prolonged online sexual exploitation and cyberbullying before taking her own life, have brought global attention to this connection between digital abuse and suicide.
The harm does not stay online. Once content spreads, community stigma often takes over. Leaked images or abusive posts migrate from screens to real spaces—homes, churches, workplaces, campuses. Survivors may be whispered about, mocked, or avoided. They might lose job opportunities, drop out of school, or change neighbourhoods. In such contexts, the internet becomes the starting point of a much wider, offline social punishment. For women and girls, whose reputations are often closely policed, this stigma can feel like a life sentence.
Online violence is also uniquely re-traumatising because of its permanence and reach. Traditional forms of violence, while devastating, at least come to an end in time; but a leaked picture or video can reappear years later, resurfacing on new platforms, in new WhatsApp groups, or in search results. Every time the content circulates, the survivor experiences a fresh wave of humiliation and fear. Recovery becomes difficult because the past is never fully past; it is only ever a click away.
All of this underlines why organisations like Development Through Media (DTM) insist that online violence be treated as real violence, with real mental health consequences. Media actors—including journalists, editors, influencers, and content creators—have a critical role. Sensational reporting that reproduces leaked images, names survivors, or frames them as responsible for their own abuse deepens trauma and stigma. Responsible media practice should instead protect survivors’ identities, avoid graphic detail, and focus attention on perpetrators, legal remedies, and support services.
At the same time, survivors need clear psychosocial support pathways. This includes access to trauma-informed counselling, confidential helplines, legal aid, digital security support, and peer support groups—especially for women and girls who may fear coming forward. Research shows that psychological support can mitigate the long-term effects of violence, including depression and post-traumatic stress. Linking digital rights work with mental health services is therefore not optional; it is essential.
Ultimately, the mental health impact of online violence should force us to rethink how we design, use, and regulate digital spaces. The goal is not only to remove harmful content but to build an ecosystem that affirms survivors’ dignity, challenges victim-blaming narratives, and ensures that women and girls can participate online without fear. Every hateful comment, every leaked image, every mocking meme lands in a real human mind and heart. Addressing the trauma it causes is not a side issue; it is central to any serious conversation about digital rights, gender justice, and public health.
Edwin Wanjawa is the Programmes Associate, DTM and Dommie Yambo-
Odotte is the Executive Director and Producer, DTM
