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On a recent sun-drenched Sunday afternoon in New York City鈥檚 Bryant Park, Elyse Fox was laying out picnic blankets, colored pencils, squares of paper, and pink plastic cups with water.

The 27-year-old founder of the , a popular Instagram account devoted to destigmatizing mental health, particularly for young women and people of color, had taken her mission outdoors and IRL. It was time for their monthly art therapy gathering, an open invitation to any of the account鈥檚 16,900 followers. Ingrid Mellor, an art therapist, was on hand, and the two hugged new arrivals, one by one, as they made their way to the聽blankets and art supplies. Many they recognized from previous meetups, but many were new faces.

Although a peaceful scene, these gatherings and the Sad Girls Club account mark a rebellion against today鈥檚 social media culture at large and, specifically, against Instagram. Fox believes the platform鈥檚 insidious influencer culture鈥攖he reason your feed is filled with perfect images of healthy, happy wellness gurus espousing feel-good truisms鈥攎ay actually create a toxic environment for users. She and other critics posit that young women struggling with mental or emotional health battles are the most vulnerable.

鈥淚 think that we don鈥檛 really see representations of these girls or women who are openly speaking about mental health and the struggles that come along with it,鈥� says Fox. 鈥淚t鈥檚 covered up. We only see the niceness and positives. It鈥檚 hard for other girls who are going through difficult things, but they don鈥檛 have that representation in the media.鈥�

Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube have sparked a booming industry of so-called influencers鈥攑eople with large-scale followings who are paid considerable sums by large companies to tout their products or ideas. What started for many as a side gig is now, by some estimates, a . In April, even the Federal Trade Commission had to take notice, sending to influencers, nudging them to clearly disclose their product and brand relationships.

It鈥檚 perhaps an extreme, lucrative corner of a digital culture that many users are beginning to find odious. A of more than 400 undergraduates in Utah found that most respondents who spent more time on Facebook each week felt that other people鈥攖hose whose lives they witnessed via social media鈥攚ere happier and more fulfilled, compared to themselves. The found that 鈥減assive consumption鈥� of your friends鈥� social media feeds and your own 鈥渂roadcasts鈥� to followers may be tied to feelings of loneliness or depression.

Instagram influencers project a specific, highly crafted image of perfection鈥攐ne that is largely white, thin, and psychologically Zen. Critics argue that this boom, in turn, has helped fuel excessive self-promotion in which we post about only the good moments rather than reality鈥攅ssentially a distorted echo chamber. Not to mention the self-denial, self-critique, and, in its worst iterations, constant self-comparison that the industry has fostered in many followers.

Yet there is some reason for optimism, as a growing number of individuals are using Instagram as a platform from which to launch their counternarrative to these often hypocritical, manicured displays.

The Sad Girls Club is such a group. As members try to rewrite the wellness story, they aren鈥檛 alone. Instagram now has accounts like and , which similarly extol the virtues of healthy living inside and out beyond the willowy wellness marketing tropes, with hashtags like #trailsnotscales and images of women to body shaming. The hope is that by creating a safe space for dialogue about the real parts of life, these digital gatherings will help individuals engage with others about their problems and, in the long term, begin to heal.

In the case of Fox, it was easier to tell her friends and family about her battle with depression digitally than admit to it in person. Before starting her account, she had been one of those people who posted about all the good moments and none of the bad. 鈥淚t looked like I had the perfect life online,鈥� says Fox. 鈥淏ut they couldn鈥檛 see how I was living internally.鈥� Last winter, she finally documenting her struggles and experienced overwhelming support from friends and family that helped take her to a much healthier place. Sad Girls Club grew from that response.

What Fox had originally conceived as an account for a couple of fans had international followers within weeks, she says. Fox聽launched a Kickstarter to raise funds for a mental health circuit for the account, but it fell short of its $20,000 goal. That failure prompted her to refocus on expanding its base in New York and online. Since December, the group has met once a month and built a stronghold of followers. That rapid growth speaks to the need for such online communities that go far beyond the glossy realms of influencers.

鈥淏uilding relationships outside of a platform is new to Generation Z,鈥� says Fox. 鈥淏ut I feel like that鈥檚 something I grew up on and has been helpful for me.鈥�

Em Odesser, a 17-year-old from New York, said she was drawn to the Sad Girls Club online and in person because she wanted more information about depression and anxiety. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 learn about any of this in school,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 important to destigmatize the conversation. Everyone online is just supposed to look happy.鈥�

Nearby, on a picnic blanket, Gabrielle Busch, an 18-year-old who just graduated from high school, nodded in agreement. 鈥淚t鈥檚 all about the money,鈥� she says. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e promoting this life, and the influencers can set the tone for everyone else. It鈥檚 unhealthy. It鈥檚 not real.鈥�

By the time the watercolor painting was well underway, nearly two dozen young women (and at least one young man), mostly teens and twentysomethings, had sprawled along the blankets. Mellor had prompted the group to depict something they used to help cope, and then led the group in a discussion. Within minutes, they had colorful images of books, friends, sunshine. 鈥淚 smoke weed,鈥� said one woman, prompting a ripple of laughter. 鈥淎 lot.鈥�

Some had described struggling with addiction, either themselves or in their families. At least two had fathers who died in the past year. Many were stressed out about grades, as well as social issues in school or work. 鈥淢y immigrant parents don鈥檛 get it,鈥� said one woman.

鈥淢y parents said I was being 鈥榯oo theatrical,鈥欌€� another said.

鈥淵ou just want to know your shit is valid, you know?鈥�

Many hacks were shared, including one from Jacqueline Randall, a 26-year-old from New Jersey, who spoke about the role water and physical fitness could play in mental health treatment. An impassioned swimmer, Randall fielded questions from attendees about triathlons. 鈥淎nother reason you should exercise when you鈥檙e in your youth is so you can really kick ass when you鈥檙e older,鈥� she said.

For Tara Wight, the reception that afternoon was heartening. She had followed Sad Girls on Instagram for most of the year, but this was her first appearance at an art therapy meetup. Wight had struggled with anxiety over the past couple months and said she was looking for ways to talk about and treat it without 鈥渉aving to call a bunch of friends and go on and on about it.鈥�

鈥淧eople need to be heard,鈥� said Wight, finishing up a watercolor painting and letting it dry in the sun. 鈥淲hat impresses me here is not just their ability to talk, but their ability to listen to each other.鈥�

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