Today, as people grow more glued to their screens, parasocial relationships, one-sided emotional attachments to celebrities or influencers who don’t actually know them, have become both a dangerous and comforting escape from the real world. 

It begins with an interest. A spark. A look that lasts a beat longer than normal. And one of the most common ways of getting entangled in one is through online media, especially reality TV shows. 

One particular show being “Love Island.”

“Love Island” is a TV show in which people go to a luxury villa on an island for around two months, in hopes of finding love and making true connections. Many factors come into play when delving into this: drama, romance, friendships, money and fame. 

The everyday lives of the islanders are filmed and broadcasted for anyone to see. This allows the audience to form their own opinions, thoughts, and judgments about the show, and especially about the people in it. 

While viewers may be entertained by discussing the drama within the show, it becomes a problem when their lives start to revolve around it.

From tuning in for an episode each week to dedicating large chunks of time to criticizing or defending a character or cast member they only know on a surface level, this pattern has grown very common. However, it should not be normalized.  

In an article published by EverydayHealth, licensed marriage and family therapist Jessica Leader explains that parasocial relationships often create a false sense of closeness. She believes this statement still holds true today.

“It involves a level of commitment to a public figure where you even begin to view the celebrity as a friend or confidante. There is one-sided intimacy,” Leader said. 

It’s safe to assume that viewers really do start to mistake a relationship with a person they see only on surface level for a meaningful connection. 

It is unhealthy and downright dangerous. Not just for the viewer but for the person they’re idolizing. 

According to an article by the Cleveland Clinic, clinical psychologist Adam Borland, PsyD, explains that parasocial relationships can become unhealthy, especially for people struggling with mental health. 

“If someone deals with depression, a sense of loneliness or social anxiety, there’s the potential for a parasocial relationship to be problematic. That relationship may be providing a person something that doesn’t exist in their life,” Borland said.

It’s common for a person to find something to help them cope with whatever they’re struggling with, especially if it has to do with poor mental health. 

However, the more that a person craves something that only satisfies their needs for a short amount of time, the more they want it, think about it and obsess over it. 

The celebrity or influencer they watch isn’t responsible for satisfying the obsessive desires of their audience.

The moment that the character does or says something that seems unusual to the viewer, the illusion in their head shatters and fills it with uncertainty.  

It throws them into an endless pit of confusion and despair because of the sudden change. 

At the end of the day, parasocial relationships shouldn’t be the first thing that people turn to when things aren’t going well.

There are always a million other things that they could do that are far healthier alternatives than centering one’s life around a public figure. This could be painting, playing sports or writing. The options and paths are endless when they pull themselves out of that dark pit and keep moving forward.