Profile image of influencer Lola Lolita on TikTok
TikTok and Instagram have become emotional showcases where pain is exposed in public and, in many cases, receives an immediate response in the form of support, an increasingly common phenomenon known as sadfishing.
Somebody record yourself crying in front of the cell phone and share the video. It doesn’t go into details, it doesn’t explicitly ask for help, but the message is clear: something is not right. Within hours, the publication was filled with supportive comments, messages of encouragement and thousands of “likes”.
The scene, increasingly common on social media, gained debate after the Spanish tiktoker published a video in which burst into tears.
The video triggered a wave of messages of support, after the young woman confessed that she was going through a difficult period in his personal life, marked by the death of his grandfather, a break in love and several controversies on social media.
“I do this to feel a little better. This also serves me as therapy and as a way to vent”, he said in the video, which surpassed half a million “likes”.
Many content creators on TikTok integrate their personal lives as a regular part of their digital narrative. This type of public emotional display fits into an increasingly common phenomenon known as sadfishing — a term that describes the using personal suffering as a lure to attract attention, validation, or comfort in digital environments.
Crying in front of the camerashare an ambiguous message filled with sadness or report a personal crisis live became a recurring image on social media, notes .
Digital platforms such as TikTok or Instagram started to function as emotional showcases, where pain is displayed in public and often receive an immediate response in the form of support, messages of encouragement and, above all, collective validation.
This type of publication, increasingly frequent, responds to a concrete dynamic that goes beyond simple emotional expression. For some people, exposing suffering It became a way to feel heardunderstood or followed in a digital environment that rewards vulnerability with interaction.
The origin of the term sadfishing
The concept of sadfishing was coined in 2019 by the writer Rebecca Reidin an article in which he analyzed how certain public figures used sadness as a decoy.
In the text, the author described an example led by Kendall Jennerwhich created expectations around a possible personal confession to, in the end, present an advertising campaign.
“Sadfishing is when someone uses their emotional problems to attract an audience on the Internet,” says Reid. The author emphasizes that there is no problem in talking about one’s own difficulties, but warned against the risk of sharing “a sweetened and very filtered version of sadness”, designed to capture attention.
Although the term has become popular through examples linked to celebrities and influencers, sadfishing is not exclusive to public figures.
According to Reid, it also appears in everyday behavior on social media, such as posting cryptic messages like “I’m fed up with everything”, without explanations — which in turn triggers a chain of questions and private messages.
The sadness works like an emotional hook. There is not always a conscious intention to manipulate, but there is an expectation of response: attention, care and validation from the digital environment.
Despite being a relatively recent phenomenon, one published in 2024 in Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking analyzed some of the psychological characteristics associated with sadfishing.
From a psychological point of view, sadfishing can be understood as a form of seeking social validation.
In environments where self-esteem is reinforced by the reactions of others, showing vulnerability can become a strategy to feel seen and recognized. But there is a clear difference between sharing a real experience to seek support and transform pain into a recurring resource to get attention.
Social networks don’t just amplify happy moments: they also amplify personal crises. The problem arises when the emotional responsewhether “likes”, supportive comments or views, reinforces behavior — and turns it into a repeated dynamic.
