‘Sadfishing’ is described as a behavioural trend where people make exaggerated claims about
their emotional problems to generate sympathy and attention. The term was created at the
beginning of the year by a blogger using the term to describe certain celebrities who
embellish their emotional difficulties to generate sympathy and gain more followers. The term
has now gained traction and is seen as a growing trend on social media. The challenge with
sadfishing is that sometimes real problems can become overlooked or young people can even
be bullied for having shared their problems online.
