Hi friends,

Over the past year, while hosting events and shaping the vision for Creators 4 Mental Health, I kept getting the same questions. What do creators really want? What is the biggest issue they are facing? I knew the answers from my own experience and from watching so many of my peers struggle, but I also knew we needed data to back it up.

That is what led to the 2025 Content Creator Mental Health Study.

I have spent months working closely with Lupiani Insights and Strategies and our sponsors BeReal, Opus, Social Currant, Statusphere, and The AAKOMA Project, and this week we released something I believe is one of the most important pieces of work we have ever done.

This study confirms what so many creators whisper privately, hide behind polished posts, or only admit on panels and when things finally collapse. Our community is exhausted, anxious, financially unstable, and increasingly overwhelmed by an industry that demands constant visibility without offering basic support.

I want to talk openly about what we found and why it matters.

We surveyed 542 creators across North America, from emerging voices to full-time digital entrepreneurs. What emerged is the clearest picture yet of the emotional toll behind a 300 billion dollar economy built on creativity and constant output.

Here are the numbers that stopped me in my tracks:

• Only 8 percent of creators say their mental health is excellent.

• For creators with more than five years in the industry, that number falls to 4 percent.

• 65 percent experience anxiety or depression connected to their work.

• 62 percent feel burnt out.

• Nearly 70 percent say their income is unstable.

• 89 percent have no access to creator-specific mental health support.
  

  

And the most heartbreaking statistic: 1 in 10 creators say they have had suicidal thoughts tied to their work. This is almost double the national average of 5.5 percent, according to NIH research.

When I read that number, I felt the breath leave my body.
This is not a content trend.
This is not a productivity issue.

This is a mental health problem intensified by the fact that creators have no protections, no stability, and no support systems built around them.

Other industries struggle with burnout and stress, but most have HR teams, paid time off, health benefits, and guardrails. Creators often experience the same pressures without any infrastructure.
That is what makes this worth paying attention to. The risks are higher when safety nets do not exist.

Creators are not just influencers. We are small business owners, producers, editors, marketers, community managers, CFOs, and constant performers, often rolled into one person with no benefits, no boundaries, and no safety net.

The study shows what many of us already live:
We wake up and check metrics before getting out of bed.
We edit on days off.
We feel guilty resting.
We worry about losing income if we take a break.
We are pressured to keep posting, keep growing, and keep feeding the algorithm.

It is an always-on cycle that is burning out an entire generation of digital creators. And when you think about it, this is the reality we are welcoming the next generation into.

But it does not have to be this way.

Creators Know What They Need, and They Are Asking For It

The study found overwhelming alignment on the solutions creators want:

• Income stability tools built into platforms

• Transparent pay rates and fairer brand deals

• Limits on unpaid labor such as editing and community management

• Creator-specific therapy, peer support, and wellness programs

• Industry protections that acknowledge creators as workers

Natalie Lupiani, who led the research, said something I cannot stop thinking about:

“Those who benefit from creators’ labor need to help build the systems that protect them.”

She is right. This is a roadmap, not a warning.

Creators are the blueprint for what digital work is becoming, and right now, the blueprint is cracking.

As work, identity, and online life continue to merge, the issues creators face today may soon become the issues everyone faces. Burnout, blurred boundaries, financial precarity, and algorithmic pressure are not creator problems. They are early signals of a larger shift in how we work.

If we fix the creator economy, we support artists and entrepreneurs. We also model a healthier digital future for every kind of worker.

This study is the foundation for something bigger.

In 2026, Creators 4 Mental Health, alongside our partners and advisors, will launch initiatives built directly from this data, including:

• More in-person and virtual events that bring creators together for connection, community, and support

• Community-driven support groups that give creators space to be seen, understood, and cared for

• Training and policy recommendations to guide platforms, brands, and agencies toward healthier creator practices

• Workshops and tools that help creators build more sustainable and grounded workflows

• Advocacy focused on income stability and transparency, so creators can build long-term careers with less financial precarity

• Partnerships with platforms and brands to create real protections and support systems for creators

• Content and storytelling that use our platforms responsibly to destigmatize mental health and keep this conversation visible and ongoing

My hot take:

Creators deserve support, stability, and care. Not because it is trendy, but because it is necessary.

If you take one thing away from this newsletter, let it be this:
You are not alone. You are not imagining things. Your exhaustion is not a personal failure.

It is a systemic issue, and together, we are going to change it.

The full study is available here:
👉 creators4mentalhealth.com/study

Other headlines to check out:

AI

• The AI Cold War That Will Redefine Everything

• Disrupting the first reported AI-orchestrated cyber espionage campaign

• OpenAI’s new LLM exposes the secrets of how AI really works

• All of My Employees Are AI Agents, and So Are My Executives

• Let AI do the hard parts of your holiday shopping

Creator Economy

• Jack Dorsey Brings Vine Back to Life with diVine and the Internet Is Losing It

• We’re All Working for the Algorithm Now

• How the creator economy is making you talk like the internet : TED Radio Hour

• Hollywood & The Creator Economy Need “Unity” & “Affinity” To Thrive, Say Experts – Web Summit Lisbon

• Newsletter platform beehiiv adds AI website building, creator tools in major expansion

Web3 

• Visa breaks new ground in digital payments, stablecoin pilot targets the 100 billion creator economy

• Wirex Launches 2025 Rising Women in Crypto Awards to Celebrate Female Leaders in Web3

• Ripple Labs is conquering crypto. Now the XRP-linked firm wants to take on traditional finance

• Demand for secure crypto devices soars as hacks hit record

Gentle Reminder 🙏

“No one will ever fully be able to understand the internal battles you had to endure just to heal, just to grow, just to make it here today. Be proud of the way you fought to save yourself. Be proud of the way you survived.”
― Bianca Sparacino

Want to advertise with me and sponsor #TheAlpha?
Reply to this email and lets chat :)

Remember, I'm Bullish on you! With gratitude,