‘Abuse': Abbie Chatfield announces she's quitting social media
Abbie Chatfield has revealed that she will be stepping away from social media for a month, amid relentless online trolling that's taken a toll on her mental health.
In a raw and emotional TikTok video, Chatfield candidly discussed the struggles she has faced over the past six months, including daily threats and a flood of negative messages that have left her feeling 'traumatised' and 'constantly hated'.
She explained in the clip that her social media hiatus will begin on Sunday until July 10.
All her social media content will be prescheduled, as she will be leaving her phone in Australia while she goes on a month-long holiday overseas.
Relentless online abuse
Through a tear-filled video sitting in her car, Chatfield opened up about the severity of the abuse she faces, describing how 'every single day there's a new headline or a new major world event that I have been commenting on', but the backlash has become overwhelming.
She revealed that she receives 'hundreds of messages a day' with threats of sexual assault and violent language, and said she can't even enjoy scrolling on social media for fun because her feeds are filled with videos of people trolling her.
'Just imagine if every single day you received 100 texts saying that people were going to sexually assault you, people want to be violent towards you, people hate you, you should be ashamed of yourself. Like every single day,' she said.
'I don't think it's possible to comprehend for anyone that isn't in this industry. They don't have misogynistic men commenting on their things and making parodies of them.'
Chatfield says she 'needs a break'
Chatfield, who is currently writing a book, said the constant barrage of abuse has left her feeling paralysed and unable to work.
'The constant criticism that I receive makes me paralysed to be able to write or actually do anything because I believe that I am what everyone says I am because when you're told that all day every day, then you believe it, and that prevents you from doing work that you're actually proud of,' she explained.
'And I want to make this book good. So I'm having a month off from posting and I really need it. Like if I don't have this, I don't know what's gonna happen.'
She also revealed that she has not gone a day in the past eight months without having thoughts of taking her own life.
'It's been a really exhausting six months and I'm sure that anyone who speaks about politics online is aware of that. It's just constantly being lied about. People just making things up about me and then attacking me for things that they made up.'
Chatfield's decision to speak out about politics and the recent federal election has put her in the firing line of both far-right trolls and people in the feminist community.
She explained on Stellar 's Something To Talk about podcast last week how she is 'often a scapegoat' for criticism, and how the 'demeaning' and 'deeply damaging' effects of being targeted by fellow feminists and far-right trolls have taken their toll.
She has also been through a public feud with prominent writer and feminist Clementine Ford, who accused her of 'profiting from the performance of being politically engaged' following an interview with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on her podcast.
'I feel like I'm in the middle of stories like that all the time. So it's kind of, unfortunately, my norm,' Chatfield told Something To Talk About.
Setting a boundary
In light of this, Chatfield said she is now determined to set boundaries for herself and take a break from the internet to protect her mental health.
'For me to continue doing what I'm doing, I need to be mentally clear,' she said in her TikTok.
'So I just really need a break 'cause when I get to have a day off without my phone, even if it's just a morning or an afternoon, I'm able to get back to being normal.
'I really just need a reset.'
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