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One of the most prominent names in this field is Squeezie, who boasts 18 million subscribers, making him France's most followed YouTuber. Recently, he announced the need to take a break for several months, citing the need to recharge his batteries in the face of stifling stress. This is not an isolated confession. In the never-ending stream of new creators coping with fatigue and anxiety, others have also spoken of the need to scale back their ambitions in recent months, illustrating a worrying trend among content creators.
Florian Henn, a member of the Mamytwink collective, is confronted with this reality. Initially involved with YouTube as a hobby, he has seen his passion turn into a thriving business, but also a burden of constant stress. "My mind is constantly in creative turmoil, it never stops," he confesses. "Inevitably, at some point, it became too much. It manifested itself in physical symptoms. I felt my health was threatened, me first, and even my colleagues."
The explosion of stress among YouTubers is not limited to personal considerations. The professional dimension also comes into play, with ever-larger production teams and ever-higher commercial expectations. Daily statistics, obsessively scrutinized, become the barometer of success, but also the catalyst for anxiety.
Florian Henn and his team at Mamytwink are well aware of this. "We have all the data, views, subscribers, viewing times, estimated revenues," he explains. "When you publish a new video, you want to see in real-time how many views it gets and how it ranks in terms of popularity. This can be anxiety-provoking, because if you find that your video isn't doing well, you might think that people aren't interested in what you're doing anymore, that you might disappear."
However, the main source of stress for YouTubers lies in the platform's algorithm, the veritable conductor of their visibility and success. This paradoxical dependence is underlined by the words of a researcher specializing in the Internet influence market: "Their superior is an algorithm. A platform can decide to change its rules almost overnight. This can lead to reduced visibility and prevent a work from being seen."
As competition intensifies, this algorithm becomes increasingly selective, exacerbating tensions among content creators. Another YouTuber, faced with this reality, testifies: "Suddenly, brands have a lot more choice between creators. As a result, there are fewer promotional opportunities. This means that the 3,000 euros you earned four months ago have to be managed carefully, because you have no idea when you'll receive your next payment."
Faced with this growing pressure, some YouTubers choose to take a break, or even stop their activity altogether. They often reduce their publishing pace to preserve their mental and physical health. Mamytwink, for example, has gone from one video a week to one a month, adopting time and stress management measures to avoid burnout.
Curiously, these breaks don't seem to penalize YouTubers' popularity. On the contrary, they often elicit an outpouring of empathy and encouragement from subscribers, who show their support for their favorite creators. As a sign of our society's growing compassion for mental health issues, videos posted after a break sometimes even receive renewed attention. It's as if the public recognizes the need to preserve the real lives of content creators.
