'You feel like you're drowning': Why YouTube content creators are burning out

When Ottawa'sElleMills was growing up, there was one thing she wanted to be: AYouTuber.

With a strong personality and cheeky editing style, Mills and her videos soon gained a fan following.

And today, Mills is a bona fide YouTubestar; she'll be competing against some of the biggest names on the platform at theStreamy Awardson Monday.

Last year,Mills's "Coming Out" video went viral.After years ofposting, her subscriber count exploded, climbing to 1.5 million.

But asMills's audiencegrew, so did her anxiety.

"Physically, I remember feeling always stressed. There was never a time I felt relaxed," she said."I remember walking outside and thinking, 'What's the point?'"

In May, Mills shared a different kind of video. "Burnt Out at 19" showed her crying and cursing,frustrated her dream job had turned into a nightmare.

Physically, I remember feeling always stressed. There was never a time I felt relaxed.I remember walking outside and thinking, 'What's the point?- ElleMills, YouTuber

'I have gotten everything I wanted. And I'm unhappy:' Elle Mills on YouTuber burnout

6 years ago

Duration 1:16

The popular YouTuber discusses the dark feelings she was having when she filmed her Burnt Out at 19 video.

Mills is just one of a growing number of YouTubestars going public about their anxieties. Alisha Marie, El Rubius and the Dolan Twins all have spoken out about burnout and taken breaks from posting.

In announcing herbreak earlier this yearin an updatetitled "This isn't Goodbye"Marie said "mental health is so much more important than anything else."The Dolan Twins, meanwhile, talked about needingto take care of life beyond YouTube.

Beyond burnout

Nicole McCance is a Toronto-based psychologist who has severalYouTubersas clients. Watching Mills's video, she saidwhat she saw was"more than just burnoutthis is someone who is at the breaking point."

Several of her clients complain about the pressure of competing on a platform that never stops, she said.

"They told me that they tend to be obsessed about the negative and how to be better. So it's this constant pressure for perfectionismand this constant pressure to be better next time."

For many, stopping is not an option.

As aveteran who's been on YouTubefor sixyears, Louis Colerefers to himself as one of the originals. He brands his channel FunForLouis,but says in the past couple years, the fun faded awayeven in the most idyllic surroundings.

With the constant travelling, shooting and editing, Cole saidhe'd get three hours of sleep most nights.

"I remember sitting in Jamaica," Cole recalled, and the only thing he could think was:"Why are my views dropping?"

Algorithm anxiety

YouTuber Louis Cole on feeling pressure to 'churn out content'

6 years ago

Duration 0:58

The veteran vlogger details the rising pressure he and his peers face to stay popular on YouTube.

After hitting that wall, Cole istrying to slow down. But with celebritieslike Will Smithnow publishing their own content directly on the platform, he saysthe competition is increasing.

"In this expandingYouTubeworld, you feel like you're drowning a little bit, because you need to keep making content."

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Part of the reason Cole,Mills and so many others feel the need to keep producing contentis the YouTubealgorithm that recommends videos to viewers. Many creators believe the algorithm rewards those who post regularly. This leads to a situation where creators are stuck in a content creation cycle.

To help creators,YouTube has introduced a series of instructional videos, including tips on healthy eating, sleeping and even the importance oftaking vacations.

But whenthe Ladylike collectivetook a break, they discovered the consequences. Chantel Houston saidthe groupdecided to go dark for a week, but then returned with a superhero-themed series they expected to perform strong.

Typically the group's videos receiveabout a million views in their first week,Houston said.But after the self-imposed break, their new videos were only getting between 200,000 and 300,000views in that first week.

"It definitely made a difference for us," she said.

Demonetization dilemmas

Another added layer of stress for creators is the spectre of demonetization. Many YouTubers depend on ad revenue generated by video plays. If a video violates YouTube's advertiser content guidelines, the company reserves the right to "demonetize" the video, turning off ads and, in effect, the creator's revenue stream for that upload.

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Following the controversyoverLogan Paul's "Suicide Forest" video, YouTubehas tightened the rules around what it considers"not suitable." It's a wide-ranging and broad list, covering such areas assexually suggestive content, controversial issues and sensitive events.

With 400 hours of content uploaded to YouTube every minute, the platform uses a machine-learning algorithm to flagunsuitable videos.Creatorscan request to have demonetized videos manually reviewed, but they'll never get that money back.

Some creators say the technology YouTube uses is problematic, making it too easyfor users to abuse the system and report a video. Transgender YouTuberStef Sanjatisaidmany of her friends in the trans community regularly see their videos flagged as inappropriate by anti-trans viewers.

"Two years ago, I couldupload a videoabout a trans issue, and I would have made a reasonable amount of moneyenough to float my rent. Now I'm in a place where I make almost nothing from ad revenue."

YouTube'sgoal is keeping both brands and creators happy, saidRohitDhawan,the platform'sdirector of product management. He saidYouTube is providing creators as much information as possible.

"If there are brands that want a particular content for ads to appear on, we're providing tools to give them that option."

Next Steps

Dhawan also points out the other services YouTube has launched to take the pressure off posting:Live streams, Super Chat and paid membership programs are all meant to give creators other avenuesto monetize connections with their community.

While Dhawan agrees there's a lot of stress in the creator community, he said there's no shortage of people looking to become the next ElleMills.

"We have many, many, many YouTube creators, and that number continues to increase, and their entire livelihood and attention and time is only on YouTube," he said.

Although she's had moments whereshe consideredquitting, Mills saidshe's in a better place these days;she's postinglessand sometimes even manages to puther phone down.

Like many YouTuberswho spoke to CBC News, Mills said she would like to see the platform put mental health first. Butshe seems to accept the downsides of YouTube stardom.

Burnout happens to everyone, she said. "It comes with the job, unfortunately."