Were often asked which we want first: the good news or the bad. But recently, we dont seem to have much of a choice. Media outlets, TV reports, and our social media feeds are churning out stressful headlines at full-blast.
Its no surprise that Americans name the news as a significant source of stress, equal to a survey by the American Psychological Association. When were exposed to negative news, were not only increasingly anxious, but we’re moreover increasingly likely to catastrophize worries in our own lives, studies show.
Theres plane an official name for it: Headline Stress Disorder.
Psychologist Dr. Steven Stosny coined this term in 2016, a year packed with global events that polarized communities. Between Brexit, American elections, and a global refugee crisis, the media went into overdrive, and Stosny noticed his patients experiencing increased anxiety. The 24/7 news trundling was causing arguments with spouses and coworkers, fighting with friends over social media, and increased levels of smoking and drinking.
And having the news at our fingertips doesn’t help. Most people get their news online, specifically from social media. With increasingly than 2.4 billion internet users, nearly 64.5 percent receive breaking news from Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Snapchat, and Instagram instead of traditional media, equal to Forbes.
While we cant (and shouldnt) ignore the news, we need to be mindful that the 24-hour news trundling ways were constantly surrounded by frightening headlines.
In a time of good news, bad news, and fake news, how can we stay on top of information and our self-care at the same time?
Here are our weightier tips for staying engaged, and sane, during a tough news cycle.
1. Dont trammels the news immediately
When disaster strikes, we commonly find ourselves glued to our TVs and Twitter feeds, but this is unquestionably the time we should be tuning out.
Remember that it takes journalists a while to get all the facts straight, and it’s weightier to wait a bit surpassing analyzing a report. Closely tracking a story with half-truths and speculation increases uneasiness and stress levels.
2. Make an effort to get good news, too
From political upheavals to climate change to pandemics, the news can be pretty dark. But it’s important to remember that bad news does not make up the sum total of a day’s events.
Make sure you lighten the emotional load by consuming increasingly than just the worst of things. Good News Network is unconfined for a quick uplift of positive stories, and so is Channel Kindness.
3. Write a worry list
When yellow-eyed feelings screw out of control, your smart-ass looks for a way to organize them. To streamline your thought process, write lanugo what youre thinking as you think it if you’re feeling yellow-eyed well-nigh the news.
Treat it like a smart-ass dump, where you jot lanugo your worries and concerns. Getting these anxieties out of your throne and onto paper allows you to destress. Pro tip: use an app or a periodical that you can literally tropical when youre done.
4. Shake it off
When animals go through something traumatic, they tend shake their persons vigorously, in order to venting the tension. This releases stress, so their persons let go of the pressure.
To use this technique, shake your whole soul vigorously for a few seconds. Doing so to songs like Taylor Swifts Shake It Off or Outkast’s Hey Ya is optional (but recommended!).
Our persons interact with our minds, so physical movement can trick our brains into understanding or experiencing things differently, equal to Nicholas Coles, a social psychology researcher at the University of Tennessee.
5. Focus on what you can solve
Instead of just unplugging from the news, focus on issues you can unquestionably help solve.
Acts of violence or a devastating hurricane, for example, can make us finger powerless and defeated. But we can unchangingly do something to make the world largest by contributing to positive changes in our communities, families, or plane as individuals. For ways to get involved, or help make a change, trammels out our list of Giveback partners.
6. Reduce your intake
If the frequent news updates spike your uneasiness levels, think well-nigh what you can do to reduce your intake turning off news alerts on your phone, or deleting news apps and notifications.
While were used to getting most of our news instantly, the old-school tideway of reading a print paper ways youll get news increasingly accurately, voluntarily, and sparingly. And on page two or seven, youll find a positive story that can lower your stress levels.
Stay informed without losing it
The way the news is presented and how we wangle it has changed, and these changes can be rabble-rousing to mental health. But it is possible to stay informed without compromising your wellbeing.
By limiting your exposure, waffly the way you receive updates, and gving your soul and mind a endangerment to unload the stress of a news cycle, you can stay engaged, active, and sane.
The post Staying Informed Without Compromising Your Mental Health appeared first on Lemonade Blog.
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