How to manage mental health in stressful news cycles
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We have to admit that 2022 is not exactly off to an excellent start. Starting Covid’s massive omicron waveMost people are used to dealing with upsetting news every day, especially since the outbreak of war in Ukraine.
Of course, it’s vital to remain informed. However, experts warn that excessive trauma-related information can cause a variety of mental health problems, such as depression, anxiety, or posttraumatic stress syndromes.
You could be exposed to this news every day by simply using social media.[S]”Some people log on to social media with other intentions than getting news updates, but they may accidentally get exposed to posts by connections,” Jacqueline Sperling (a Harvard Medical School clinical psychologist) tells. CNBC Make It.
How can you manage your mental health and still stay informed? Here are top experts’ four best tips:
You can read summaries without pictures and videos.
Video and audio can have a very real impact on the body. Sterling believes that news summaries with no photos or videos are more accessible.
It is also a good idea to limit your daily news intake to just a handful of predetermined times per day. She suggests that it is a good idea to limit the number of times you check the news each day. You could do this by checking the news twice a day, one in the morning and one in the evening.
Limiting how long you spend per predetermined news item can help. You can avoid being “addicted” to certain news checks.doomscrollingSterling states that “eating too much negative news” is a common way to do this.
Re-watch news stories you don’t like.
Dana Rose GarfinProfessor Jeremy, an assistant professor at University of California Irvine, spent over 13 years studying how it works. trauma exposure impacts both physical and mental health. According to her, news media have a tendency not to share the same information repeatedly. This isn’t good for everyone.
“[T]Garfin states that you should turn off cable news if the stories keep repeating.
To get the latest news, she recommends listening to daily podcasts from trusted sources. She also agrees to Sperling’s suggestions to limit exposure and avoid viewing graphic images and videos. Garfin suggests that news should be consumed no more than 20 to 30 minutes per days.
Focus on daily self-care and not just your day.
Feeling sad — and a little anxious — about the news coming out of Ukraine is normal, says Garfin. She says it’s crucial to maintain your self-care even in difficult situations like these.
That means getting enough sleep and exercise, staying connected with friends and family and engaging in other practices that you find comforting — from meditation or yoga to prayer or even just watching a movie.
Garfin states that it “can help to stay focused.”
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