News Anxiety and Switching Off in The Digital World

It’s no secret that wherever you are in the world right now, you’ve probably clocked some rather maddening and dystopian happenings going on in almost every capacity possible, but namely, politics. Even writing this post and talking about getting rid of negative influences in the news is making me think of the dreaded legislative and societal changes I was so determined to cleanse my brain of- gah! There’s no escape.

Social media has revolutionised the way in which we consume news in recent years, putting the ‘instant’ into Instagram and dominating 80% of ‘dings!’ or vibrations that our phones so kindly alerts us of- we’re in a climate of overwhelming updates. And with the trend of increasing knowledge, we’ve entered a period of ‘wokeness’ that means we can continually learn and self-educate long after leaving the formal school systems of our youth. But what happens when there’s just too much news? What about when us already anxious souls are plagued with the guilt of not contributing something valuable, groundbreaking or revolutionary? Answer: panic.

And no! I’m not advising you to go and sit in the corner of a room and let your anxiety consume you, but it’s true that panic often feels the most natural and valid reaction in circumstances such as the 2019 political and environmental crisis’ that we’re currently facing. Images of protests, walk outs and marches galore take up so much of our screen time at the moment, brandished with lines like “If you’re not angry, you’re not paying attention”, and creating what can really feel like an overwhelming sense of social responsibility to every wrong doing currently happening in our far from perfect world. And whilst of course it is beyond important to be an ally to those more disadvantaged than ourselves and take a stand against establishments that abuse the rights and needs of those around us, it’s not weak or feeble to admit that sometimes taking a step away from the news is what we need to keep us sane.

“It’s okay if right now you care too much. It shows you have compassion and empathy running through you. But putting your mental health first, and establishing boundaries of what your brain can process is the first step to a life in which the digital world runs harmoniously alongside us”

Although many of us can’t remember a time before a Twitter scroll and a cup of tea was our equivalent of the local newspaper, or when you’d ‘cheers!’ your drinks without the squeal of ‘Hang on! Let me get a boomerang!”, but in reality and in the context of our history so far, social media really is a new and novel phenomenon. Whilst it’s provided us with opportunities, education and knowledge far wider than ever before possible, it’s also had such a notable impact because never before have we been required to process such large amounts of information, concerning so many others outside of our inner circles. Our brains have yet to adapt to the overload of information that comes our way in the digital world, and so I hope this post acts as a small reminder amongst the noise that prioritising your mental health and mind is an entirely valid and responsible act.

But even if you switch off from political updates or delete your BBC News app out of pure frustration at the world currently, it’s hard to become fully digitally detoxed when so much of our lives and relaxation also come from our screens. Whether it be a YouTuber you’ve followed for years, binge watching your favourite Netflix show, or even keeping in touch with friends, it’s important to check in and note how the good and the bad contradict themselves in our relationship with the internet.

It’s easy to see that we’re all a bit (read: a lot) addicted to our phones, and aiming for a future in which we remove ourselves from the digital sphere entirely is an unachievable feat, but I hope above anything that this post has been the sign you might have needed to take a step back from the Internet and ascribed political duty you may feel to comment on Brexit or Trump or immigration. It’s okay if right now you care too much. It shows you have compassion and empathy running through you. But putting your mental health first, and establishing boundaries of what your brain can process is the first step to a life in which the digital world runs harmoniously alongside us, and not challenging or occupying our mental health at all times.