Coping With The News. Staying Informed While Protecting Your Mental Health.

Clinical Psychologist Tegan Bradilovic shares her insights.

Part of being a social engaged and responsible person can involve wanting to stay abreast of what is happening locally and in the world. However, news stories, whether these are environmental, political or social, can be extremely distressing and have the potential to be detrimental to our mental health. We have found many of our clients here in South Melbourne have felt torn being knowing what is happening in the world, while still caring about the world.

 At the time of writing this, recent political events in America have resulted in a significant increase in reported distress in a range of populations. Research by the American Psychological Association found that the presidential election was a significant cause of stress for 69% of American adults, an increase from 52% of adults during the last US election in 2016.

 This distress has been felt even more strongly in populations already vulnerable to mental health concerns. For example, The Trevor Project, a LGBTQI+, a youth suicide prevention organization reported a 700% increase in calls and texts associated with the presidential race compared to prior weeks.  

 Here in Melbourne, Australia we are also seeing a rise of international events impacting our communities. What once felt far away is suddenly closer. If you are currently experiencing distress associated with news events, you are not alone and there are things you can do to help manage these feelings.

Allow Yourself to Feel Your Feelings

Acknowledging how you are feeling in relation to distressing events is a meaningful first step. It’s normal to feel a range of emotions in response to a distressing news story and no emotion is right or wrong. You may find it helpful to notice where you feel discomfort in your body and validate your feelings by saying to yourself “This is a moment of struggle”. Allowing yourself to cry, even if you don’t know the people directly impacted is part of the human condition. It probably says something about your compassion too. Feeling anxious about how world changes might impact life locally. That is reasonable. What is something that will bring you comfort and allow you to attend to keeping yourself safe today?

 Connecting with other like-minded individuals to express your emotions may also be helpful. Otherwise, you may simply remind yourself that you are not alone in these feelings.

Remind Yourself of The Good in the World

“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”

― Fred Rogers

 Remember that in moments of turmoil, human beings often find strength in unity and banding together to support one another. When faced with adversity, there will always be others there to help. By reminding yourself of these positive actions whilst acknowledging the uncomfortable, you may create a more balanced way of thinking that helps you cope with the distress. When you have the resources to do so, finding a way you can help can also ease some of the natural distress. Donating $10 to the local fire department won’t change global warming, but it may give you a boost to help those who are managing the current crisis.

Be Mindful of Social Media Exposure

It is estimated that roughly 45% of young Australians nominate social media as their main source of news. Australians reportedly spend an average of two hours a day on social media. This means the frequency of your social media use is also something to be mindful of during turbulent times. It might be helpful to ask yourself; which when your algorithms are serving up bad news is, frankly, a lot. If the load is feeling unhelpfully heavy, you might contemplate:

 Do I need to take a break from what I’m reading?

-Am I learning anything new right now or reading similar rhetorics?

-Do I need to read the comments? How are these behaviours serving me?

-Am I channelling my emotions into something that can help make meaningful change towards things that I value?

Consider Your Circle of Control

The circle of control was a concept popularised by author, Steven Covey as a way of dealing with difficult issues. The circle of control is a tool for dividing our concerns into 3 separate domains;

-The circle of control; the things we have control over.

-The circle of influence; worries we can do something about- either directly or indirectly.

-The circle of concern; the wide range of worries we might have about a topic.

 Spending time considering what is within our circles of control, influence and concern can be a helpful reflection when we feel upset about an event. Without this we can easily become overwhelmed by the enormity of problems, feel hopeless, and do nothing at all. We can then experience regret or self-criticism that our good intentions for the world are not contributing to any change.

 If each of us can zoom in on our circles of control and influence, and make small positive contributions, we might just change the world. Of course, it is only our own small contributions that we can directly control. One great thing about the human condition is that we get a wonderful boost of dopamine and oxytocin when we help others, meaning we have a wonderful win win.