How to cope with the news

Many people, myself included, like to keep up-to-date with the latest news. It can be informative and aid social conversation. However, excessive exposure to new stories can lead to feelings of overwhelm, fear and stress.

We’re regularly exposed to a barrage of negative news stories. We have access to twenty-four-hour news channels, notifications from phone apps and online newspapers. Mainstream news is often sensationalised and one-sided. Rarely is it filled with hope, positivity or inspiration. Many of us start our morning by taking in such information and continue to do so throughout the day.

This article looks at some of the risks and benefits linked with news consumption and suggestions for limiting its negative impact.

What are the risks of news exposure?

Increased fear and anxiety

The news often reports on serious issues and threats from around the world. Events such as natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and global conflicts. We don’t hear of the millions of people who go about their day in safety. This could result in our brains creating an exaggerated perception of risk and feelings of fear, stress and anxiety. If someone's sense of safety becomes severely impacted it could cause them to restrict their lives, limit where they go, or become too scared to leave the house.

Trigger personal trauma

The news carries a risk of triggering someone who’s experienced trauma themselves. News visuals, interviews with victims, and graphic descriptions are all potential sources of triggers.

If you’ve been triggered and need to speak to someone immediately you can contact Samaritans who are available 47/7 on 116 123.

Vicarious trauma

This is when an individual becomes traumatised as a result of witnessing or hearing about the trauma of others. Vicarious trauma could result from news which involves graphic content and interviews with victims of crime, disasters and conflicts

Reduced empathy

Constant exposure to violent or negative news can cause some people to become emotionally desensitised to such material. This coping mechanism is the brain's attempt to protect an individual's well-being and mental health. However, it could also reduce a person’s ability to feel and show empathy to friends, family members or colleagues/peers. A reduced emotional response to another's suffering could lead to misunderstandings, conflicts and feelings of disconnection.

Health Anxiety

This is when someone becomes preoccupied with and experiences excessive worry about their health. For some people, news focusing on health-related topics may lead to increased anxiety about their health or the health of those close to them. It could further be exacerbated by searching the internet for further information (that may not be accurate).

Procrastination

News exposure can contribute to procrastination by acting as a distraction from important tasks and reducing focus, especially when stories evoke worry or anxiety. Keeping track of the news can easily become time-consuming, with negative headlines increasing stress and making it harder to concentrate. As a result, watching the news may become a form of avoidance, reinforcing procrastination and delaying tasks further.

What are the benefits of news exposure?

Aids Social Interaction

The news regularly comes up in social conversations. It’s often used as a form of small talk that acts as an icebreaker. Discussing the news could lead to an exchange of information and ideas. It has the potential to strengthen relationships as people learn more about each other's values and beliefs.

Inspires action

The news keeps us informed of social, environmental and political issues. This can inspire people to take action to fight injustices, make more environmentally friendly choices, or donate/volunteer for charities. News on health-related issues could result in someone seeking medical attention for symptoms they’d been dismissing, or tests they hadn’t realised were available.

Increases understanding and acceptance

The news covers a range of topics from across the globe. This exposes people to different viewpoints and cultures. It may challenge a person's beliefs and foster more understanding, tolerance and acceptance.

Inspires hope

New stories can demonstrate resilience, courage, kindness and overcoming adversity. Such stories show how individuals, communities and society have the potential to create a better future. This can be uplifting and promote feelings of hope and optimism.

Provides safety information

The news keeps people informed on any safety risks to themselves, their community or property. This could be in the form of weather alerts, emergencies or natural disasters. Such information can help people make travel decisions, take safety precautions and be informed about where they can seek help.

Inform decision-making

The news often provides up-to-date information relating to the economy, scientific findings, social issues and politics. This can help decision-making in business, personal finance, health and safety, civic engagement and education.

How do I know if the news is bad for me?

Keeping up to date with the news can provide useful information, inspiration and social discussions. However, it could also lead to increased worry, anxiety, relationship difficulties and trauma. Not everyone will react negatively to the news, others may be severely impacted and many people fall somewhere between those two. How we respond to the news could be determined by several factors such as:

• How frequently we’re exposed to the news;

• How much time we spend consuming it:

• The time of day we access the news;

• Our past experiences;

• Our upbringing;

• Our values and;

• Our current circumstances.

You might find it helpful to work out how much impact the news is having on you. To do this you might want to:

1. Individually rate your stress levels, your sense of safety and feelings of anger on a scale of 0-10:

   1. before accessing the news;

   1. Whilst exposed to it;

   2. Straight afterwards then;

   3. At various intervals following this;

2. Spend a day with as little exposure to the news as possible. See if you notice any difference in how you feel. Again rate your mood at various times throughout the day;

3. Compare your results from steps one and two. Was there any difference in your mood ratings?

4. Keep a log of anything in the news that leads to you feeling more positive or inspired;

5. Keep a log of news you find more distressing or triggering;

6. Reflect on your results from this exercise. Are there any changes you want to make concerning your exposure to the news? I’ve included tips below on how to do this.

If you’d like to give this exercise a go, I’ve created a worksheet you can download and work through.

How can I reduce the impact of the news?

If you find the news is harming your well-being or relationships, you might want to try some of the following:

Limit your exposure

This could involve:

• Turning off news-related notifications on your devices;

• Work out how much news you need to stay informed and aim to access no more than that;

• Unfollow or mute certain social media news accounts

• Unsubscribe from some news emails or request daily/weekly digests (if available);

• Use apps that block access to the news during certain times;

• After news exposure engage in calming or distracting activities e.g. meditation, exercise, connecting with nature or doing something creative;

• Discuss and find compromises with household members if they want to watch/listen to more news than you. Compromises could include:

  • Household members using headphones for the news;

  • Move to a different room once you’ve reached your news limit. Communicating with household members your intention to do this limits the risk of others feeling rejected or that you’re angry/upset with them.

Evaluate your news sources

Where we get our news from may impact how it affects us. Just changing the sources of information may be beneficial. You might want to ask yourself do my news sources:

• Provide accurate and reliable information;

• Align with my values;

• Provide information that is relevant and useful to me;

• Offer a balanced view;

• Provide information in a way that gets the point across without using material that feels more graphic than I’m able to cope with;

• Offer stories that leave me feeling uplifted or inspired.

Should I avoid the news altogether?

There’s an author and philosopher called Rolf Dobelli who believes we should avoid the news at all costs. He asks us to consider:

Out of the approximately 10,000 news stories you have read in the last 12 months, name one that allowed you to make a better decision about a serious matter affecting your life, your career or your business.’

I can appreciate where Rolf Dobelli is coming from and it’s an important question to reflect on. However, the news may offer subtle benefits that are not immediately obvious. It can play an important role in many people's social interactions, work decisions, and making personal informed choices.

It may also be difficult to avoid the news completely:

• News topics may come up in conversations among friends, family or colleagues;

• You may overhear people discussing the news in cafes or shops;

• You may see the headlines of newspapers that are on display or left lying around.

• Your work might require you to keep up to date with current affairs, economics, the latest scientific discoveries or other information.

Avoiding the news could result in:

• Missed opportunities;

• Isolation;

• Making less informed decisions;

• Decreased civil engagement;

• Lack of awareness on issues that may affect you or your family e.g. policy changes, safety information, and current events;

• Increased shock when accidentally hearing about certain major disasters or conflicts. Some major situations began with media reports warning of the potential of such events. This may give us an element of mental preparedness ahead of the event;

• Increased feelings of being overwhelmed if you hear about several major events at the same time.

Despite the potential risks of news avoidance, it may still have some benefits. These could include:

• Improved focus;

• Reduced stress and anxiety;

• Less risk of becoming desensitised to other's suffering;

• Falling to sleep quicker and better quality of sleep.

Avoiding the news may bring with it certain benefits. However, it may not be practical or possible to avoid it altogether. I believe it’s more helpful to find moderation when it comes to the news.

If you find small amounts of news impacting or triggering you may want to seek professional help such as counselling.

Final Thoughts

When consuming news it’s important to find a balance between keeping informed and protecting your well-being. Too much news, at the wrong time and from unhelpful sources has the potential to harm our mental health.

Whilst one option is to avoid the news completely, this may also come with its challenges and issues. The news can form social conversations, help us make informed choices and inspire actions.

This article offers several ideas for reducing the impact news consumption can have on mood. It includes tips such as being selective with your news sources, disabling new notifications on devices and using coping strategies.

If you’ve been impacted by a news story you might want to seek support from a friend, family member or a professional.

I offer therapy appointments face-to-face in Durham or online (via teams)