How To Maintain Your Mental Health Amid The 24-Hour News Cycle
1 March 2022, 15:35 | Updated: 1 March 2022, 18:31
Here are some coping mechanisms to help you keep on top of your mental health amid the ongoing cycle of overwhelming news from around the world.
Listen to this article
Loading audio...
Being connected at the touch of a button is, of course, a luxury; but at times the influx of constant information can leave us all feeling a little overwhelmed and powerless.
At all times, we're just one notification away from friends, family and coworkers, as well as having a constant stream of pop culture and world news spilling from your phone and into your mental space.
Everything Jade Thirlwall Has Said To Guide You On Your Path To Self-Love
Of course, being online is a useful way of staying on top of current events, which we cannot and should not ignore, but the 24-hour cycle of news means frightening headlines are always around us, something we all know can have an impact on our mental health.
While we don't have to shut ourselves off completely and definitely should not ignore what's going on in the world, there are ways to be vigilant to help cope with all that we're seeing online, on TV and in the press right now.
We've collated a list of some coping mechanisms to alleviate some of the overwhelming feelings people may be experiencing a lot more of lately.
Be selective with the apps on your devices
We all want to be in the know with current events, but sometimes it's easy to get overloaded when you have streams of information coming at you from multiple news sources and social media platforms.
Have a think about how you prefer to consume media, do you have a favourite news app, do you need more than one?
Be selective with your notification settings and prioritise apps that you feel create an online experience that's easier to process for you.
You can make your phone a more positive digital space to be in by curating a homepage full of apps and functions that made sense for you.
Make the most of the notification features on your phone
You don’t need to make yourself fully inaccessible to recharge, it could just be the case of taking a couple of hours now and again to relieve yourself of online pressures.
Apple and Android devices both have 'Do Not Disturb' functions that will effectively mute calls, messages and other notifications from instantly alerting you.
Whether you want to shut off for an hour or an entire Sunday, you can keep your phone with you without the constant pinging; choosing when to log on instead of having headlines sent to you as news breaks – and the feature is customisable to fit your needs!
Make sure you get some time away from the screen
From your social life to your work life, it's likely that your phone, laptop and social media platforms play a big part in assisting you in all these areas.
Limit your media consumption to a level you feel comfortable with, and try and get time away from a screen and be in your own company.
This could be as simple as just sitting with your favourite book to trying to get in those 10,000 steps a day – whatever creates a calming environment for you!
Talk to someone about how you're feeling
If you're feeling overwhelmed by what's in the news, then it may be in your best interests to talk it through with those you're close to.
It's likely that your friends, family and colleagues are feeling the same way – opening up a dialogue around these issues can alleviate some of the pressure as well as help us all come to conclusions on how we can help.
For more information and support on mental health, head to Mind.org.uk.
