For many of us, the constant stream of negative headlines can prompt powerful feelings of sadness, anxiety, and anger. The “always-on” nature of digital media, coupled with the 24-hour news cycle means that many of us are impacted negatively by endless doom-scrolling and media overload, which can hurt our mental, physical, and spiritual health – having effects on our bodies and brains. At the same time, we know that our civic duty compels us to stay engaged with the changing world around us. We want to look away at times, but we know we can’t. So how do we maintain our peace during times of chaos and uncertainty?
Trauma’s Effects On The Brain
According to the NIH, when we get overwhelmed by too much bad news, our bodies can react with a trauma response. Under normal circumstances, our brains are programmed to scan for danger, triggering fight-or-flight responses when in life-or-death situations. However, research shows that in today’s modern world, our minds can also be triggered into a trauma response even from non-life-threatening experiences. Too much work stress, overwhelming social situations, health anxiety, negative headlines, etc, are all reasons why we can experience a trauma response, making us feel overwhelmed, depressed, or disconnected.
The trauma response in our brains limits the capacity of our frontal cortex, which is responsible for rational thinking, understanding complex ideas, remembering things, and controlling our behavior. In these situations, our hearts race, our blood sugar spikes, and we release stress hormones throughout the body. It may feel at times like our bodies aren’t fully recovering between these episodes, causing us to experience chronic feelings of burnout and long-term overwhelm.
Stepping Out Of The Trauma Response - And Into Calm
It’s times like these that test our capacity for leadership, courage, and kindness. But it’s precisely the time when these attributes are needed most. Many of the skills we can develop to build our emotional resilience are the same skills we teach to our children to help them cope with difficult situations. Perfectly Me programs help children and their families learn how to navigate difficult emotions and build skills to handle adversity with compassion for themselves and for others.
Research into emotional health and well-being shows that there are things we can do to step out of a cycle of trauma and bring calm back into our lives. Here are a few ways we can protect our peace and build our collective resilience during uncertain times:
Find your joy
Our brains need optimism to build their defenses against bad news. Find the joy in your everyday life and make a daily practice of the habits and experiences that spark genuine happiness within you.
Express your feelings
Either in a journal, with loved ones, or with trusted professionals – identify, express, and process your feelings with compassion for yourself and others.
Be in service to others
Find ways, no matter how big or small, to be a light in the world. When we have a purpose bigger than ourselves, we can affect positive change that matters.
Exercise and move your body
Moving our bodies is a proven way to reduce stress and improve our mood. Make time to build habits that support healthy movement.
Make kindness your default position
When the world feels unkind, we still have the power to create a culture of kindness with our friends, coworkers, schoolmates, and in our communities. Be a source of uplifting kindness to others and show compassion for people – you never know what people are struggling with.
Unplug from devices
Taking breaks from mobile phones and other devices is a healthy way to disconnect from the news cycle. A digital detox can better our sleep patterns and help minimize the negative aspects of social media and constant scrolling.
Ground yourself in daily reflection
Daily practices like meditation, prayer, breathwork, journaling, or mindfulness can bring a sense of balance and focus. Find what resonates with you and make it part of your routine.
Strengthening Our Communities With Kindness To Build Resilience
Our commitment to making the world a better, kinder place is rooted in the belief that we can make all the difference in creating communities where we look after one another, build connection, and develop genuine friendships that give our life meaning.
In a world that can seem so unkind at times, we seek to build a more caring, compassionate future for all and hope that you’ll join us.
Learn how you can be a part of Perfectly Me by joining our newsletter today.
With compassion and kindness for all,
Raquel
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