As college kids, we’re never not tired. The most common answer to the question “How are you?” is “Tired” or some semblance of that. We talk in circles about how to cure almost every type of exhaustion- getting enough sleep, making sure to eat right, meditation, exercising, you name it. However, the one type of fatigue we aren’t addressing is what I like to call “Newsfeed Fatigue.”
Let me preface, as usual, by saying I’m not a doctor. I have no interest in being one either, except maybe as a character onstage. But I am a person who experiences the constant cycle of news and social media and knows what kind of a toll the continuous content can take on a person with even a sliver of empathy. It always seems like the world is falling apart, and by the time you get informed on one issue, there’s nine other issues you didn’t learn about and aren’t upset about. It just demands your constant attention all the time.
So how do you keep yourself from falling into a spiral of newsfeed-based sadness? It seems like a simple idea, but it works. Turn it off if you can. Obviously, this comes from a place of privilege as I write this, and sometimes you can’t escape the feed because it’s at work or what not. And you don’t want to disconnect from your family and friends, but you can turn notifications off on CNN or other news apps. The silence may be intimidating at first, but you’ll get used to it.
Protesting and fighting for what’s right is key to making change happen, but you can’t fight the good fight if you can’t fight at all. Listen to some fun podcasts and do a face mask. Love yourselves.