People seem to be attracted to the “worst case scenario”. We want to know the darkest and most depressing things going on in the world. There is a term called “doomscrolling” that describes the “act of endlessly scrolling down one’s news apps, twitter, social media and reading bad news.” Some of us can even get addicted to all of this bad news. We can’t seem to pull ourselves away. There’s an old saying “if it bleeds, it leads”. This is especially true as we scroll and stop at every doomsday headline. There is a reason it’s so tempting to stop and read these reports. The more the disturbing the report is, the stronger the emotional response we have to it. However, the emotional response we have often leaves us feeling depressed and anxious. Social distancing during the pandemic has increased our time on social media and made it the primary source of interaction with others. According to Dr. Catherine McKinley, fro the School of Social Work at Tulane University, “Rather than doomscrolling leading to an ability to socially act on negative events or news in a constructive way, more often than not, it can cause a downward spiral of lost time and peace of mind without enhancing our resilience or our ability to deal with actual threats.””
For ideas on how to combat “doomscrolling” syndrome, click on the link above to read the entire article.
