How do you cope with the state of the world today?
Everything just seems so out of control. The US seems to be tearing itself apart. The world is on fire. We seem to be going backwards when it comes to freedom and human rights. We’ve turned our backs on each other. How do you cope with all this without just giving up?
Keep in mind that American news is not really news. It’s strictly entertainment and you should treat it as such. FOX, MSNBC, CNN are all for profit enterprises and they are completely focused on that and nothing else. That asshole fuck face that owns FOX even admitted it in court under oath.
So instead of informing the public, these entities present “news” in a way that is designed to make you emotionally react, give you a dopamine hit, instead of actually informing you of anything. Are some worse than others? Yes, but all of them do it to some degree or another. I personally believe that the down fall of this country will eventually be tracked to the elimination of equal time laws and the limits of entities owning media outlets. It used to be a single entity could not own more than 11 broadcast stations. Those laws need to come back and it’s an absolute emergency that they do.
To sum up the above: You are constantly being manipulated by the media you watch to make you feel that things are a lot worse than they really are, so some asshole somewhere can make more money. Yes, your feeling of things being out of control is only because some fuck face is making money from you feeling that way.
My suggestion is do not watch TV for your news. Read. If you want to learn about American politics, read a foreign newspaper that comes from a country that really doesn’t have a lot of skin in American Politics. Better yet, get involved in your local political scene and make yourself a part of the news cycle.
I’m trying to enjoy things while they last and appreciate how precious they are, especially nature. Sometimes I wonder whether I should be preparing for the brutal future that is to come, since there is no avoiding famine, draughts, mass migrations and wars that the climate change will cause. But we don’t have enough information about what exactly will happen, and since humans have an unbelievable ability to adapt, it can be left for the future. so the only thing I can do now is create memories and spend time with loved ones so I’m not full of regrets once we lose everything
By dedicating a certain amount of time for things I enjoy while pretending that the world outside doesn’t exist. That time when I watch an anime, or read a book, or write fanfiction, or cook something delicious… that keeps me sane, it keeps me from falling back on my natural tendency to focus on all the bad things and ignore the good in the world.
You cannot allow yourself to be in that “constant stress” because it wears you down and grinds your sanity and willpower like a big belt sander.
That timeout revitalises me, and gives me the balance to deal with the stresses and worries about everything else.
Obviously there isn’t a silver bullet, and mindfulness is probably the best bet here.
Best advice I have is to reach out in your local community to help where you can.
Doesn’t matter if it’s a municipal food bank, a church running a shelter, a charity helping battered spouses, or some kind of a mutual aid group getting people caught up on the bills… just working with others to help fix what you can does an amazing amount for your mental health. Volunteer to help shelter and feed migrants or the homeless. There’s after school programs for kids in single parent households or who’s parents have to work too much to be there for them. Cities across the US have citizens councils where local problems are brought and attempts to solve them are made.
I know it all sounds cliche and it’s all a bandaid on the bigger picture’s problems but, in terms of your own mental health it can do wonders… plus I guarantee groups local to you need an extra set of hands on a regular basis. When bad things are going around, we start to worry… when the bad things are enormous and out of any semblance of our control we think we can do nothing. That’s not true, you can do something, just on a local or regional scale. Reach out and offer to help in any way you can.
I enjoy walking my dog (usually) and sitting with my cat.
I spend way, way more time exercising than is normal or mentally healthy probably, but it’s been my coping mechanism for years and I leaned into it.
I try to invite friends over when people have time. It’s not often. I’m that age where people are starting to get married and have kids and move away.
I’m miserable most of the time. I try to ignore the shitty politics, the news, the cost of housing, the cost of food, the quicksand it feels like we are all slowly sinking into.
I’ve decided I’m never having kids. They don’t deserve to be forced to exist in this.
The only consolation I’ve found is an answer to a similar post to this on Reddit a couple years ago - someone in their 60s or so was explaining that for what it’s worth, the world is always on fire if you only focus on that part. They grew up in the cold war, doing bomb shelter drills and hearing how they were going to get nuked by Russia. The economy has its issues then. The government has its issues then. I think those issues are worse now, but honestly who knows. You have to look for moments of brightness and try to avoid focusing on the morass of terribleness that everyone is trying to shove down your throat. It’s not easy. But the alternative is worse.
I was listening to a podcast about the scientists responsible of monitoring potentially world threatening asteroid collisions with the earth. They are constantly reminded that the whole world could blink out of existence in an instant. But they continue their job because that’s the part they have control over. I worry of the things I can change. Wether they being small or big and wether my impact is small or big. If I have no control over, I acknowledge it and move on.
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