How To Cope When The News Gets Too Much

I can’t be the only one really, really feeling it at the moment, can I guys?

The nature of this job means consuming the news every day, but when nearly everything you read is fuelled by bigotry, racism and hatred – it wears heavy on the heart.

So, I wanted to share some advice I found and things that I’ve been doing to help cope with the news agenda and to limit my consumption before it becomes crushing.

Hopefully this will help some other fellow PRs too.

How To Deal With Distressing News Cycles

Focus your attention only where you need to

What’s going on in the country right now is not one for us to newsjack.

So whilst it’s good to keep abreast of current affairs – you probably don’t need to be consuming every piece of content related to the riots and protests. Not unless you want to, anyway.

I’d recommend creating a Feedly to keep track of the topics relevant to your clients and of interest to you. And in your morning news briefings, perhaps head straight to the sector pages before getting bogged down in the devastating headlines of the day.

Set yourself limits

The nature of this work is that you have to be prepared to have an ‘always on’ approach. Sometimes my best ideas arise after hours, or I might spot a key trend or news story to jump on when I’m out of the office.

However, your mental health comes above all of this. No ifs, no buts.

If you find it prudent to mute the news apps and come off social media so you can recharge your batteries on the evenings and over the weekend – then do it.

Nobody expects you to work like a machine, constantly churning out opportunities. When current affairs look the way they do at the moment, I promise it really does help to come away from it all and be presents in the moment in your own life instead.

Help in areas you can control

Tapping into my long term struggles with my own mental health, I know that when you experience things closing in on you, one of the best things to do is to focus on what you can control.

Can you singlehandedly put a stop to this rioting? No. But can you keep you and your family safe from it? Yes, absolutely.

If you’re the kind of person that wants to help people in the wake of such cruelty. Why not give some time to volunteer?

Here’s a really good list of opportunities from Mind:

• Do-it can help you find volunteer opportunities for a range of causes that suit your skills
• Volunteering Matters can help you find local volunteering opportunities in your community
• Friends of the Earth suggests ways to protect the natural world where you live
• Trussell Trust offers the opportunity to volunteer at a food bank near you
• Change.org allows you to sign petitions about causes that matter to you
• Check out Mind’s list of organisations that campaign against racism – some may offer ways to get involved
• Gov.uk has some advice about how to safely donate or volunteer to aid humanitarian disasters
• You can also campaign at Mind for a fairer mental health system

Remember there is good in the world

Finally, consuming positive news to counteract the bad can be a cathartic exercise. Positive News and the Good News Post are two examples.

It’s always okay to ask for help. If you need it, contact Mind or the Samaritans.

Featured image: Greg Martin / Cornwall Live