Traumatised by the news

[StrangePineapple]

This week I’ve been struggling immensely with rumination on current events.
I literally feel traumatised with the darkness of it all and will have to take a break from the news for a while to recover I think 😞
AIBU to think that news stories these days include too much detail on certain cases and it’s just not necessary, like they could easily express the weight of the story without going into such detail?
I’ve seen a few posts on here where people have expressed distress over horrible news stories and people reply with even more detail or talking about similar cases, why add to their sorrow?

People who don’t take responsibility for themselves or people with normal, human emotions who are seeking comfort by hearing from others who feel the same?

I deliberately read nothing about that awful case this week and switched off the radio talk show I listen to when they discussed it. It’s too much.

Try BBC on line

I understand, OP, and I don't think you're being unreasonable to struggle with it; I too have times where I genuinely can't cope with certain stories, but then I avoid TV news in general where you can't get away from whatever's been chosen to present you with and how. I will read the news websites though.

But I agree with the poster who suggested that it's a lot to do with how you choose to manage the information yourself rather than the news outlets avoiding stories that might be distressing. I tend to read headlines and then go deeper into any story that I feel I need to know more about and that works for me. I really struggle with violent imagery, for instance and so definitely do NOT need to see it. Other stories, I genuinely feel it's my responsibility to understand and face up to the full detail, but what people can handle of different types of story is personal of course.

This week has been particularly difficult and distressing (well, most weeks are, to some extent). I am of the mind that while such stories should not be overly-sanitised—it's too easy for reality to be brushed under the carpet in ways that enable the problem in the real world— I also think there are 'levels' where the general public should have the choice of how deeply to engage or disengage with such material. How news programmes present them is one, but otherwise, it's pretty much up to you.

I think the reason it’s good to not name the cases is because people who haven’t heard of them already may be tempted to look into them and possibly then be accidentally traumatised themselves. Sounds silly but it has happened to me 🤦🏻‍♀️ i know it’s important to be informed but if i could pluck certain things from my brain (eternal sunshine style iykyk) then i would 😞

I do agree with you in general about these words being over-used, and I say this as someone with diagnosed complex ptsd. But some of the news is replicating the experience of being an eye witness of a horrific event. I think there was quite a lot of research on this after the events of 9/11 which were witnessed live by so many people via the news. The way it affected people did demonstrate actual trauma, even if they weren’t in Manhattan on that day.

People who don't take responsibility for themselves.

If you know you react to the news in this way, it's quite easy to avoid it in such detail.

For example, after a bereavement last year I could feel bad news was affecting me quite badly.

So I limited my consumption accordingly, just like millions of people do.

I haven’t watched or listened to the news in a few years now, to the point where I’ll go to the bathroom if it comes on when I’m at someone else’s house.

I’ll still see some things on Instagram of course, but I don’t actively follow any news channels, etc.

I feel a bit ignorant about what goes on in the world, but I need to do it for my own mental health.

Yes apparently there’s quite a bit of neurological restructuring that goes on during pregnancy and beyond, and for some people this can result in a dramatic increase in empathy.

I am a confirmed addict. I've never walked away from checking the news happier, just upset about something I can do literally nothing about. I quite fancy living on an island away from everything. I even block news sites on my phone and home network. Good luck :)

Anything important, someone really will tell you

I listen to times radio news, which is mainly current events and politics. There's no sensationalism or gnarly descriptions of horrific things. I know enough about what's going on, but not the really depressing stuff.

The News has been excessively grim this past week.

You can't always foresee what is going to come up, obviously.

On top of this, 24-hr news and the addictive, unsatisfying nature of it is a further problem. Really, we have not merely a small box in the room but a big TV taking centre stage, beaming negativity into the living room.

I have been unable to access my X/Twitter account this last month (my browser might need updating) and have felt better for it. Actually, the same would apply most likely if I was unable to access Mumsnet.

I'm so much happier after ditching the news.

I cleaned up my youtube algorithm, deleted X and facebook, and stopped reading news sites. I'm focusing on my own family, my own daily reality and hobbies/interests instead.

The difference in my mental health has been staggering, I'm starting to enjoy things again. I used to think it waa my duty to stay read up on current events, but I refuse to do so at the expense of my own sanity anymore.

I haven’t watched the news for at least 10 years.

The media only shows what it wants to and it genuinely makes me feel depressed.

I have the news emailed to me and I click on it when I’m in the right head space.

I also have regular ‘good news’ updates too and there is always so much more good news but we just don’t hear about it.

Things feel worse because we used to mainly just hear about things in our local areas but now we hear about all the bad things happening world wide and it’s mentally exhausting.

I love that teens are being banned on SM and I think there needs to be more restrictions on it even for adults as peoples mental health are genuinely suffering.

This is a very good point, along with the fact that if people have had to endure such things, then I suppose then we as a society should be able to cope with hearing about it? I feel guilty that I personally can’t cope with hearing about it, which is why I have pushed through and tried to stay informed, but I’m just not sure I can do that anymore.
Although I’m hoping once my children are grown (and possibly when I get a good nights sleep one day in the far distant future) I might be able to handle the pain and suffering of others with more strength and grace.

This is something you can do something about.

I know because I have. I do not watch the news on any channel at all. I will look up the news once or twice a week if that. Just to be updated but not overwhelmed as I tend to ruminate and I have anxiety.

Humans are not meant to be bombarded with bad news 24/7. We do this to our own detriment. I also have all notifications turned off of my social media which also helps.

To turn it on it's head, I also follow a media website that only does good news. They are on instagram and they have a newsletter. They are called in the know media.

I have found so much good things through them. Like a pancreatic cancer vaccine jab and the news of nature reserves in England.
I knew about the reintroduction of beavers before the london platform story came out, you know where the beavers stopped it flooding.

Bad things have happened since the beginning of the dawn. What has changed is how we are hearing about it.

We have a duty to ourselves to keep ourselves mentally healthy by drowning some of it out. I feel like how I did back when I was a teen and not as reliant on a phone. We had mobiles then but it wasn't like it is now. Everyone has their face in them, me included at times but it has reduced so much and I feel so much better

I even put timers on my social media so I come off, as I end up doom scrolling (adhd)

Better to go for a quick walk in nature. Makes a difference mentally. Especially when everything in my life right now is stress as it is.

I think that 24/7 media is part of the problem. If anything bad happens, anywhere in the World, we will know about it. Murder in this country is fortunately quite rare. 1 in 100,000 people are murdered every year. Because we hear about so many murders, it feels like people are being murdered right,left and centre in our circle of acquaintance. Also, humans are obsessed with murder, hence the success of writers like Agatha Christie.

Why say sorry? You seem very confidant that people can’t possibly be traumatised by terrible news stories simply by virtue of the fact that it didn’t happen to them. I lived through the Troubles in Belfast. I can absolutely assure you that people can be traumatised by events they weren’t involved in. I should know as I’m one of them. One of many. Some people, when bombarded with descriptions and/or images of cruelty and suffering, are unable to process and ultimately discard them in the usual way. I was put on medication and had therapy for PTSD. I was young at the time, but I still find that there are certain events that stick in my brain on a loop. Of course it goes without saying that it’s far worse for the people involved, but it is simply ignorant to state that others can’t be traumatised. It’s not a competition. Some people’s brains are just wired differently.

According to whom?
Where is your evidence?

So traumatised and ready for a break that you started a post about it? I mean…not exactly removing yourself from it are you

Are you always so melodramatic?

I was shocked to see a ‘live’ news feed running from the train crash in Bedford.. I mean why???? How utterly unnecessary and distasteful!

24 hour news and the internet are the reason the Covid fear and panic (not the virus itself, but the panic) swept around the world so quickly, literally in minutes.

Yes you’re totally right. I feel a lot of guilt about this: they have to live it so I should be able to at least read about it. I was hoping there might be some people here who work in those sorts of fields to give advice about how to compartmentalise and not be consumed by grief whenever a terrible news story pops up.

This makes sense. But I also wonder if some people are just naturally more equipped to take on the more sad/gruesome realities of existence? Or if they have conditioned themselves (or been conditioned) to be like this?