4 Ways I Protect My Peace From Social Media & Headlines
The night of January 7, 2025, Los Angeles, the city where I was born and raised, was on fire again.
This time it was the Palisades and Altadena wildfires.
Social media impacts my sleep and mental health
I didn't go to bed until 3 a.m. I sat in front of my television, completely consumed by the 24/7 news cycle, refreshing updates on my phone, hoping to catch any word of containment as the flames jumped from town to town. Each headline felt urgent. Each update felt personal. Every map of the fire creeping closer to neighborhoods made my heart race.
In the days that followed, I realized I wasn't just watching the news anymore. I was absorbing the emotion and urgency of it all. Social media posts reacting to headlines. Then reactions to the reactions. It was endless. And slowly, I could feel my nervous system coming undone. My body was sending me a memo and I was not reading it.
Media anxiety impacts people with bipolar disorder
For someone living with bipolar disorder, that kind of emotional overload isn't just uncomfortable. It can be destabilizing. I felt the familiar warning signs creeping in: racing thoughts, rising anxiety, my mind revving up in ways that could easily spiral into panic attacks or a depressive episode if I didn't intervene.
Waking up to jarring headlines every single day is not normal for the human brain. Yet here we are, doing it automatically. Before we even brush our teeth. Just doom-scrolling into the abyss like it's a personality trait.
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Rules for regulation when consuming the news
I've spent years learning how to protect my emotional regulation. I know my triggers, my stress signals, the routines that keep me stable. But this news cycle had consumed me exactly like the wildfire itself. So I had to come back to what I know.
Rule No. 1: Just because the news runs 24 hours a day doesn't mean I need to watch it for 24 hours.
My rule is to watch just long enough to get the essential facts. Once the commentators, expert panels, survivor testimonials, and opinion segments start cycling on repeat, I turn it off. I can feel genuine sympathy for people without watching every single story. I am one person with one nervous system. Access to information doesn't mean unlimited consumption is healthy.
News channels and social media don't just deliver information anymore. They deliver emotion: urgency, crisis, outrage, celebration, and tragedy all in the same scroll. It only takes one crisis to push someone living with bipolar into emotional whiplash. Our minds can shift into overdrive that feels like your brain decided to run a marathon without consulting you, registering you, or even lacing up your shoes.
Rule No. 2: Check in with yourself while you're consuming.
In the moment, constant news exposure doesn't feel unhealthy. It feels like being informed. Engaged. A responsible citizen. That's what makes it so sneaky.
I've learned to pause and ask myself one simple question: Is this information helping me, or dysregulating me? If I feel my mood shifting, more anxious, more agitated, that's my cue to log off. Not eventually. Right then. The internet will still be there later. Trust me, I've checked.
Rule No. 3: Pay attention to what your body is telling you.
When I'm consuming too much, my body always lets me know. My sleep becomes inconsistent. My mind feels restless even when nothing in my actual life is wrong. I start absorbing emotional energy from headlines that have nothing to do with my daily life and still feel unsettled hours later. That's data. And that's when I know it's time to step away.
Rule No. 4: Do something grounding.
I take a shower. It sounds almost too simple, but it resets my nervous system and makes me feel like a whole new woman. If I need to leave the house, I try to look a little presentable. A dad hat. My signature red lip. Small rituals can shift your entire mood. Don't underestimate the power of a good lip color. Science probably agrees.
Mental health management happens in the small daily decisions we make about what we allow into our minds.
Stay informed and healthy
I still stay informed. I still care deeply about this world and my city. But I've learned that protecting my peace is protecting my health. And sometimes the most responsible thing I can do for my well-being is the simplest: turn off the news, close the app, and come back to myself.