Recently, the news has been filled with so much violence that it’s impossible to shrug it off. As the reports from the Israeli/Iran war grow more disturbing each day, breaking news screams the shocking details of the Minnesota shootings.
Although most people aren’t directly affected by these events, the non-stop media coverage wears away our indifference and increases our anxiety. Indeed, a number of recent studies reveal that extended exposure to tragic news reports can cause PTSD-like symptoms.
PTSD-by-proxy includes nightmares, difficulty concentrating, increased anxiety and recurrent flashbacks of disturbing video and still images. Media Exposure and the Risk of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Following a Mass traumatic Event: An In-silico Experiment – PMC
Coupled with other brain research, it’s becoming clear that vicarious exposure to trauma can create neuro-pathway damage consistent with what is experienced by deployed soldiers or other trauma victims. This new evidence also provides clues for treating those who are affected by shocking stories in the media.
An update about trauma
Some people wonder how simply seeing something on television or the internet can cause symptoms that are similar to those experienced by those who actually lived through an actual trauma.
Recently, studies have expanded our understanding of what constitutes trauma. We now know that trauma does not have to be physical to be harmful or even directly experienced. Exposure to vivid accounts of trauma can have a similar impact on our emotions as an actual experience.
Tips for Coping
Fortunately, there are several effective tools anyone can employ to reduce the disruptive impact of panic reactions.
The key to dealing with a PTSD reaction is to, first, calm the panic and restore the neuro-pathways to the parts of our brain which can think. Only then can we accurately assess the seriousness of the immediate perceptions and discern from prior experience what response should be made.
Here is a brief list of things to try if you are having problems coping with the news: Coping with the Absurd and the Horrifying Stories in the News | PastoralCounseling Syracuse NY
Reduce your exposure to media
Too much exposure to the sun can cause a burn. The same is true emotionally with respect to too much exposure to distressing reports in the media.
Frankly, our access to the news has changed dramatically ever since the advent of CNN and 24/7 news coverage. More recently, smartphones have dramatically changed our access to information. While this has been a benefit, it has also created over-exposure problems. The best way to prevent and manage stress from hearing about violence in the news is to monitor and limit the amount of time you spend listening.
Learn to detect initial panic reactions
Effective stress management includes learning to recognize when the initial panic reaction begins. Usually, it starts with muscular tension somewhere in your body, even before you realize it.
Learning to identify this tension as an alarm can help you to employ system calming techniques as early as possible. The sooner calming efforts begin, the easier it is to hit the emotional reset button and return to normal.
Short-circuiting panic before it becomes full-blown
When muscular tension is felt, it’s important to act quickly to stop it before it becomes full-blown and interferes with your funtioning. One way to interrupt the fear reaction is to wear a rubber band around your wrist, snap it, and say out loud, “Stop it.”
Other good ways are splashing water on your face or, if a refrigerator is nearby, holding ice cubes in each hand until it hurts.
These techniques distract and interrupt the panic cycle and can, when used with other calming measures, restore rational thought.
Notice your breathing
After interrupting the distress reaction, notice your breathing. When things are out of control, remembering that we can control our breathing helps to calm our feelings. Slowing down our breathing rate, taking in deeper breaths and exhaling completely can provide instant relief from panicky sensations.
Meditate
Research has shown that your brain needs conscious rest in addition to sleep. Meditation is a good example of non-demand neural activity. Becoming a passive observer of your being provides brief breaks for your brain., During this time, all demand or problem-based activity (thinking, problem solving, worrying over unsolved challenges) ceases.
Research shows that these short breaks allow neuropathways, broken by stress, to heal and restore rational thought.
Go for a walk,
Any sustained activity for twenty minutes, even something as simple as a brisk walk, gets your heart rate into the aerobic zone and releases endorphins, contributing to a sense of wellness and well-being.
Write in a journal
Putting into words and describing the unpleasantness you are going through shifts the locus of brain activity from feeling to thinking. This shift reduces the intensity of the feeling and provides understanding. (Journaling is so effective that the U.S. military uses this technique for its men and women who have undergone traumatic stress.)
Talk to a therapist
Life is too short to suffer needlessly. If the news is not just disturbing but is interfering with your life, there is much that can be done to help. If unpleasant or interfering symptoms persist for more than two weeks, find a therapist to talk to.
Talk therapies can help you gain perspective and place immediate distress in a broader context. Having perspective on an immediate experience exposes the exaggeration of your initial reaction and is calming.
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Getting a realistic perspective includes understanding and accepting what we can control and what we can’t. While we can’t control the terrors of the world, we can control and manage our stress reactions to it.
With practice, we can become better and better at coping with the negative, which frees us to enjoy the positive aspects of life.
Rev. Michael Heath, LMHC, Fellow A.A.P.C. 6 18 2025
