“We are the same species as we were thousands of years ago. What’s changed is the size of the world it’s asked to scan for threats.”
From the linked article from The Conversation:
Some researchers have introduced a clinical framework for what happens in this instance called Problematic News Consumption (PNC) — a pattern of news engagement that results in preoccupation, dysregulation and disruption to daily functioning. In their 2022 study, the researchers found that 17 per cent of American adults qualified as having severe levels of PNC. Among that group, 61 per cent reported feeling unwell quite a bit or very much, compared with six per cent of those who didn’t.
This is how I was feeling back at the beginning of the year when I deleted Instagram off my phone. It was exhausting and depressing. I still feel like I’m missing out on updates from friends and family, but you find different ways to stay in touch. I still have FOMO and feel like I’m not as connected as I once was, but my mental health is better so I’d say it’s a net positive.