The World Can Be a Scary Place
One can’t read the news without learning of trauma. This week, 43 people were killed in Beirut, Lebanon on Thursday, November 12th and at least 239 others were wounded. Paris was attacked by terrorists on Friday, November 13th, killing 129 people and wounded more than 350 others. The Islamic terror group ISIS claims responsibility for these attacks. Lindsey Graham, a US presidential candidate warned that if we don’t take military action against ISIS what was seen in Paris is coming to America. This understandably causes a culture of fear.
Some would say it is our duty to keep abreast of the news, both international and domestic. We can feel horrified by events, compassionate toward victims, and inspired to help. On a personal level, watching media coverage of traumatic events can create stress. For example, people reported watching an average of eight hours of television related to 9/11 attacks. Those who watched the most coverage had more stress reactions than those who watched less. Too much trauma-related media viewing may have a negative impact. Watching violent or disturbing videos of trauma can lead to secondary PTSD-like symptoms (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). Symptoms can include unwanted thoughts of the event; reliving it as if it were happening again; having dreams of the event; and having severe distress or physical reactions to something that reminds you of the event. You may feel emotionally numb and have an inability to experience positive emotions, or feel hopeless about the future. You may feel chronically on guard or defensive and be hyper alert to danger and be easily startled.
Not everyone will experience these symptoms. Some people are more resilient in the face of stress than others. Some, who have a history of stress and trauma, are more prone to stress reactions. Those with layers of trauma are more vulnerable to adjustment difficulties. Examples might be living through domestic violence, sexual assault, or verbal abuse; surviving a natural disaster; being in combat or witnessing acts of war; being an emergency responder; or being a victim of child abuse or neglect. When you perceive danger, your body’s natural response is to prepare for fight, flight or freeze.
News of world and local events can intrude into our daily lives, ready or not. So what can we do to feel less stressed by the media? Limit the time we devote to news coverage of upsetting events. Shift away from graphic videos and move toward reading the news. This allows some distance from the event by disengaging from sights and sounds. News, unfortunately, is being presented as entertainment.
We are also more likely to become over-stressed if we are hungry, angry, lonely or tired (HALT). Self care will ameliorate stress reactions. Engaging in a self-defense class can increase a sense of competency and confidence in the ability to defend oneself. Learning de-escalation and negotiation techniques can help defuse a potentially dangerous situation. Put the news in context by avoiding “over-generalizing.” For example, bad things happen in the world, but most often we are safe. Bad people cause harm, but there are also good people in the world. Fred Rogers was quoted as saying “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” As we feel more capable of coping with difficulties, we may feel less frightened.