Death to Doomscrolling
For the majority of the first Trump administration, my approach to politics was the following:
1. See something upsetting on social media. Trump is doing X! Trump said Y!
2. Go down a rabbit hole of fear. What do various loud posters say about it?
3. Read worse and worse takes. I’m going to be sent to a camp. I’m going to die tomorrow.
4. Mentally prepare myself for this inevitability. Make countless plans for the worst case scenario.
5. Exhaust myself with worry.
6. Feel accomplished, because I am so exhausted. I got a lot done.
7. Take no actual action.
Most online people know the term doomscrolling and recognize its impact on their mental health. But I want to see more discussion on how doomscrolling stops action. Filling yourself with exhaustion and dread makes you feel as though you’ve done something, even though you haven’t. And we can’t afford to do nothing right now.
So, here is my humble approach to handling These Times. I am not perfect, and this may not work for you, but I find it helpful to see how others are balancing information, action, and life.
Pick two things to care about
Maybe that’s climate change and Covid. Or Indigenous sovereignty and trans rights. Or school lunches and Medicare. Just pick two and find experts in those fields, preferably ones with newsletters you can follow for in-depth coverage. Two may not sound like much, but if you care about Covid, then you also care about disability rights and air filtration and vaccine research. If you care about school lunches, then you also care about teacher’s salaries and UBI and agriculture. Step back far enough and most, if not all, problems come down to anti-Black racism. Step back even farther and they boil down to freedom, safety, and health. Everything is connected. We are all on the same side. So focus on your two things and be confident others are focused on theirs.
Mute everything else
Social media is a confluence of thoughts coming at you at about 90 mph. You do not need the whiplash and amygdala thrashing of scrolling through Death Death Death Flowers Pain Pain Pain Teacup Fear Fear Fear Cats. Mute as many political / anxiety-inducing words as you can. Get your news elsewhere and save social media for art, memes, and friends. This is why finding expert newsletters is crucial. They will do the research for you.
Take action
This is important. You must actually do something with the information you receive. We like to explain away doomscrolling by saying we are “being informed” when in fact we are being paralyzed. Being informed is no longer enough (it never was). You must now act. Call your reps, leave thoughtful public comments on proposed bills, join a mutual aid network, donate funds and resources, materially support your community, protest, etc. You won’t be able to do everything, just how you can’t be informed on every possible issue. So pick your strength (Knitting hats for babies! Picking up trash by the river! Fixing your neighbor’s appliances!) and count on others to supply theirs. Community action is like singing in a choir. You won’t sing every part, and you won’t always be singing. But everyone singing together carries the piece.
Live
Getting away from doomscrolling means actually living your life. I hesitate to include this, because I so often see people go too far. “I saw something upsetting today, therefore doing anything concrete is too hard” or “Just making art is Resistance.” The cool thing about actually taking action is you usually get to feel accomplished in less time than a doomscrolling session, and it frees you to live your life. If you manage one small thing a day, whether it’s giving new socks to an unhoused neighbor or leaving a voicemail for your senator, you really do feel better. Your body knows, on a physical and mental level, that you’ve actually made a difference. And you are free to live. Get dinner with friends, make art, see a weird movie, dance, have sex, read a book. You take action so you can live. That’s the whole point.
I understand all this sounds fine and dandy in theory, but can be difficult to visualize in practice. So here is a look at some things I’ve actually done:
Muted a whole bunch of political / upsetting terms. Unfollowed people posting non-stop dread bait. This was crucial to regaining an even keel.
Baked and delivered Christmas cookies to friends, neighbors, and the mail carrier.
Started / continued reading newsletters on my chosen topics.
Started watching PBS NewsHour in the evenings. It streams online for free and they have a thoughtful and well-researched approach to the day’s news.
Checked the #politics channels in my various chat clients once per day.
Put the phone numbers of my Congressional reps and Governor into my contacts list. That way I could easily call them when making a cup of tea.
Called them. Repeatedly. Talked to staffers. Left voicemails.
Helped other people also find their reps’ contact info.
Told people when issues directly impacting them came up and prompted them to contact their reps about it.
Drafted a response for a trans friend to leave on the public comment form about passport gender markers, so said friend didn’t have to bear the mental weight of it all.
Donated money to several organizations.
Helped a friend create a step-by-step plan to move out of state. They were having intense anxiety and needed someone with more executive function to assist. This is a skill I have!
Made sure my vaccines were up-to-date, including flu and an MMR booster.
Helped another writer navigate the healthcare system to get Paxlovid.
Wore an N95 in all public indoor spaces. I never stopped doing this, but it’s important to call it out now. It’s an easy way to show support for the disabled community and keep yourself and others safe.
Tried new foods. Read good books. Kept on writing. Lived.
I don’t plan on making this a politics-focused newsletter, but being politically engaged is part of being a well-rounded human being. I wanted to level set, so going forward you understand what I am up to, even if I’m not writing about it. This will not be an “activist” publication, but I will be participating in my community, and I expect the same of you. You have to be informed. You have to participate. You have to live.
Writing news
I have some fantastic writing news…that I can’t share yet. Paperwork is delayed, and this newsletter has already been sitting for a month. So I decided to send this out, and I’ll catch you up on the good news next time.
Cool shit
Political stuff
EFF Surveillance Self-Defense guide - now is the time to keep yourself safe online.
5Calls will tell you what issues to focus on and how to help.
PBS NewsHour streams free online every day.
Other stuff
In honor of David Lynch’s passing, the first two seasons of Twin Peaks are streaming for free on Pluto.
Feeling a dearth of interesting, insightful, and occasionally inflammatory essays on genre media? Checkout Typebar.
The Criterion Channel is giving away a free month’s subscription with code MOVIEFRIENDS (good until April 30th).