Doomscrolling, Anxiety, and the Practice of Attention
Most folks who come into my therapy space are feeling at least a little anxious about the state of things. We wake up and reach for our phones, check the news, scroll social media, and find one thing after another that’s terrifying, infuriating, or heartbreaking. Doomscrolling is its own cultural practice, and I understand the impulse behind it. We may want to gather information about what’s happening, and end up mindlessly scrolling. I've noticed that when I myself spend too much time in the endless stream, I’m mostly numbed out while scrolling, and afterward I feel overwhelmed and discouraged—less prepared to respond to what’s going on and less able to notice what else is happening around me.
Fear and outrage are powerful drivers of profit, and the systems that deliver us information have learned how to use our emotions to command our attention. The more we look, the more there is to see, and the harder it can become to look anywhere else. But this isn’t the entirety of our existence. There are good and beautiful things happening around us all the time in ways big and small, and learning to shift our attention is a practice we can take up. We can practice refusing to let the worst things that happen become the only things we see. We can stay informed, and not engrossed. We can practice looking for ordinary moments of connection and kindness that might not make the news but that are no less real in our lives. We can choose where and how we spend our time and attention. Sometimes living more fully alive means learning to pay attention not only to what demands our attention, but also to the quiet moments waiting to be noticed.
A few weeks ago, a toddler I don’t know blew me a kiss from a Nashville crosswalk, and nearly a month later the memory of that tiny gesture still makes me smile. I wrote about that in this week's field note, “Good News: A Tiny Gesture.” If you need a small reminder that something good may be happening right in front of you, I hope you'll come sit with it for a few minutes.
If you’re curious about counseling, I’d be honored to connect with you. I work with women who feel overwhelmed and off-balance, offering a compassionate, steady presence and joining as a collaborator to help you stay with what’s emerging in the moment and get curious about the deeper layers of your experience. Together, we experiment with small, meaningful changes that lead to different ways of being and moving through the world. My specialties include anxiety therapy, midlife growth and empowerment, and young adults and college/graduate students. You can contact me here.
Note: This blog is for educational and reflective purposes and does not constitute psychotherapy.