Ask Lemmy

I'm right there with you bud. I just posted something similar recently. I think anyone with a modicum of empathy feels the same way right now.

Anything outdoors. I like mountain biking and gardening, but you do you.

I hug someone when I have someone, or a pillow or something

Genuinely one of the only things that takes my mind off how horrible this world is

Everybody gets the fuckits from time to time.

Staying apprised of things is work. Sometimes you gotta take a vacation.

i end up avoiding them on youtube, reddit not even clicking on them. look for niche content instead. i think you are too hyperfocused on politics, and might be addicted to enter those communities and comment. look for something else to do instead. watch education science channels, or a movie or two that.

i specifically blocked world politics by the way they are moderating that community.

Breaks are important. I think it's good being interested in politics but too much can be exhausting. What I do is take a long walk preferably in nature. Music is a great outlet as well. And even though I think that you might not feel like doing sports, since I know that kind of fatigue you write about, I believe that this would help, too. And sometimes it's sleep.

I encounter negativity when discussing politics online. Somehow quite a few people get insulting and expect me to change my view after. It's irritating and hinders my will to be open minded when discussions are tinted with insults.

Anyway, I hope you find the things your mind needs to recover.

I say this as someone who has long had the same problem as you: Perhaps it is because those topics of yours have very high stakes for you personally? There is little chance of things being solved today, right? Longer term, sure. Of course. The bastards always run out of people to turn on before their numbers collapse.

Lower the stakes where you can by helping your mind escape from "focused on the real world" to "focused on anything else, or nothing at all."

Could get into a tv show or movie series, if you're spending time indoors a lot. Or read a book, listen to a podcast, and so on. Put the phone on charge in another room, put on your entertainment, maybe a little popcorn? You'll forget about the bullshit for a few hours. It helps.

Also? Create stuff! Write, draw, paint, sculpt, even poorly! I am dealing with the stress of everything by teaching myself to write movies. That's a couple hours at a time where I get lost in a world I created, playing around with characters I invented. It might never be good or it might, but for now, it's almost a form of therapy.

Even doing something like joining a recreational club, like a trivia league or a bowling league, might give you a few hours a week that aren't a constant reminder of the fucked up parts of the world.

Try to think of things that might be zen time for you. Meditation. Yoga. Religion, if that's your thing. Buddhism, if you're looking to borrow some practices without joining a religion.

Exercise can get you out of the real world and into zen mode, too. As a younger man, I played baseball and football/soccer, so I ran a lot between seasons to stay in shape. Between practice time, game/match time, and running time, I was constantly in zen space. You could use any competitive endeavor and get the same kind of benefits. You don't even have to be good at it or win. It's weird. I would have guessed losing would take away from it, but it didn't.

I wish you good luck and I promise, you won't feel this way forever. It does get better! I am living proof, bro.

For me: it's the total loss of faith in humanity.

Even the political views I used to associate with "the good people" - now I see their proponents as maniputive, self-serving, bullies.

So there's no cause to support anymore: no good or evil. No point supporting the needy: because they're terrible people just like everyone else - I'll only be supporting their selfishness and the suffering they will create.

So all I'm left with is: getting from this moment of time until the time of my death as easily as possible.

!positive_news@lemmy.ca

Know the four noble truths and follow the eightfold path.

Dunno. I'm in the same boat but I don't feel comfortable burying my head in the sand, either. Just tired.

I guess I'm making do with hobbies and nostalgia. Like, when picking up my kids, I used to listen to NPR to stay informed but now I just get the headlines and listen to radio stations I listened to as a teen. Hunkering down, since most of the bad news is rather out of my control.

If you pay even more attention, you'll start seeing good things. It's an insanely bad year for the worst people in the world, for example.

Like Zarathustra, retire ten years on the mountain.

Reduce your intake, replace with something else.

I don’t know what to do. What would you suggest doing? Thank you.

Re-learn there is something else than FOMO that makes your live worth living. How? 1) turn off news and social media. 2) Don't turn them back on, even when it irks so bad.

There's always gonna be negativity, you've gotta strive for the positive. "Enjoy the little things" - Zombieland.

Art. Do something creative for its own sake. Play some music, draw something, write something, glue something silly to your wall. Remember that not everything you do has to come with purpose or justification.

You're alive, and at this very moment aren't being physically consumed by a predator. Take it in and let yourself enjoy it.

Do you feel like a frog in water that keeps slowly getting hotter? It's uncomfortable, you know it's getting worse, but there really isn't much to do, a lot of people yelling about it, things feel bad, your hands are tied, this isn't how it's supposed to be, i want something else, why the fuck is this happening?

Or do you just feel like your life is fine and will be fine and other people are bringing you down?

It's tough. Social contract is broken and yet we're all still mostly working for capitalists and paying taxes. I think there are a lot of right answers and paths forward, but the current system and momentum is all in favor of increasing inequality.

I've spent the last several years just trying to understand it and that helps me. Seeing how things are currently playing out and events that lead there just makes it clearer. That and diving into hobbies that also double as useful collapse skills (gardening, leather work, 3d design and printing, electronics).

When I was a teen, I wanted to be the hero who saves the world. That's impossible. I still felt the desire but age has tempered it. I still wish I could make everything better, but it's more of a dream than a constant urge. So, I've decided to repeat to myself: I can't save the world, but I can make my corner a little nicer.

Once I started framing my life like that, it's a bit easier to do small things to improve my life. I can pick up that piece of litter. I can return that shopping cart.

I can't stop corrupt politicians from being corrupt and ruining the planet and killing other people half a world away. I can only save my friends and family. So I focus on them.

Additionally, I filter out the news that makes me sad (tons still gets thru).

Time to ditch platforms, friends, hobbies, whatever allows that negativity in

You need to be proactive about it which requires work. Challenge your assumptions, spend time thinking critically and philosophically, look at historic art and consider the tragedy those artists must’ve witnessed and how they turned that tragedy into something meaningful that can still affect us today.

I haven't seen "look on the bright side" yet.

That's frequently dumb, unhelpful advice, because it's presented as a cure-all. But, the way anything negative gets amplified, it's worth considering if you're overlooking the good stuff.

Like, most Lemmings have flown on a plane, at near the speed of sound above all the clouds. Cavemen would have killed for that opportunity. When we look at the stars, we know what they actually are. We're not having more and more kids unsustainably anymore.

Edit: Oh, never mind, I just missed it.

Maybe I'll just add the abstract idea of hope, then. Things still could turn out okay even if they're bad now.