Don’t Drink from the Fire Hose

Information Overload!

I’ve been thinking recently about the things that hold us back when we write. The “Resistance” (with a capital R) as Steven Pressfield calls it in his book “The War of Art”. For me, I can get into spiral

s of thought, especially when there are new (or not so new) and scary things going on in the world. This started for me during the start of the Covid-19 pandemic back in 2020. We had just had Dax, our second child in January 2020, with the pandemic hitting a couple of months later. We had the first month or two with him where we could visit family and do the normal things that young families do with their children before the world stopped. Like everyone else, we were thrust indoors together. The news cycle was erupting with endless coverage and statistics. My reaction to it was to basically mainline all the news. I'd read every outlet and article in an attempt to find anything that might alleviate my fears about what was happening. The effect of this was an amplification of my anxieties. Nothing would ever satisfy the need for more information as things were moving so fast and as a result, my family life and my work suffered.

It took a long time for me to understand what was happening and how I was actively contributing to my own anxiety and I fell into the same trap back in 2022 when Russia's horrible invasion of Ukraine began. All the same fear and anxiety of a lost future for my kids came rushing back. The constant need for news was both paralyzing and exhausting.

It was a big contributing factor as to why I decided I needed some professional help to enable me to deal with my anxiety a couple of years ago. My thoughts would easily spiral into catastrophising and I had no idea how to prevent or stop the spiral once it had begun. I started having weekly sessions with a great therapist who introduced me to Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT). I'd never heard of this before but it was eye-opening. It focused on developing self-compassion and regulating thoughts to rebalance the self-critical mind. We worked a lot on what drives my fear and how the constant news checking fed into it negatively, and how to alleviate my own fears of inadequacy.

Take control of the news cycle

I'm far from a therapist but if any of this resonates with you, one of the practical things I took from these sessions (amongst many others) was the scheduling of news consumption. It's still important to stay informed but you absolutely do not have to drink from the firehose of news that's so readily available. I removed all news alerts from my phone, unfollowed all the news outlets on social media and no longer switched on the headlines first thing in the morning. I limited myself to checking one trusted news outlet a couple of times a day, for no more than 10 minutes at a time. Rather than getting immediately swept away by the current of news, I took control of my own news cycle. It was hard. At first it increased my anxiety as the FOMO took hold but I was assured that it would get easier. And it did. I don't miss watching BBC Breakfast in the morning. I stay informed but I don't let the minutiae take hold.

The result has been transformative really. I have more time and headspace for my family and I've become far more productive in my work.

Be Kind to Yourself

While my experience with the news may be a little extreme, I think there is a transferrable approach to other forms of fear. With any form of fear that holds us back from pursuing our goals and living our lives to the fullest, I think the first step to managing it effectively is cultivating a sense of self-compassion. This means recognizing that fear is a natural human emotion that we all experience at various points in our lives, whether it be fear of failure, fear of rejection, or even fear of the unknown. It’s crucial to acknowledge that we are not alone in feeling this way, and that these feelings do not define our worth or capabilities. Being kind to ourselves involves treating ourselves with the same understanding and care that we would offer to a close friend who is struggling. Instead of harshly criticizing ourselves for our fears, we should practice patience and understanding, allowing ourselves the space to feel these emotions without judgment. This gentle approach can help us to create a supportive inner dialogue, which is essential for building resilience. By embracing self-compassion, we can gradually begin to confront our fears, understand their roots, and develop healthier coping strategies that empower us to move forward with confidence.

For anyone else who may be struggling with self-worth, I hope some of this might help you and as always, my inbox is open. Take care!

Happy reading/writing!

Alex