Chronic stress has been affecting many people around the globe since the start of the pandemic. The lockdowns and other strict health protocols gave unexpected limitations and inconvenience to what many normally do.
The immense amount of stress was recently added with the threat of global conflict ignited by Europe, the latest reports of an escalating climate crisis, and the bizarre increase in the cost of living.
What is Doomscrolling?
Due to the series of unfortunate happenings, some believe no more good news is to come. However, experts believe that the loss of optimism in many individuals is induced by 'doomscrolling.'
Doomscrolling is a sub-behavior in which a person spends an excessive amount of their time by just scrolling through endless pages of negative news. Experts say this type of chronic activity can lock people in the loop and inject the pessimistic updates they perceive from their devices.
Doomscrolling can result in anxiety, depression, and other mental health problems. But either the positivity or negativity of what people see from their newsfeeds and its effects heavily depend on two psychological aspects, such as the brain's capacity to feel, called mood induction and empathy.
In the neurological field, serotonin is what drives these emotional regulations. The substance produced by nerve cells has a volume present in the brain that fluctuates depending on what a person feels.
Chronic stress from watching or reading bad stories can easily drop the rate of this neurotransmitter. A study published in the journal Protocol Exchange showed that serotonin levels could be cut off rapidly even in happy and healthy people when they listen to sad music.
How to Fix Obsessive Doomscrolling
Due to the previous studies on the particular neuron substance, there are currently developing solutions that involve the increase of serotonin to resolve anxiety and depression.
When untreated, the psychological problems could result in cognitive impairments such as recollection and reasoning problems and reduced attention span.
The human mind's flexibility can be influenced by many factors present around us. The issues in cognition and mental health can also be initiated not just by being clinically diagnosed with depression but with the technologies available today.
A study published in the journal Computers and Education revealed that people distracted by mobile devices while completing certain tasks took longer and had increased stress levels.
The study implies that it is not just the news and stories that impact our psychological condition but also the mediums that relay those updates to us. Either the content or the technology could indeed bring repercussions to people's performance at school, work, and other social settings.
Obsessive doomscrolling can still be avoided through steps involving a strong commitment to resiliency and mastery.
According to a report by Science Alert, mindfulness training that exercises positivity in daily activities and social interactions could help people relax away from doomscrolling.
Preventing the manifestation of the obsessive activity's corresponding effects could also be blocked with a reward system, which allows a person to gain power and control over what they feel and experience.
A separate study, published in the journal Psychological Medicine, also demonstrated how specialists could help people get a good mood through behavioral and cognitive exercises.
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