Does anyone else have trouble reading the news?

[PiggyStardust]

I've started to struggle a lot with being able to read the news. When I try to load my news webpage I get this strong fear that I'm going to read about someone I know, and it takes a long time to work myself up to even looking at the page. and even once I've seen that nothing has, I find myself getting anxious over general news like accidents, murders, outbreaks etc.

Does this happen to anyone else? How do you get around it? It's obviously a bit of a trigger for me but I don't want to stop reading and be out of touch with what's going on in the world.

[iloveyu29]

I hate watching the news because its always bad. There is rarely something good going on. And it mAkes my anxiety worse.

[NeverToo...Fear]

I think this started for me many years ago when I read about a police officer that passed away while on duty; And I actually knew him, talked to him. After that, the news just seemed so dark and depressing and I hated reading or hearing about someone else dying.. I ended up not watching the news for a while because I couldn't stand hearing about deaths and the sort. But that was bad behavior practices for me, because it felt like I was hiding--Plus I felt really disconnected from the world. But now I do watch the news, and I know I'm going to hear about some deaths/accidents. Accidents are going to happen; I keep in mind that it is just part of the news. Just like there are good parts that we will hear or read about and will make us feel good and smile. I like to focus on the good stories, learn about the bad, but not let it affect me too much like it used to.

Like the other day on the local news, a restaurant owner passed away unexpectedly. I felt pretty sick, and in the past I would project that fact either onto myself or to another family member and really let that bit of news really bother me for hours. I really just have to stop myself from those projections. Put up like a mental shield/wall if that makes sense. Just take in the news like a Vulcan (Star Trek) and accept it. Try to move on. It kinda helps to just accept that it is going to be what it is. You may or may not read about someone you know that has passed away--The chances are very unlikely though. I know saying this is all easier said then done, and it takes some practice to separate and not let things get to you. I'm far from perfect at this; I still get caught off guard and some stories really hit me worse than others, but I also refuse to not know what's going on around me.

[Dahila]

The news are terrible; deaths, uprising, children, floods, fires.....

[jessed03]

For sure, I can understand this.

I was never a big newswatcher, but whenever somebody in my house switched it on, I always felt kind of anxious afterwards. Too many people dying of stuff you may fear, too many scare tactics used by the producers to get you hooked on watching.

Gave up watching it, and reading newspapers for 2 years. Perhaps just me, but I felt all the better for it :)

[NixonRulz]

Its funny that I always found myself saying that the news is always bad

But I never was too interested in reading or watching the feel good stories

That is what the Lifetime Channel is for

So although I complained, it is what I watched the news for

And I believe that is the reason the news is often full of horrible stories

The news just resembles what we go to see movies for

[El Lukio]

Since being so anxious, I have stopped buying newspapers or watching the news on TV. In fact, I avoid all media. I can't watch any hospital/medical program to the point I have to leave the room if the wife watches Grey's Anatomy.

I zone in on the bad/sad stuff. If a newspaper was full of happy stories, I'd pretty much only see the one bad story in there and that would then occupy my mind for the rest of the day.

[TaliaJo]

I find the news very depressing. I tend to avoid it too.

[PiggyStardust]

Dang it, I must have cursed myself with this.


My parents are in Indonesia and yesterday there was an event there that I've just read about. As soon as I saw the title of the article I started freaking out bad. Heart racing, shaking, feeling sick. Eventually I managed to read enough of it to show myself my parents were fine, but I'm still shaking like a leaf and had to sit down and have a bit of a cry :/ Dang, dang, dang

[Kyle Morgan]

I do, I hate watching the news it depresses me. When I hear someone's got murdered, shot etc. It makes me feel sad that we live in a world like this. I tell my mother sometimes to stop watching the news but she don't listen. Newspapers on the other hand I don't mind because you can just skip through all the negative crap.

[Enduronman]

I can't watch the news, read the papers, and my programming is veryyyyyy limited.
Nothing scary, nothing drama, nothing about investigations, nothing....it's quite boring but I'm also calmer.

E-Man..:)

[Kyle Morgan]

I can't watch the news, read the papers, and my programming is veryyyyyy limited.
Nothing scary, nothing drama, nothing about investigations, nothing....it's quite boring but I'm also calmer.

E-Man..:)

I don't blame you man. I like to watch funny things on tv, I love watching shows Like Family Guy, The Simpsons, American dad etc. I also like a lot of other comedy's, I'm not into much negative shows because it makes my mood a lot worse. Strange thing is though I can listen to sad music but it doesn't actually make me feel sad.

[Enduronman]

I watch like 1 or 2 shows like Pawn Stars, or that logging show with Shelby Stanga on it because it makes me laugh!!..I can't do the sad music thing. Only energetic or funny.. I could probably watch The Simpsons though!!....

[PiggyStardust]

Sorry that has upset you Sammy. Are your parents well away from Sumatra?

Yeah, I spoke to them just now. They didn't even know anything had happened so its all good :)

[AliasEQ]

Ha. I remember the first week, when I got my anxiety. I didn't know that caffeine was bad and was making the anxiety worse. I was drinking some kind of energy drink we have here in Sweden, it's called "powerking". I had been drinking lots of it, like 2-3 cans. That same day, I read on the news that 3 people had died because of it, that exact same drink. Can you imagine my face that moment? I freaked out completly. Never gonna drink energy drinks again, neither will I watch the news again...

[jjh333]

I always loved watching the news until my anxiety got really bad. I asked my therapist about this once and she said that many people with anxiety/depression disorders have trouble watching the news because it brings out empathetic feelings and you understand how many people feel in the situation

[Applecherry]

Not afraid of reading it, but I see most often a very sad story, especially on yahoo, I believe yesterday, it was about a daughter planning a quick wedding for her dying mother, it was a downer to read. *sigh* but that's life you know, good and bad..I just wish I hadn't read it.

[Fight the stress]

I agree, what we see we think about on a sub-conscious level. I cant watch any scary or crazy shows now lol