Living through historical events (again)
Anyone else feeling a little extra panicky lately? Sharing strategies to cope, find calm, and take action.
I was going to title this post “Finding Calm in the Chaos,” but that feels a bit reductive to what’s happened over the last week. My birthday weekend was rudely interrupted by an assassination attempt on a former president. While my personal politics are greatly opposed to his, the reality of a President almost being killed on national TV is incredibly frightening. The life lost and those injured by this violence have been on my mind and I’m coping with all the feelings that come up when tragic events take place in America. I’m worried, confused, and ultimately disappointed that there hasn’t been much progress toward gun control on a national level.
I’m from a generation that has lived through historical events and tragedies at a rate that preceding generations have not. A Washington Post article from 2020 dubbs millennials as “The Unluckiest Generation in US History.” The terrorist attacks on 9/11 literally hit home for me, taking my Dad’s life on a blue-skied Tuesday morning. For others in my generation, this tragedy became one of their first memories and marked the first crisis they’ve lived through. Since then, millennials like myself have witnessed and experienced life-altering events in nearly every realm possible. This includes the economic downfall of the 2008 recession, the ongoing conflicts and war on terrorism, natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina and Superstorm Sandy, school shootings like Sandy Hook, Parkland, and Uvalde, mass shootings at concerts and movie theaters, a global pandemic with COVID-19, an insurrection on the US Capitol, and now, a presidential assassination. On top of these events, there's the concern about the fate of our planet, which is affected by global warming and the climate crisis. To cope with the overwhelming experience of being young and living through these events one after another, we find some relief in humor and memes like the one below.
Between last weekend’s birthday festivities, I fell into traps I know too well– getting glued to the TV screen as anchors spoke over replayed gruesome footage, refreshing my social media feeds for any more information, and texting back and forth with friends to share our findings. As a human with a sensitive nervous system and past trauma related to an American tragedy, the type of news-stalking I was engaging in does me more harm than good. No matter how often I tell myself I’m “staying informed,” I know that my brain was not built to consume these threats on a 24/7 basis.
Now that we are a few days removed from Saturday’s crisis, I’ve compiled a list of ways I’m mindfully coping with chaos and the never-ending influx of living through historical events. I have a three-pronged approach to caring for myself during these chaotic times that allows me to be aware of current events while taking care of myself and still feel like I’m making an impact. The three-pronged approach includes mindful media consumption, creating calm and comfort within, and taking action. If you’re feeling overwhelmed in any way, I hope you’ll find these strategies to be supportive.
Mindful Media Consumption
'“Sweat then scroll” approach
This is my tactic for not waking up and scrolling social media. My “rule” is to sweat (aka workout or walk) before I allow myself to look at social media or news media. Typically, this keeps me off screens for the morning's first 2-3 hours. By setting this boundary, I can ease into the day without getting sucked into doomscrolling and the screen-time-induced panic that inevitably follows.
App Time Restrictions
I set up time limits for specific apps through my Apple settings to make sure that I know how much time I spend on news, social media, mail, etc. Another way I’m monitoring my screen time is through the Opal app. I set it up to block me from using specific apps for certain portions of the day, which helps me stay sane and productive.
Opting-In to the News
Similar to my last tip, I’ve implemented this strategy for well over a year now, and it’s been an effective way to help me manage my nervous system states. I have a few trusted news sources on my phone and have made sure to turn off push notifications. Instead, I mindfully check-in and opt-in to the news during points of the day when I know I can tolerate the discomfort of negative or challenging information.
Creating Calm & Comfort Within
4-7-8 Breath
If I ever feel triggered or have heightened emotions, my first step towards feeling better is always tuning into my breath. There are so many different breathing techniques you can use to find comfort, but the one I recommend most is the 4-7-8 breath. It’s simple: inhale for 4 (through your nose), hold for 7, and exhale for 8 (out of your mouth). While you’re breathing, remember to fill your belly up with air and exhale in a slow and controlled manner. Do this for about ten rounds or until your body and mind feel calmer. Dr. Andrew Weil is known for popularizing this breathing technique for relaxation, and you can find a video of how to do it on his website.
Phone-free walks
Lately, I have loved walking in the evening when the temperature cools down and the sun lingers for longer. I approach these walks as though I don’t have my phone on me (I do for safety reasons) and abstain from texting, calling, or listening to music or podcasts. Unplugging in this way allows me to be more present and take in the experience from a sensory perspective, noticing what I see, hear, feel, etc. It’s a beautiful way to give our brains a break from the world outside of us and instead tune in to our immediate experience.
Taking Action
Voter Registration with Headcount
I recently signed up to volunteer with Headcount, an organization that helps register people to vote at events like concerts and music festivals. You can check out their website to see what concerts are happening locally and sign up to join their team. One perk of volunteering is that you almost always can watch the show for the whole time or at least the final set. It is a win-win for concert lovers and democracy!
Letter Writing with Vote Forward
I’ve volunteered with Vote Forward in past election cycles to help increase voter turnout. By signing up to volunteer, I was assigned to write handwritten letters to about 10-15 individuals that Vote Forward selected. They give you a general template, which you can customize to say what you’d like to encourage that voter to get to the polls in the upcoming election cycle. You can do it from home and take on as many letter as you’re willing to write.
Get Involved with March for Our Lives
In the wake of the Parkland shootings of 2018, I joined nearly 30,000 people gathered at Central Park West for March for Our Lives in Manhattan. Since then, this organization has made significant strides to end gun violence. In 2022, a bipartisan gun safety bill was passed for the first time in 30 years. They have a multi-faceted mission and continue to advocate for higher standards for gun ownership and seek accountability from the gun industry and their role in gun violence.
Note: all three are non-partisan organizations!
Our resilience persists despite the many challenges faced by this generation and others. For all our sakes, I hope that we get a break from living through infamous historical events soon. Until then, I hope you’re finding ways to stay informed, find calm, and take action in whatever way best serves you.
xoxo,
Nicole