I lost a few hours of work as I sat glued to CNN and watched the unfolding of the early hours of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
You might not know this about me, but one of my two undergraduate majors was Russian Regional Studies. I learned the language, history, politics, and culture before going on to earn my graduate degree in International Policy Studies.
I also worked in the nonprofit sector for 6 years to help stem the spread of nuclear weapons from the former Soviet Union. You can bet that the rhetoric around nuclear weapons and attacks on nuclear power plants caught my attention.
I’ve been out of that field long enough not to have my fingers on the pulse of the situation like I would have in the past, and I found myself spending more time than usual in the news feeds.
I know that my purpose has shifted beyond that particular work, yet I found myself wondering for a moment or two if I made the right call to leave it.
After losing half a day, which is nothing compared to what Ukrainians are sacrificing, I realized something.
After a point, I wasn’t helping anyone by sitting there nonstop, taking in more and more of the same and different people offering the same and different information with the same and different traumatic video footage rolling beside them.
If you know me from yoga and coaching, you might be wondering what any of this has to do with yoga, breathwork, meditation, your purpose, and feeling more rested, focused, and inspired. Well, let me tell you.
With any global crisis, it’s super important to stay informed and to decide consciously how to react, based on your personal mission and your purpose as a global citizen.
However, doom scrolling and watching endless news feeds of tanks, missiles, and suffering people can wreak havoc on your nervous system, which can then make it harder to think clearly, take smart action, and stay healthy so you can be of service, now and in the long run.
Long-Distance Trauma
Seeing war zone footage can trigger your sympathetic nervous system (the fight or flight response). When that happens, the brain brilliantly activates the part of itself that regulates the functions you need to fight or flee from a life threat, even when you’re not physically present to it.
The survival part of your brain takes charge and bypasses the rational thinking part of your brain in favor of rapid action. Decision-making can suffer in the moment, like when you send off an angry reply to an email before calming down to think through what the best response would be.
Too much fight or flight activation over time can have detrimental wellness consequences. According to a 2013 Psychological Science article on the health effects of early 9/11 and Iraq War media, exposure and frequency of exposure to war images predicted increased post traumatic stress symptoms and, with four or more hours of daily exposure to graphic media, increased incidence of health ailments. These findings suggest that you don’t need to be present to a direct trauma to suffer the physical and psychological effects from it. [1]
To be fair, the sympathetic nervous system is an amazing and necessary mechanism of the human body. For the people in Ukraine, the fight or flight response is saving their lives. It’s an appropriate reaction in the face of an imminent threat.
Here’s the thing. For those of us who have the privilege of sitting at home and watching things unfold, being in fight or flight mode from watching non-stop coverage of the situation doesn’t help the people in Ukraine.
Your thoughtful action to support them does, and you’ll make your best decisions once you’ve regulated your nervous system.
Taking Back Your Cognitive Reasoning
Sometimes it’s difficult to tell when the body has gone into fight or flight mode, and and not every scene from the news will trigger everyone.
According to the nonprofit website simplypsychology.org, signs that you’re experiencing a fight or flight response can include rapid heart rate, clammy skin, dilated pupils, sweating, goosebumps, increased blood sugar, contracted blood vessels, expanded airways, shouting, verbal abuse, crying, and the inability to think clearly. [2]
You can become addicted to the chemical releases that happen during a sympathetic nervous system response too.
Health consequences like fatigue, increased heart rate, high blood pressure, insomnia, a change in appetite, anxiety, irritability, depression, withdrawal, and a compromised immune system, or behavioral changes like frequent complaints about your stress, avoiding social interactions, hobbies, and relationships could be signs of an addiction to stress. [3]
There are so many ways to shift out of a fight or flight reaction in the moment, once you realize you’re in one. Feel your feet on the ground. Stand in the sunlight. Take a deep breath and lengthen the exhalation. Chant a mantra that helps you feel safe and strong. Pray. Practice some yoga postures. Take a walk in nature. Do whatever it is that helps you feel connected, safe, and calm.
Over the longer term, yoga offers several stress reduction strategies beyond the postures. For example, the yogic practice of Brahmacharya (Moderation or Continence) can help you keep from overdosing on stressful news again. The intent of this practice is to prevent the leakage of life force energy so you can put it towards your purpose or mission. [4]
If you know that binging the news and worrying about situations over which you have very little control zaps your energy, makes you feel anxious, or puts you in fight or flight mode, then practicing Brahmacharya would mean moderating that intake in the way that best supports your purpose.
Once you plug the leak, you can put your energy to good use in the way you see fit. Regulating your nervous system offers your brain the opportunity to consider what is in your control, what your role is based on your purpose in life, and what you want to do to help in a situation like the one in Ukraine.
Purpose as Deciding Factor
Your purpose or mission is one of your best resources when it comes to managing your time and energy.
Letting your purpose guide how much news you take in and how much time you spend helps you make a difference in the world in your best way. If you’re a war correspondent or political analyst, then maybe you need to stay up all night watching those news feeds. Even then, you’ll probably do your job better with some basic sleep and food.
If you’re a cardiologist, on the other hand, I don’t want you to do an angiogram on my loved one if you spent the night feeding on images of Russian tanks rolling into, missiles falling on, and nuclear reactors sites blazing in Ukraine.
Your resources might be better spent on things like searching up how to help the people in Ukraine and acting on which ones call to you, making a donation to an organization working on the frontlines, using your voice to raise awareness, choosing not to support pro-invasion organizations or people, saying prayers, sending light, or whatever it is that you find best expresses your intention and mission.
Taking a step back from the news and the sympathetic nervous system response it can cause is not about being “weaker.” There’s nothing wrong or feeble about being sensitive to what’s happening in your body and needing a break so that you can show up better. There’s also nothing wrong with jumping into action if you feel called to do so. If it’s part of your purpose, then you’d be denying your mission if you didn’t.
To be clear, I’m not proposing spiritual bypassing, turning a blind eye, or putting your head in the sand. I’m suggesting that we all do our best to stay informed without overdoing it, so that we can make smart choices about what’s in our control and how to respond, based on what your body needs.
What is always in your control is speaking out and taking a stand for peace, and your voice will be so much powerful when it’s coming from a place of calm, grounded strength.
Speak Your Truth
Have you ever become anxious or experienced a fight or flight response from watching too much of the news? How can your purpose help you manage your time and energy and make a difference in Ukraine? Let me know in the comments.
In wellness, joy, and inspiration,
Tami
[1] Silver R, Holman E, Andersen J. Mental- and Physical-Health Effects of Acute Exposure to Media Images of the September 11, 2001, Attacks, and the Iraq War. Psychological Science. 2013 Sep 24(9):1623-34. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797612460406.
[2] Guy-Evans O. Amygdala Hijack and the Fight or Flight Response. 2021 Nov 5. https://www.simplypsychology.org/what-happens-during-an-amygdala-hijack.html
[3] Fabian R. Can You Be Addicted to Stress? 2018 Apr 12. https://www.talkspace.com/blog/can-you-be-addicted-to-stress/
[4] Palkhivala, A. Teaching the Yamas in Asana Class. Yoga Journal, 2007 Aug 28. https://www.yogajournal.com/teach/teaching-methods/teaching-the-yamas-in-asana-class/