When Being “Informed” Becomes Dysregulating

Our nervous systems were not designed to process this much threat, this frequently, from this many directions.

When we overconsume the news, especially in emotionally charged cycles, it can quietly push us into:

• Hypervigilance

• Chronic anxiety or fear

• Anger that has nowhere to go

• A sense of helplessness or despair

And from that place, it becomes harder to think clearly, act compassionately, or respond in ways that actually help.

This isn’t weakness. It’s biology.

A nervous system that feels under constant threat will prioritize survival over wisdom.

There’s a reason the oxygen mask metaphor exists.

If you are emotionally flooded, depleted, or dysregulated, you are not more useful to the world, you are more vulnerable to burnout, reactivity, and despair.

Caring for yourself first is not selfish. It’s stabilizing.

It may look like:

• Limiting how often you check the news

• Choosing when you consume information instead of scrolling endlessly

• Taking breaks from social media when you notice your body tightening

• Returning to practices that ground you—movement, breath, nature, connection

Staying regulated is not avoidance. It’s preparation.

If you feel called to engage, speak up, donate, protest, or serve—>beautiful.

But here’s the invitation I want to offer gently:

Let your involvement come from clarity and care, not from borrowed rage.

Anger can signal injustice—but when it becomes the fuel, it often recreates the very harm it’s trying to dismantle.

Service rooted in:

• Regulation

• Values

• Compassion

• Thoughtfulness

This has a very different impact than action driven by overwhelm or fear.

You don’t have to mirror the chaos to respond to it.

You Are Allowed to Tend to Your Inner World

It is okay to:

• Step back when your system needs rest

• Protect your peace without ignoring reality

• Choose depth over constant updates

• Focus on what you can influence instead of everything you can’t

The world does not benefit from you being perpetually distressed. It benefits from you being clear, grounded, and resourced.

Uncertain and chaotic times ask more of us, not in effort, but in discernment.

Stay informed, yes. But stay embodied. Stay connected to your values. Stay kind to your nervous system.

Because sustainable change—personal or collective—comes from people who know how to pause, regulate, and choose their response.

Take care of yourself first. The world needs you whole.

If you feel called to be of service in the world but want to do so from a place of calm rather than constant activation, this work may support you.

My door is open.