'You can’t really get away from it all': how to cope with the impacts of information overload and long-term stress

As many begin turning a page on the global pandemic with the easing of restrictions, they’re confronted with more conflict and adversity, including the recent invasion in Ukraine.

It’s not uncommon to hear that it feels like "one thing after the another" over the last two years, with many Calgarians citing COVID-19, ongoing anti-mandate protests, continued discoveries of graves at former residential schools, the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan, and now the invasion of Ukraine.

"So much is going on and we haven’t had a break it feels like. I don’t know when we’re going to have a break and that’s easy for me to say I’m not directly affected," said Calgarian Olivia Nannan.

Stephen Walker, a counsellor at the Calgary counselling centre, says you don’t always have to be directly connected to a crisis or conflict to be impacted by it.

"If you witness a child being hurt or something in the media comes up you’re going to have a response to that because as humans we do," he said. "We’re empathy machines, you don’t just passively observe this content you have a reaction to it, it means something to you."

Walker said it can become normal to feel fatigued or overwhelmed, especially given the COVID-19 climate over the last two years, so it’s important to try and recognize you may be impacted by it and to take action.

"t’s not to say you have to avoid current events," he said, "but rather perhaps we should pace our exposure to these things. Can you set a time when you get caught up?"

"Ultimately," he added, "it's to counterbalance this really fatiguing news and crisis. It’s important to have a sense of what are those activities that give me vitality in return?"

In an effort to protect her mental health, Nannan made changes as to when she can intake information, whether it be in conversations or through screens.

"You can’t really get away from it and its setting up those boundaries for yourself and not even going on those avenues to get that," she said. "But it’s also good to be aware right? You don’t want to be completely unaware otherwise how can we make a change or help out when we need to?"

It’s a sentiment shared by many others who acknowledge their mental health has taken a hit over an influx of never ending, often negative, information and current events on social media.

"We’ve been stuck inside for two years basically and now that that is over it seems like everything else is falling apart," said Korey Caldwell on her way to a gym class to blow off steam. "It’s important to spend time outside especially as the weather starts to change for the better."

HAZARDS OF UNPLUGGING

Jean-Christophe Boucher in the School of Public Policy at the University of Calgary says while having so much information at your fingertips online can have its drawbacks, including the sharing of misinformation, it also has its benefits including creating connections and accessibility.

"There's research that shows that people younger, you know, younger Canadians, you unplug them from social media, it creates stress, because then they become disconnected from their social network, they become disconnected from their friends and that has become an extension of their being and who they are as person," he said.

Boucher is working to measure anxiety on social media and says it’s important to recognize that these platforms don’t necessarily create polarization but rather reflect it from society.

"It's a really interesting and developing kind of field. Some of it is useful to prevent and to predict conflict. When emotions are high, or when anxieties are high, then you can kind of start to say, ‘well, if there's a kind of crowd response to stress, then we can actually assume that they're going to start to behave in certain way,” and we're trying to measure that in real time."

If you find your stress and anxieties too much to handle, you’re encouraged to reach out to loved ones or professionals for support including the Calgary Counselling Centre.