How to consume information during a COVID-19 quarantine

While we have always been exposed to more news than we need, information is overwhelming us more than ever. Some of you could have no problem listening and reading horrible news all day every day, but many of people are fragile and this situation will take a toll on their mental health eventually. The bigger problem is that you might not even realise your symptoms are a result of extensive information consumption. Thus, it would be better to limit your intake before it is too late. 

Here are some of the most popular digital information outlets you might be dealing with every day this period and some advice on how to best handle them.

News

If you only watch news on the TV or read the newspaper, you are already less likely to get overwhelmed, as long as you stick to one news edition and one newspaper per day. For online news, you better pick a global and a local trustful source. This ensures you stay away from fake news and unnecessary alarming headlines, that are boosted to gain more traffic. If you need additional news channels, you can always find more, so better start with less. Subscribing to a newsletter is also a great option, so you get the most important headlines daily or weekly. The key to reading news online is sticking to a maximum of 2 or 3 timeframes dedicated to the news. More than that will put your mental health and general mood at rick, long before you realize what’s contributing to you not feeling yourself.

Instagram

For a start, mute or unfollow every account that is making you uncomfortable in any way or triggers your emotions. Then try to focus on positive accounts and maybe find new ones tailored to niches that interest you, including your profession, hobbies, beliefs and priorities in life. Be aware of content from influencers, including traveling, cooking, hauls etc. Understand that their content is a week or two behind, as their editorial calendars are planned far in advance. After signing a contract, they cannot afford not publishing their work, even if it is out of sync with actuality. You might start to feel jealous, get FOMO, feel like online shopping or get the urge to get out and buy non-essential ingredients for recipes you see online. Also, remember that people filter their daily lives and will do so even during quarantine. If you feel bad about yourself, imagine how many people have it worse than you right now. When it comes to accounts and projects you find inspiring, make sure to share and support them. Keep in mind the above tips for your own posts and stories as well. Keep them light, informative, useful and inspiring as much as you can.

Pinterest

This platform is my favourite so far. Each time I open my Pinterest feed, it seems like nothing has changed in the world. Another positive thing about it is the endless ideas on crafts, DYs, recipes, creative projects and anything you could imagine of. However, as with other platforms, you need to be careful and remove or minimise what triggers your negative emotions currently. To make your feed ideal, try to search for all that resonate with you at the moment and make you feel good. This way the algorithm picks them up and tailors the feed to your preferences.

Texts, phone calls and video calls

As during every difficult time in your life, check on everyone you care about, but limit frequent contact only to people who make you feel safe and optimistic. Stay away from people who drain your energy and make you anxious. Also, be careful when making video calls with people who are not in quarantine, not to feel FOMO. Don’t forget to give advice to only those who ask for it. No matter how much we impose our opinions, people will always do what they consider right according to them. The only thing we should impose as much as we can is to stay home. It is the only effective measure we can take for the time being.