Good morning!
Welcome to Issue 34.5 of Digestable, your daily mouthful of real things happening in the world, minus alarmist pandemic news.
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Today’s news, fermented:
Well, we’ve made it to the end of this interminable week. We might even have a president today.
Here’s a safety checklist in case things don’t…go as planned with this whole democracy business.
And here’s the vibe I think we all need a bit of today:
Caro's Advice Corner
Dear Caro,
How can I stop myself from doom scrolling?
Sincerely,
Endlessly scrolling
Dear Endlessly scrolling,
Are you secretly one of my friends telling me to get off my phone right now? I am highly suspicious, but not surprised that I am not the only person glued to my phone, mindlessly scrolling , AND I swear if someone suggests I watch the Social Dilemma ONE more time I will scream. I mean, it is absolutely no surprise that this week in particular we are logging in more hours on our phone than usual. The screen time has added up between checking electoral college results (ok can we talk about how outdated this way of deciding a national election is?), and literally doom scrolling on twitter just waiting for sh*t to hit the fan. Endlessly scrolling...we are going to give ourselves a panic attack if we continue down this road. So here are some of my suggestions on how to stop doom scrolling:
Go on a social media detox. Talk to any of my friends, this is my FAVORITE thing to do when I am feeling extra overwhelmed and distracted. Maybe start with the social media platform that gives you the most anxiety, for me that’s Instagram. I feel like I have more clarity when I am off of Instagram for long periods of time. The best way I can describe the feeling of being off of Instagram is it’s quiet, it’s calm, and it’s peaceful. Also, it is really scary to realize how long you really do end up on some of these apps! Endlessly scrolling, you will feel like a brand new human after a month off of your most soul and time sucking social media platform.
Set a time limit for social media on your phone. This can be done either through an app, or if you have an iPhone, there’s actually a feature that times you out of different apps when you have spent too much time on them. If this feature is not built into your phone, try the SPACE app, which is free! Now I suggest this method veeery cautiously, I have found myself overriding the limits I set on myself often, ok almost daily....which is probably why I prefer the cold turkey method of deleting my social media flat out. But I know that for many of us, our jobs are on social media, so a social media detox is by no means the best fit for everyone.
Read a book, meditate, go for a walk. Something I’ve realized, especially this week, is that when I am extra wound up and anxious, I find myself aggressively doom scrolling (love this term by the way). Usually when I am feeling this way, what I really need is a way to de-stress. This week, everytime I found myself scrolling and my heart rate going up, I shut down my phone and meditated for about 5 minutes. I find that regulating my breath helps me feel really centered, and deters me from going back to my phone to fill my time and feed my anxieties. InsightTimer has a ton of free, guided meditations for free! You can also put on some relaxing music in the background, set up a timer, shut your eyes, and just chill. There is absolutely no right or wrong way to mediate, so make it your own and discover what makes YOU feel centered.
Endlessly scrolling, I know that it’s really easy to fall into the trappings of social media, especially during such an uncertain time, when we are feeling slightly more isolated than usual. Doom scrolling is not going to change any of the reasons we are doom scrolling in the first place, this week especially. So put down your phone and do something nice for yourself, we all deserve a little extra self love this week.
With love and kindness,
Caro
DJ M0RO’s low-key Music Show
Back next week!
*Hot Goss*
Brought to you by the superb Latifah Azlan.
Ah, Friday. The end of the longest week of the longest year of our lives. I'm feeling oddly calm about all of the things happening in the U.S. right now so I'm not sure what sort of omen my mood brings but maybe it's just because I've completely run out of any sort of anxiety to feel in the last few months of this year.
I've been greatly enjoying the elections-related memes that have been populating my social media feeds these last few days. I know i probably shouldn't because it's a serious matter, but one needs to laugh in terse times such as this and I'm not the only one indulging in these jokes. There have been a lot of great Nevada ones, of course, but nothing beats the meme-fication of Paula White, D*nald Tr*mp's "spiritual adviser" who ran a prayer marathon yesterday afternoon, calling on God to dispatch angels from Africa and South America to deliver victory for their clearly God-forsaken campaign.
Somebody tell Miss Paula that those angels from Africa and South America are probably in concentration camps in Texas, living in filthy conditions and being separated from their families. I suppose you've got to admire the commitment to the performance though. The whole "speaking in tongues" schtick at the end there slightly brought it into overwrought territory but in this case, it works. Definitely worthy of a Razzie nomination or two. Anyway, if you've ever wondered what I look like trying to convince myself not to order takeout for the third time in a week, it's pretty much that. Spoiler alert: it never actually works. Somehow I almost always find myself being delivered pad thai instead of victory over my laziness. Odd how that works!