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I learned a lesson this week when I discovered I’d spent over 10 hours glued to the news on television. Afterward, I was depressed and full of anxiety. I knew that couldn’t be good for me.
It makes sense that a gym chain turned off the TVs in their locations in 27 states, believing that cable news wasn’t good for a healthy lifestyle. And this was several years ago, when the news was comparatively milder than it is now. Consider how much different our lives — and the news — are today, and it makes a lot of sense to avoid an overdose of what’s going on in the world.
My newest tactic is to use a timer. At the top of the hour, I’ll turn on a cable news channel, watch for several minutes … and then turn it off. Whatever is new will be talked about then, but it’s often a repeat of the top of the previous hour.
What do we do instead once we turn off the news? Change to a different channel, perhaps one that shows re-runs from a previous era. The “Andy Griffith Show” comes to mind. So do “My Three Sons,” “I Love Lucy” and “Columbo.” Then there’s premium fare like The History Channel, Smithsonian Channel and even best of British TV channels.
Or we can turn the television off altogether and, now that spring is here, go outside and walk. Or start a new garden. Or talk to neighbors who are also escaping the television.
There are specific health reasons to get away from the television news, and sitting too long is at the top of the list. It leads to memory decline, anxiety, stress … which leads to insomnia and changes in diet.
We think we need to keep up with current events … but at what cost?
(c) 2022 King Features Synd., Inc.
