08 May To “be on” and really enjoy life, sometimes we need to “be off” and rest!
by Patrick Hyland via PickTheBrain
News and media is widely accessible these days thanks to modern technology; we can keep up to date at home or on the go, and at any time of the day or night.
It used to be the case that in order to become informed of the current events of the world, we would have to tune in to the TV or radio at certain times throughout the day.
When I was younger, my parents would sit down to watch the main evening news at 6pm everyday- and sometimes again at 9pm. This was extremely upsetting for me and my brothers- as our cartoons were put on hold in favor of current affairs and politics, and other such material that we found uninteresting.
What struck me at the time was how- more often than not- the mood in the room would become slightly tetchy after watching the news. It would usually leave my parents feeling upset, and frustrated.
Similarly, if there were a group of adults watching the news together- for example if we had visitors over- a big discussion would always ensue where everyone would complain about the current state of affairs; a cluster of pessimism.
I always showed my age at the time by thinking- perhaps a little selfishly-
“We’re missing ‘The Simpsons’ for this?!”
As I got older and began to tune in myself- I found that there rarely seemed to be happy or uplifting stories being broadcast, and I can’t recall ever coming away feeling revitalized or enlightened as a result.
So, I made the conscious decision a long time ago to not tune in to the news- of any kind.
Now and again I will have a look at the sports pages- as I am a sports fan- or the gossip column just to keep an eye on what Kourtney, Kim and Khloé are getting up to- but that goes without saying.
I know some will say that it is irresponsible- that we should keep informed with current affairs and what is going on in the world around us- and maybe they are right.
For me though, I like to think that there is much to be gained by taking control of the information we consume.
Health
Stay with me here.
Yes, every nugget of information we absorb on a daily basis is affecting our health- and that includes the type of news we decide to engage with.
In gaining complete control of the material we expose ourselves to- we are taking steps towards improving our health and happiness. I understand that this isn’t always possible to control- but it’s something we can try to keep in mind.
It doesn’t make any sense to me- to invest our time in something that is perhaps going to have a negative impact on our well-being…
…keep reading the full & original article HERE