OPINION: We will get through this night

Life for everyone right now is stressful and scary. Tuning in to state, national, even international news, it all seems to fill a person with dread. When I tap through Instagram stories, I see people posting about different tragedies.

Right now, the order on my feed is Israel/Palestine war, Musk and Trump drama, Texas flooding and NOAA cuts, Ted Cruz continuing to vacation in Europe while his constituents go through another natural disaster, ICE raids, revocation of protected status for immigrants and Iowa’s own stripping of rights from the Iowa civil rights act. Yeah, there’s a reason they call it doomscrolling.

Here’s the thing, educating yourself about these topics is incredibly important, but so is giving yourself a break. It can be hard when you spend all day stressed about work issues and then the minute you look at social media, you’re hit with even more pressing issues, much you can’t do anything about.

There’s an influencer I follow that mostly stays out of these topics. However, he did write a book a few years ago talking about his battle with depression and tips and tricks he used to find a way out of the darkness.

Titled “You Will Get Through This Night,” I feel like it’s a good reminder for me when the entire world feels dark. No matter how terrible things get and what horror is going on, the night has to eventually end. It may take years, decades even, of work and resistance, but eventually, we will get through this night.

In the mean time, it may be a good idea to find a couple flashlights to make your way through the dark.

If we’re sticking with social media, I have a few suggestions. It’s good to have some positive things to break up all the negative mood. No, I’m not talking about keeping an eye out for posts by friends or family. Instead, add a few pages that focus on positive or silly things.

Going back to my Instagram, intermingled with all the world news and family photos are posts by the Good News Movement, WeRateDogs, Twilight Sh*tposting and a number of Disney theme park pages.

However, maybe in the metaphor of light and dark, these are just a couple tea lights. Maybe the light you’re looking for is more similar to those bright LED headlights that seem to be on every car now.

Sometimes a complete social media shutdown or break is required. As important as it is to stay updated on world news, taking care of your mental health is just as important. You can’t help other people if you don’t first take care of yourself.

On days you need those LED lights, think of yourself as a Sim. For a Sim to be totally content, they need to fill up six different needs bars. These include fun, social, hygiene, bladder, hunger and energy.

I know this sounds silly, but when the darkness is closing in, sometimes you need a little help. Do you need a snack or a nap? When was the last time you peed or washed your hair? Have you spoken to anyone beside your cat about something not work related?

And then there’s fun. This is something we often throw to the wayside, because there’s so many other things we need to get done. But filling up your fun bar doesn’t have to be a big, elaborate thing.

If you have a pet, take some time to focus on them and their joy. It can easily be contagious. Throw on an episode of your comfort TV show or read a few chapters of a book.

One thing I enjoy doing is planning trips for the future. Maybe this is a big trip I want to take in two years, maybe it’s just a day’s drive to a town I’ve never been to, maybe it’s not even a trip I can take in the near future. Either way, I’ve found looking into the possibilities for future fun can be fun all on it’s own.

Maybe it’s silly, but taking a look at my Disney plans for next year or researching museums in Omaha can take me out of the stressful moment and remind me that there are good things ahead.