What is 'doomscrolling'? Experts explain why tragic news is addictive and how to stop overconsumption

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Around April this year, Jervin Dsouza realised that the continuous consumption of information - mostly tragic news related to Covid-19 - was making him extremely anxious. The 26-year-old advertising professional decided to quit being on social media for some time for his own mental well-being. "Everything that was happening around, and also when you see a few people you know suffering, it builds up this anxiety that it could possibly happen to you."

For a while, he completely stopped checking his social media, but later, he made a conscious effort to regulate the time he spent on these platforms. "I had to be on social media because I was looking for a job at that point. So, it wasn't practical to completely do away with it. But yes, I only went on it to get relevant information and did not do any mindless scrolling like before," he says. For important information and news, he usually reads newspapers and online websites now.

This habit that Dsouza had fallen into -- of subconsciously taking in gloomy content -- is known as 'doomscrolling'. Oxford Dictionary even counted doomscrolling, defined as "the action of compulsively scrolling through social media or news feeds which relate bad news", among its 'words of the year' for 2020. During the ongoing second wave of coronavirus, social media, which has been vital as a tool for seeking and giving help, has also turned into a virtual graveyard of sorts. Frequently, one comes across posts of people mourning the death of a loved one. Difficult to look at and difficult to look away from, social media has been adding to the stress many are already feeling due to the prolonged pandemic.

Dr Shefali Batra, psychiatrist, recounts one such distress call which she received from a patient a few weeks ago. He had been following the news and came across a supposedly new inexplicable symptom of Covid-19 -- it triggered a panic attack. "He had downloaded the apps of over 17 news channels. He was consistently watching the news, not doing any other work. He was missing out on his own office deadlines, and not engaging with people around and about him," says Batra. "I took the emergency session on video and made him delete all 17 apps in front of me. Then I gave him a deep breathing protocol to follow."

Dr Shefali Batra

What is doomscrolling?

Psychiatrist Chinmay Kulkarni describes the phenomenon as scrolling continuously through social media content which is negative and full of terrible news. "As algorithms of social media websites generate content we more often engage with, after a few days we are fed constantly with bad news," he adds.

Batra elucidates, "In a very twisted way, it's an obsession of sorts. Like OCD. If you don't scroll, you keep wondering about the news, about what's going on, whether there was a new breakthrough, was there any innovation, or did some statistics about the ongoing health condition change." She describes it as kind of FOMO (fear of missing out) which you feed, even though you know that it's not helping, enriching or relaxing you.

Why we knowingly go down this path

In most scenarios, people are aware that scrolling through negative and sad news is causing them distress, yet they can't control themselves. Kulkarni opines, "It's a vicious cycle. Our brains are wired to take negative news more seriously as it also can contain news about the threat to our life. And the brain wants to keep us safe in the first place." This exposure to excessive gloomy news makes us feel sad and low. "This helplessness makes us want to read more about the bleak future. And the more we read such content more is thrown at us by algorithms," he says.

Speaking about the potential symptoms of doomscrolling, Kulkarni says, "If someone is constantly on their phone then that is one sign. Being always consumed by messages, posts about the pandemic is another possible indicator. Getting irritated when told about excessive mobile use is also one of the indicators. Excessive caution and fear about Covid infection can also be a sign of doomscrolling."

How to break free

It is difficult but not impossible to get out of this habit of looking for negative news. As Dsouza mentions, in the current scenario, it is not practical or feasible to totally abstain from social media. Both psychiatrists advise that people need to engage in other productive activities and limit their exposure to sad news. Kulkarni suggests, "With your free time, learn some new skill or read some new books. Talk to your family members and old friends about other topics."

Dr Chinmay Kulkarni

"Keep abreast with the right news from the appropriate channels and stop wasting time on things that don't enrich, enlighten or entertain you," observes Batra. For getting useful information, she says one can connect to reliable sites like the WHO, CDC, and the Johns Hopkins website. Restrict news sources to one or two channels and access them at a fixed time in the day. "I'd take news with a pinch of salt and rely on the medical websites more. And if it's getting to be of an obsessive nature I'd recommend seeking professional help."

The experts also inform that doomscrolling is not just restricted to the pandemic. "Off late, the pandemic has taken precedence over all else. But for example in the case of any other medical symptom that one experiences; people choose to understand it better on the internet rather than asking a professional. This could get them sucked in a whirlpool of data that they misinterpret, worry themselves sick over, and then be sucked deeper into a trench," says Batra.

Kulkarni thinks that doomscrolling will continue, in a smaller way, even after the pandemic. "The reason why it will continue is that people engage far more with emotionally charged social media posts than with those posts which don't have emotional words," he says. While it is necessary to be well-informed, it is always advisable to be conscious about the source of the information. If it gets too overwhelming, it is best that an individual seeks professional help instead of trying to self-diagnose.

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