Why Going on a News Cleanse was one of the Best Things I've Ever Done

And, why you should try it, too.

I started a News Cleanse nearly a month ago, and guys, I wasn’t sure if I was going to make it. Here’s my re-cap of starting said cleanse, how I felt only a week later, and why I went on it in the first place:

It’s Day 1 and already I’m not sure what to do with myself. I’m a very routine person; honestly, if a spy was trying to kill me, they’d have no problem finding out my predictable patterns and snuffing me out within two days. My mornings are spent catching up on all of the news: politics, world, economics, environmental, opinion pieces; I gobble them up with my coffee, eager to know more about the world. Except, lately, I’ve been feeling down. And, not just down like you do when Monday rolls around, but more of an existential crisis type of down. Extreme, I know, but it sums up how I’ve felt lately.

The news was (and still is) chock-full of things screaming about how the world is horrendous and humanity awful. I started feeling anxious 24/7 about things I could not control, which is always a big anxiety-trigger for me. I was anxious about things that may or may not happen. About the over-population of the world. How can I control the world’s population? I can’t. But, I can control my own actions.

I’ve always had anxieties in my life; it’s something I’ve had to deal with for a long time, and I’ve learned to deal with it. I’ve gotten pretty good at suppressing the illogical thoughts that I know don’t make any sense, but often I find myself succumbing to those that have a niggle of truth. Because once my mind realizes that there’s some kernel of truth in there, it grabs it and holds on with all its might.

The environment is a huge factor in my anxieties and one of my passions. Yes, a huge conservative can love the environment, too, guys. We’re not all racist morons, I promise. Anyways, without living on a commune (although it’s been joked about), I love most things environmentally friendly.

So, reading about how the entire world is literally on fire was starting to take a toll on my mind not just from reading such devastating news every day, but because my anxieties couldn’t rule out any illogical thoughts anymore. Everything…