Do you want the good news, or the bad news?
I think we can all agree that looking at the news these days can be an overwhelming and fatiguing experience; it seems like every day there is something else to be worried about. Do you ever find yourself scrolling through social media, looking at endless headlines and articles, wondering if there’s any good left in the world? This pessimism is the expected result of a constant news cycle of tragedy and doom. If this sounds familiar, you are not alone! Some call this “Doomscrolling” or scrolling endlessly through negative news with a diminished ability to look away. According to Courtney Batt, MD, an adolescent medicine expert at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children’s, ‘“As with many other addictive behaviors, doomscrolling activates the release of dopamine in the brain,” says Dr. Batt. “So even though it often leads to negative feelings such as depression and anxiety, endlessly scrolling also offers the positive feelings associated with dopamine. The more you scroll, the more dopamine is released to reinforce and reward the behavior”’ (2024).
Our brains are designed to attune to threats in our environment, setting off our internal alarms and putting us on edge for our own safety. Each negative headline or social media post alerts us of a new threat. Can you imagine what hours, days or years of doomscrolling can do to our mental health? Constant access to social media and news updates through our phones has opened the door to the negative impact of doomscrolling. As expected, doomscrolling can lead to a multitude of mental health issues including worsening depression and anxiety, reinforcing negative thoughts and feelings, sleep problems, and an increase in stress hormone levels (University Hospital, 2024).
If you find yourself doomscrolling, here are some ways to limit yourself from the negative spiral and remember that good things still happen. For every tragic news article or social media post is a piece of good news, although often hidden behind the negativity. For example, here’s some positive news (courtesy of Good News Network):
Teen Rewarded with Cash, Job, and GoFundMe After Turning in Wad of $3,500 'Without Hesitation'
'Macronesia' Sanctuary to Protect Waters of 4 Atlantic Islands and Critical Habitat for Whales
Unique Antibody from Camels and Alpacas Could Be Used to Treat Alzheimer's
Prostate Cancer Patients Offered Fresh Hope by Promising New Drug Combination
These are just a few of the hundreds of examples of good news articles offered on resources like Good News Network, Positive News, and Daily Good. Aside from opening your media intake up to positive resources like these, here are some other ways to help reduce doomscrolling and “believe in the good”:
1) Limit time scrolling: Both on negative news feeds and in general! In fact, “Three weeks of screen time reduction showed small to medium effect sizes on depressive symptoms, stress, sleep quality, and well-being” (Pieh et al., 2025).
2) Focus on the good: Avoiding notoriously negative or fear-mongering news cycles and choosing to spend time focusing on positive news can help mitigate the negative effects of doomscrolling.
3) Be mindful of negativity bias: Negativity bias refers to our tendency as humans to “attend to, learn from, and use negative information far more than positive information” (Vaish, Grossmann, & Woodward, 2008, p. 383). Reminding ourselves to acknowledge positive news despite the negative.
4) Go outside: As the winter months approach, many of us will be indoors most of the time. But, spending time away from your phone doing something fulfilling, whether that be reading, spending time with family, etc. is good for us.
Thank you for reading!
