totally agree with this view (I know it uses uk stats but at a guess it is the same here) www.abc.net.au/triplej/programs/hack/flight-or-fight-and-the-dangers-of-consuming-all-the-bad-news/10931552

chill our dudes and go for a surf.

Everything in society is geared to trigger anxiety. Even the good news

My grandmother used to say that the world was falling it apart. Which was strange as I never felt that way and that we have never had it better.

It turned out that she would religiously sit in front of the afternoon news and watch it all. No wonder she thought it was all falling apart.

When I pulled up the carpet in my house and found newspapers from the 40's and 50's you can see that these sort of things have always happened, its just that the news cycle was weeks instead of almost instant. You wouldn't see the atrocities, but just read about them, without pictures even, months later.

I was a bit surprised that she had lived through a world war, worried about contagious diseases, gone through the threat of nuclear weapons, and thought 'now' was more dangerous.

Made a conscious decision to not watch nor listen to the news from any source couple of years back. It's amazing how the world turns and these so called "serious" events occur... but I wouldn't know and nor has it made any difference.

Of course when people bring up the latest catastrophe I just nod say "I know, I know".

The newspaper chronicles between the world wars is a fascinating read so to during the height of the Cold War....

Fear is such a great controlling mechanism.

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eppo said..
Made a conscious decision to not watch nor listen to the news from any source couple of years back. It's amazing how the world turns and these so called "serious" events occur... but I wouldn't know and nor has it made any difference.

Of course when people bring up the latest catastrophe I just nod say "I know, I know".

The newspaper chronicles between the world wars is a fascinating read so to during the height of the Cold War....

Fear is such a great controlling mechanism.

I think if you took 100 old people and asked them if they wanted to sit in front of a TV news program that told them all about what was happening in the world, or watch a sitcom, they would all want to watch the news. I don't even think it is fear, its just something. Perhaps you get to an age where you think 'the world is falling apart' and in your older years you just want to make sure you don't miss it.

I should take some of the 1940s articles from old newspapers and scan them in and we can see how just as scary the 1940s were.

Iv been out for a surf, what have I missed in the world today???????
Oh I did see the doggys cant play footy

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Craig66 said..

Oh I did see the doggys cant play footy

you call that news? i thought that was just well known fact

I dont think its the news.

I think its the entire media - TV, social media, friendship circles, work. Everything.

The human brain is complex and basically whirrs away full throttle in some people.

This weekend I was on a camping trip with a few mates and their families. Mentioned to one mate I was feeling a bit overworked/ anxious/ low mood and he told me some techniques he had to deal with similar stuff.

Next day I overheard his wife asking him if he had taken his antidepressants.

Our large brains and awareness of societal complexities make nearly everybody anxious/ depressed for much of the time. Maybe not in our teens, or early 20's but it's when you hit 30+ and some mates start making big bucks everybody else feels gutted.

I could be wrong, but thats my take

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Chris_M said..
I dont think its the news.

I think its the entire media - TV, social media, friendship circles, work. Everything.
...

Our large brains and awareness of societal complexities make nearly everybody anxious/ depressed for much of the time. Maybe not in our teens, or early 20's but it's when you hit 30+ and some mates start making big bucks everybody else feels gutted.

That's dangerous thinking. There is always someone that is doing better than you, and there is always someone that is doing worse than you.

Often people forget the negatives and only see the positives from other people's success.

Why jump on the treadmill and compete with anyone else when its not really going to bring you any extra happiness? I guess it makes it difficult if your spouse or kids decide that they need the latest of whatever is in fashion and insist you get it for them.

Yeah but what I am saying is its our overactive brains that are the problem.

Regardless of the trigger, you wouldn't be so anxious if your brain didn't overanalyze things.

So I blame the human brain for being so goddam thinkey

**** you guys have me worried now that I might be anxious

EROI of energy available to do work peaked in 1920's
burning 100million years worth of stored solar energy in 200 odd years is frying the planet, and the oceans
Consumption based overpopulation means humans are using the biosphere at an unsustainable rate and outcompeting other species leading to the mass extinctions
pollution is taking care of the rest, plastic, inorganic solvents, heavy metals all creeping up the food chain
the weapons industry is the single biggest contributor to Global GDP
50 plus years of consumptive propaganda means that the addicts don't want to stop even when the end result starts slapping them in the face

problem with the news is that most of it is designed to distract you from all of this so the industrialist can keep getting the riches in while there is still a few bobs worth left

reckon there are a few reasons to be anxious, will it effect me or can I push my debts onto the next generation

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Chris_M said..
Yeah but what I am saying is its our overactive brains that are the problem.

Regardless of the trigger, you wouldn't be so anxious if your brain didn't overanalyze things.

So I blame the human brain for being so goddam thinkey

Yeah, I see your point. Some people are more prone to this than others I think.

I used to have a work colleague that would get so wrapped up in seemingly simple things and make a bit deal out of them, yet in reality most of them were trivial, it was just his way of responding to things. He seemed to have a lot of other colleagues fooled in that he wasn't really that bothered, but came across that it was a pending disaster, so people always assumed it was worse than it really was.

I wonder if the answer is to have hobbies? Time alone to relax and enjoy yourself. A hobby like windsurfing or kitesurfing where you aren't normally thinking about everyday problems but are thinking about the session you are in?

Fro Eckhart Tolle : The Power of Now

Your mind is an instrument, a tool. Thoughts are there to be used for a specific task, and when the task is completed, you lay them down. As it is, I would say about 80 to 90 percent of most people's thinking is not only repetitive and useless, but because of its dysfunctional and often negative nature, much of it is also harmful. Observe your mind and you will find this to be true. It causes a serious leakage of vital energy.

This kind of compulsive thinking is actually an addiction.

What characterizes an addiction?

Quite simply this: you no longer feel that you have the choice to stop. It seems stronger than you. It also gives you a false sense of pleasure; pleasure that invariably turns into pain.

Why Are We Addicted to Thinking?

Because you identify with thinking, which means that you derive your sense of self from the content and activity of your mind. Because you believe that you would cease to exist if you stopped thinking. As you grow up, you form a mental image of who you are based on your personal and cultural conditioning. We may call this phantom self the 'ego'. It consists of mind activity and can only be kept going through constant thinking. The term ego means different things to different people, but when I use it here it means a false self, created by unconscious identification with the mind.

It is not paranoia if it is true

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FormulaNova said..
A hobby like windsurfing or kitesurfing where you aren't normally thinking about everyday problems but are thinking about the session you are in?

Usually by the time I have been out there a few hours all the thoughts start coming back in!

Anxious for no reason ?

Keep calm they say.

But how can we sleep when Egg-boy is roaming the streets and Easter, with its multitude of diverse eggs, is only just around the corner ?

#eggiegeddon.

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Chris_M said..
Yeah but what I am saying is its our overactive brains that are the problem.
Regardless of the trigger, you wouldn't be so anxious if your brain didn't overanalyze things.
So I blame the human brain for being so goddam thinkey

Hellooooooo Krishnamurti : )

"To free the mind from all conditioning, you must see the totality of it without thought. This is not a conundrum; experiment with it and you will see. Do you ever see anything without thought? Have you ever listened, looked, without bringing in this whole process of reaction? You will say that it is impossible to see without thought; you will say no mind can be unconditioned. When you say that, you have already blocked yourself by thought, for the fact is you do not know."

https://jkrishnamurti.org/content/freedom-self-2

It is quite similar to some forms of Buddhism.

I'm a bit worried that I'm not at all anxious.

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Kamikuza said..
I'm a bit worried that I'm not at all anxious.

I was going to reply to this earlier but I couldn't be bothered.

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FormulaNova said..
When I pulled up the carpet in my house and found newspapers from the 40's and 50's you can see that these sort of things have always happened, its just that the news cycle was weeks instead of almost instant. You wouldn't see the atrocities, but just read about them, without pictures even, months later.

Cast your mind back a little further to tbe 14th century when the plague killed 200 million people. I'm sure the people living back then thought the world was a pretty ****ty place watching their friends and family die.

Whilst the 20th and 21st centuries have seen 100's of millions of people killed through countless wars, genocides, terror attacks, diseases and natural disasters, i'm with you thinking that world in 2019 isnt such a bad place? Bad things happen daily and this is awfully sad but the good still outweighs the bad. Especially living in Australia.

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FormulaNova said..

Kamikuza said..
I'm a bit worried that I'm not at all anxious.

I was going to reply to this earlier but I couldn't be bothered.

So was i , but i wasn't sure if i was indecisive.
So i didnt

Coffee can make you anxious. Not everyone but it's not uncommon.

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MDSXR6T said..

FormulaNova said..
When I pulled up the carpet in my house and found newspapers from the 40's and 50's you can see that these sort of things have always happened, its just that the news cycle was weeks instead of almost instant. You wouldn't see the atrocities, but just read about them, without pictures even, months later.

Cast your mind back a little further to tbe 14th century when the plague killed 200 million people. I'm sure the people living back then thought the world was a pretty ****ty place watching their friends and family die.

Whilst the 20th and 21st centuries have seen 100's of millions of people killed through countless wars, genocides, terror attacks, diseases and natural disasters, i'm with you thinking that world in 2019 isnt such a bad place? Bad things happen daily and this is awfully sad but the good still outweighs the bad. Especially living in Australia.

Yes, modern day life, at least here in Australia, is great. Good health care, good social security, good safety and security.

Its sobering sometimes to think that a lot of us have lived past the typical life expectancy of people from that era. We have never had it better as far as I am concerned, and watching more news programs is not going to change that.

We could do with more wind on the east coast though. I find that creating a bit of anxiety at the moment!

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NotWal said..
Coffee can make you anxious. Not everyone but it's not uncommon.

I like drinking cans of 'Mother', but it makes me a little bit too edgy. I would require a lot of coffee to reach the same level, so I need to taper back on the energy drinks. I know it sounds dumb, but I would actually like the stuff if they had a 'no caffeine' version.

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FormulaNova said..

NotWal said..
Coffee can make you anxious. Not everyone but it's not uncommon.

I like drinking cans of 'Mother', but it makes me a little bit too edgy. I would require a lot of coffee to reach the same level, so I need to taper back on the energy drinks. I know it sounds dumb, but I would actually like the stuff if they had a 'no caffeine' version.

Yeah , its called beer.

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Imax1 said..

FormulaNova said..

NotWal said..
Coffee can make you anxious. Not everyone but it's not uncommon.

I like drinking cans of 'Mother', but it makes me a little bit too edgy. I would require a lot of coffee to reach the same level, so I need to taper back on the energy drinks. I know it sounds dumb, but I would actually like the stuff if they had a 'no caffeine' version.

Yeah , its called beer.

Oh man, a few years ago I started home brewing. Initially I would get a buzz going after a single glass (300ml) of homebrew. A few months later I wouldn't get that same buzz until I had drunk almost 2 bottles... 1.5 litres. I figured if you get to that point its time to give it up! I was a bit surprised at how your body gets used to consuming alcohol the more you drink regularly. I don't think I would make a very good alcoholic though if you have to start drinking litres at a time. I would rather be a cheap one pot screamer. It costs less.

Excellent article.

www.henrymakow.com/2019/03/negative-emotions-health.html

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FormulaNova said..

eppo said..
Made a conscious decision to not watch nor listen to the news from any source couple of years back. It's amazing how the world turns and these so called "serious" events occur... but I wouldn't know and nor has it made any difference.

Of course when people bring up the latest catastrophe I just nod say "I know, I know".

The newspaper chronicles between the world wars is a fascinating read so to during the height of the Cold War....

Fear is such a great controlling mechanism.

I think if you took 100 old people and asked them if they wanted to sit in front of a TV news program that told them all about what was happening in the world, or watch a sitcom, they would all want to watch the news. I don't even think it is fear, its just something. Perhaps you get to an age where you think 'the world is falling apart' and in your older years you just want to make sure you don't miss it.

I should take some of the 1940s articles from old newspapers and scan them in and we can see how just as scary the 1940s were.

Just after Dunkirk. Jesus they were sitting ducks... if only hitler didn't go east as well.

It's all part of the New World Order:

Make humanity anxious over nothing, so that they can control us.

thenextweb.com/science/2018/01/31/scientists-want-to-treat-anxiety-with-mind-control/

On a serious note though, I do agree anxiety is on the increase across all levels of populations and cultures, and it's mostly over more and more loss of trust in Governments, others and even themselves.

This leads to other disorders, such as schizophrenia, depression, suicide and PTSD.

www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-03-19/rich-countries-welfare-spending-leaves-people-wanting-more

And it seems countries that are supposed to be happier, due to better health facilities, money, and resources, are the ones worst off.

I personally attribute it all down to social media and the internet - FOMO.

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Chris_M said..
Yeah but what I am saying is its our overactive brains that are the problem.

Regardless of the trigger, you wouldn't be so anxious if your brain didn't overanalyze things.

So I blame the human brain for being so goddam thinkey

You are right in one way and quite na?ve in another.


We are the most intelligent sentient beings on the planet, hence we know we are conscious. We know that we know.

The mind is a great tool to divide up and analyse reality and with this develop predictive models.

It imagines, projects, forecasts and predicts and has allowed all the unbelievable accomplishments we have witnessed over recorded history.

But when it becomes the source of your identity, who you think you are, it becomes a delusional psychosomatic, paranoid, schizophrenic, psychopath = that can justify and perform the unthinkable. Just read history to be sure of that....or turn on the news.

Modern global instant information transferal - and the technology development has without doubt magnified the manifested insanity of the collective human mind. We all feel is.

It is a terrible tool to know ones true nature, to know what you really are. The mind and its crazy ass and uncontrollable thoughts sit within something far more intelligent. To realise the mind is just a calculating tool that allows us to receive and process information from the so called external world (lol)... is to start to come out of your insanity and indeed the anxiety that arises from it.

But you get lost in there, get lost in your own logical BS...then you will create hell in yourself and on earth. and the majority of people are lost in their heads, hence we see the word as it is.

Not hard to grasp, do the investigation yourself!. Sit quietly (or walk or whatever) as you can and just watch your crazy thoughts come and go...what is watching them? Then watch your stupid mind try and come up with answers that have no bearing on the truth of the matter. You quickly see how limited it is and indeed how bloody dangerous it is if that is how you are interpreting reality.

So you want to know what is causing all the grief and anxiety in the world....

easy...just look inside yourself. It's all there to see. The content may change from person to person a bit but the overall structure causing the insanity is the same. It's dead easy to see it in yourself (and kinda scary at first) if you are still enough...

otherwise this is all just mind, talking about the mind which is just more delusion from the mind.

So....watch.