Choose Peace

Everything feels like constant chaos, so I get honest about the emotional hangover that comes from nonstop news, social media, and political noise. I share the boundaries and small daily choices that help us stay connected without losing our minds. 
• why the constant news cycle feels overwhelming 
• what I mean by an emotional hangover 
• Marcy’s Reality Check on news and online arguing 
• separating what we can control from what we cannot 
• limiting news intake and changing the background noise 
• muting or unfollowing to protect your space 
• replacing doomscrolling with real life grounding 
• protecting mornings and not borrowing work stress for free 
• choosing peace over being right and skipping pointless debates 
• staying connected while setting boundaries in conversations 
• a reminder to do something positive and pay it forward 
If this hits home, and I have a feeling it did, share it with someone who needs a little less stress and a little more peace in their life. 

Transcript

Welcome To The Chaos

SPEAKER_00 0:06

Hello, and welcome to Inside Marcy's Mind. My name is Marcy Backis, and I am your host. Yes, I am. Welcome. Oh my gosh. Is it just me, or does it feel like every time you open your phone lately, you need a glass of wine, a nap, and possibly a therapist? It's a multitude of reasons why we feel that way. But I it's political, it's it's all the things. Because I feel that way. And I don't care what side you're on, what you believe, or who you voted for, the noise right now, the drama, the constant chaos, it's a lot. I think that last thing I said, the constant chaos. Our whole lives feel chaotic. And it is a lot. So today we're not fixing the world because clearly that is above my pay grade. But we are talking about how to stay sane while the circus is in town. So I want to welcome you back to Inside Marcy's Mind, where we figure out life one real slightly sarcastic conversation at a time. I'm Marcy and around here. We are not pretending everything is fine. We are learning how to function anyway. I hope this helps you and I hope it helps me. And today, oh, today we are talking about something I think every single one of us is feeling. How do you stay sane when everything around you feels like it's completely out of freaking control? The monkeys, the circus, the whole thing. It's off the rails. Yeah, so we're gonna talk about it. Let's just start by saying this out loud. You're not imagining it. It's really is overwhelming, more overwhelming than it used to be. And again, I don't care what side you're on. This is overwhelming for everyone. And if it's not for you, then I we'll just leave it there. We're living in a time where the news never stops, social media never sleeps, everyone has an opinion, and everyone thinks their opinions need to be shared immediately. And sometimes I feel like that because I can't believe people think the way they do. And not just shared, defended loudly, repeatedly, and sometimes aggressively. It's crazy. And somehow we're supposed to keep it up, keep up with all of it. We're supposed to keep up with what this person did, what that person said, what the president said, and God knows he said some dumbass shit lately. Okay, I promise, I promised myself I wouldn't do that today. So, okay. So we we're supposed to keep up with all of it. We are also supposed to pay our bills, manage our homes, take care of our families, try to eat something green once in a while, go to the gym, lift some weights, eat our protein, and figure out what's for dinner for the 47th time this week. It's too much. We are not built to process this much information coming in at this speed with so much big emotion attached to it. And yet here we are, scrolling, absorbing, reacting, and wondering why we feel exhausted. There is an emotional hangover that is so real. Here's the part nobody really talks about all of this. It leaves a mark. You can feel it. I can feel it. I can feel it right now doing this podcast. Because there's so much more I want to say, and I can't. It leaves a mark. You can feel it. That tight feeling in your chest, that irritation that comes out of nowhere, that mental exhaustion where you just don't even want to hear one more opinion. That's what I call the emotional hangover. Because you didn't just read the news, you felt it, you carried it. And half the time, it's about things you cannot control. We cannot control. And meanwhile, the things you actually can control, your day, your mood, your relationships, start getting pushed to the side because your energy is being spent somewhere else. I I hope this just didn't even exhaust you the first four and a half minutes of this podcast. It has me. So let's take a break right now. I'm gonna do something every podcast. I'm starting a recurring segment called Marcy's Reality Check. All right, it's time. We're gonna do it right now. I need to take a break. Marcy's Reality Check, where I love, I lovingly tell you what you already know, but maybe don't want to admit. Ready? You don't need to watch the news. Today's reality check is you don't need to watch the news 12 hours a day. You are not required to have an opinion on every single thing happening in the world. And arguing with strangers on Facebook has never not once changed anything ever. Also, if something is raising your blood pressure and lowering your peace, we're going to rethink that because your peace, that's not optional. And I am that I'm telling you this, this is what I need to hear too. That is today's Marcy's reality check segment. Because our peace is not optional. So let's get really honest for a minute. There are things you can control, and there are things you absolutely cannot. And a lot of our stress comes from mixing those two up. So I want to break it down, not only for me, but for you. What we cannot control as much as we would like to, we cannot control the president of the United States. We cannot control the news cycle. We cannot control other people's opinions, and we cannot control what shows up in your feed on your social media. And let me tell you something. If yelling at the TV worked, we would have solved everything by now. So what can you control? You can control how much of this nonsense you consume. You can control where you engage. You can control who you listen to. And you can control what energy you bring into your own life. That's your power. And it may not feel like a lot, but it's everything. You have a lot of power. So here are a few practical life hacks for staying sane. All right. This is where we get into the good stuff. Because we are not going to just complain. We are going to fix what we can. Put a limit on your news intake, set a timer. And I'm serious about this. You do not need to stay informed all day long. You need to stay mentally healthy all day long. So limit your news intake. If you are at home and that TV is just on 24-7 in the background, I have switched mine to jazz music with beautiful scenes that make me happy and make me calm. If someone posts something that makes you tense, angry, or exhausted, I don't care if they're a good friend, an acquaintance, a relative, unfollow them, mute them, protect your space. You can mute somebody for 30 days if you just don't want to hear what they have to say. Protect your space. It's your space. It's your Facebook. It's your Instagram. It's your, these are all your things. If you just want to see cuddly bunnies, you can make that happen. It literally is up to you. Your algorithm follows you. This is not just about avoiding reality. It's about managing your environment. Replace your doom scrolling with something real. Go for a walk, call a friend, sit outside, do literally, literally anything that brings you back into your actual life. Because your real life, that's where your power is. Protect your mornings. Do not start your day with chaos. Give yourself at least 30 minutes of quiet, coffee, your own thoughts before the world comes crashing in. If you are working, I'm retired, so I'm saying that. If you work, don't check your work emails until you're getting paid for it. Don't bring your work chaos into your life unless you're getting paid. So if you're just checking while you're having your coffee, wrong, wrong, wrong. Choose peace. Choose peace. Again, choose peace over being right. This one is hard, but not every conversation needs your participation. I've been working on that, especially with online content. I feel like I need to comment on things and I just don't. Not every debate needs your input. They doesn't need it in your life or your social media life either. And you don't get a trophy for being the most informed and the most miserable. How do we stay connected without losing our mind? This is a bit tricky. We still want our connections. We still want relationships. I still want to see what my nieces and nephews and family members are doing online. I love my online time. I have my crazy dogs that I follow. I want to know what they're up to. I want to know when Runner gets his surgery. I want to know all those things. Because I want that connection. I want those relationships and I want to talk to people. But not every conversation is worth having. You are allowed to say, I'm not getting into this today. Let's talk about something else. I hear you, and I'm going to leave it there. I do have a friend that says, let's talk about something else, and I like that. Because peace, peace is a boundary, not a personality flaw. I will be a hundred percent honest. Recently, the president is making me extra crazy. And it's it's not the things he's doing, it's the fact that he's still in the White House. It's the fact that he is a delusional, mind-warped human being, and everybody's just leaving there to run the ship. If he was your parent, you would have taken the car keys away from him by now. You would have told everybody, oh, don't listen to him. He doesn't make any sense anymore. If he was in your family, these are the things you'd be doing. And he has all the power in the world. He is the most powerful man in the world. I want you to understand that. And I just can't take it. So I have got to start choosing peace over this because I can't fix it. I've hit my limit with the stupidity of the president of the United States. And I can't fix it. And I can't shout about it anymore, and I can't bring it to my podcasts anymore. So I have to choose peace. So that's what I'm trying to do. Choose peace. All right. So this is a great time to do a quick pause because I've got something to share with you. If you're enjoying this, and I hope you are, don't forget, I've got two other podcasts you absolutely need in your life: Aging Aim for Sissies, where we talk about aging with humor, honesty, and just the right amount of sass because we're not going quietly. And unbottled, where we talk about sobriety, real life, and what it actually takes to change your life one day at a time. And I will tell you, we do talk about alcohol, but you can you can exchange that word with scrolling and anything else that maybe you're addicted to. And everything episodes, updates, all good stuff is on my website. So you can go to Marcybackusmedia.com and everything is there. So go check it out and then come right back because I'm not done yet. I do want to wrap this up with something important. You have full permission to step back from the noise without stepping out of life. You are allowed to protect your peace, limit what you take in, walk away from conversation, excuse me, and choose your sanity over someone else's chaos. Because the world may be loud, but your life, your life gets to be calm. All right, that's what's been on my mind this week. If this hits home, and I have a feeling it did, share it with someone who needs a little less stress and a little more peace in their life. And I'll see you next time, right here on Inside Marcy's Mind. And the best thing you can do to bring peace to your life is to go out and do something positive. Pay it forward, pass it on, give someone a compliment, open a door, thank someone for just being a part of your own.