Will constant media exposure to disasters cause stress? Here’s what you should know

It is possible to sum up the extent of casualties and other losses in a natural or a man-made disaster in numbers and data. However, the mental impact and anxiety that the news of such incidents causes in a person is unfathomable and cannot be documented easily. The massive landslides that struck Wayanad may have traumatised many who have been watching the news on media. While there are people who are directly or partially affected by the natural disaster, a sense of agony and terror also swept across the state.

Most were constantly consuming the news of the Wayanad tragedy through news channels, newspapers and social media. The disturbing news from the ground zero could obviously affect the mental state of a person. The author of this article thus decided to conduct a study with the psychology students at St. Thomas College in Thrissur to analyse the impact of news of disasters on people's mental health. The study was to investigate whether the pain and agony of the people who have lost their dear ones, the rescue efforts that lasted for weeks and the helplessness of those who have lost everything have caused anxiety and stress among the general public. Of the 141 participants, 55% were men, and 61% were women. Meanwhile, the average age of the participants was 27 years.

The impact
From the scientific investigation, it was understood that those who were frequently following the news of the disaster were severely anxious and suffered mental stress. They experienced poor mental health during those days. Another important finding is that women were more affected than men. The women participants were mostly anxious and weren’t in their best mental space during the days after the disaster. Besides, it was found that people seemed stressed and worried as they grew older. Interestingly, studies related to the influence of media on mental health too have revealed similar results. The viewers often feel anxious, stressed, happy or hopeful for the future as they listen to the news of various natures.

How to stay unaffected
Here is what you could do when you feel helpless watching distressing news that could give you anxiety. A person who is aware of their own mental state could decide accordingly. We cannot do anything for the victims merely by watching the news, so we can think about ways to help them even while away. Children should be aware of such disastrous incidents; however, it is better not to expose them continuously to distressing news. Many studies conducted in various countries show that such news could severely affect the mental health of children and teenagers. If you cannot reach out to the victims in person, you could find ways to keep your mind calm and relaxed. Mental health is a right, and everyone should strive to achieve it. So, ensuring that extremely distressing news of natural disasters does not affect your mental health is important.
(The author is the head of the psychology department at St. Thomas College, Thrissur. )