It’s been a year since the presidential election that cleared the way for national news orgs to parachute into conservative parts of the country for a day or two to really get to the bottom of how they think. It also brought on a consistent onslaught of big headlines that were previously once-in-a-lifetime news items.

Disconcerting and depressing stories that used to pop up once in a blue moon are now at our fingertips on a weekly and sometimes daily basis. At the same time, what the word “facts” means to many Americans has jumped the shark faster than The Fonz could run through his history of sexually transmitted diseases.

The result: news fatigue. This affliction is hitting even the savviest of news consumers. The barrage of big stories limits our ability to process events that take time to work through, like the biggest mass shooting in modern American history or how the president made grabbing women by the pussy great again.

Know the signs.

Are you a victim of news fatigue? Well, let’s see. Are you a literate American with an Internet connection? The answer to that question offers a starting point, but it’s important that you recognize the symptoms of news fatigue before things get too out of hand.

You have PTSD from news alerts. At first, they made your heart jump. “What next?” you thought to yourself with an eyeroll. But that was back in October of 2016. Now, your phone dings with the latest from the Washington Post or New York Times, and your gnarled fingers shake as they slide across the screen. “Tell me more,” you croak, as the lifeless slits you used to call eyes scan over the fresh hell of the day.

But before that even happens, there’s a trigger. Like Pavlov’s dog, the news alert ring has a certain effect on you: accelerated heart rate, increased blood pressure and the hunch that like Lewis Black you could stroke out at any moment.

Avoidance. You no longer seek out the news. You expect it to come to you, like junk mail, bill collectors and terminal illness. The things you used to enjoy – the dulcet tones of Steve Inskeep’s voice, Tucker Carlson’s mouthbreather face, the astronomical shittiness of Wall Street Journal’s editorial page – all can go fuck themselves.

You’re done. You steer clear of radio, television and print news, because that’s the belly of the beast, where the danger lives. You don’t get on social media, because a current event could be lurking in between a sandwich pic and an adorable parenting anecdote. You’ve found that at this point, even football and Keurig machines have been politicized, proving that nothing is sacred, not even coffee that tastes like it has been filtered through your brother’s middle school gym shoes.

You don’t know what is going on. This is the granddaddy of news fatigue symptoms. A friend passes a newspaper clipping while reflexively banging her head against the wall or whatever blunt object is nearby and can best induce unconsciousness. “Oh, that’s too bad!” you say cheerfully. “I didn’t know about this. I don’t know about anything now because I don’t keep up with the news any more since it was slowly killing me and sucking all of the joy out of my life drop by drop, like if Megyn Kelly was a joy-sucking vampire with an inexplicable morning show.”

But that show is real, and you didn’t even know that.

Why bother?

Before we get into how to stay informed without losing what’s left of your sanity, let’s go over why you should keep up with what’s happening in the first place.

News affects you. You need the news to make basic life decisions involving your health, safety and wellbeing. The more you know about this world, the better prepared you are to roll with the punches and kick said world’s ass when it has it coming.

You’re a part of holding those in power accountable. Consuming and caring about accountability journalism is a simple way you can stay engaged by tracking public officials’ decisions and how they are spending the money you personally gave them via taxes and perhaps campaign donations. If what they’re doing impacts you negatively, you can tell them to knock it off or vote for someone else next time around.

I’m biased, but some of the most powerful journalism comes from newspapers, and by keeping up with their work in print and online, you support the fourth estate and government accountability at the same time.

What you can do.

The truth is that even as a reporter, I’ve struggled the past year to keep up. During my early 20s, my news consumption started out as a form of entertainment and a departure from the problems in my own life, while making me feel more connected to the world at the same time. Since last year, my relationship with news has gotten way more complicated, and part of that has to do with a news cycle that resembles Watergate on crack with a side of hallucinogens. I’m also learning to respect my own mental health and take stock of the toll that constant negativity in the form of devastating headlines can have on me.

But I can’t give up on news, and I hope you don’t, either.

Know your limits, and don’t go past them. Take news breaks when you need them. If you get bummed out after five minutes of Morning Edition, stop there. If you’re having a bad day, bookmark a long read on how climate change is causing hundreds of miles of coastland to sink into the ocean. You can read it later.

Stay tuned in, but that’s only something you can do well if you’re feeling receptive and not miserable.

Focus on local and state news. Some of the most partisan and problematic headlines are coming from national media orgs. But state and local news is arguably more important, because it will have a greater and more immediate impact on your daily life.

So, give local and state news some love. Subscribe to your dang local newspaper. Thinking about what’s going on at home can offer some relief from dire partisan headlines that inspire us to think the world is going to hell in a handbasket.

Speaking of which: Stay away from hyper-partisan news and “fake news,” AKA propaganda.

Partisan news tends to be way more negative and contain dramatic flourishes like shouting and name-calling that have no place in traditional news. Partisan news has an argument to make and doesn’t leave room for other viewpoints. Even if you’re hard right or left, you’re going to at some point disagree with what’s being said and be one of the people your chosen pundit is calling immoral or stupid and so on.

Partisan news is also less likely to provide you with an accurate view of what’s going on. It tells you what to think, which I personally loathe, and it rids countless news items of any nuances they may have in order to reduce them to a chosen rhetoric that drips with bias.

There are tons of reasons why this is bad. But I think a big reason is that it encourages this “us versus them” mentality that has clearly been destructive to American politics and sometimes our personal lives. This type of media diet is why a lot of us burn out on news.

Say “yes” to comedy, satire and the lighter side of journalism. A huge array of shows and podcasts fall under these categories, most notably “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.” It’s not news, but it’s about news, and it’s hilarious. The best way to deal with depressing shit is and will always be humor.

Contact Mollie Bryant at 405-990-0988 or bryant@bigiftrue.org. Follow her on Facebook and Twitter.