Hi friends,
Happy whatever day of January it is. (Seriously, this month has been 84 years long) I wanted to do this KOnfessional as both audio and text (click the audio above to listen) because, honestly, I feel like we all need some centering right now. The chaos around us is next-level, and I don’t know about you, but I’m overstimulated as F.
And it’s not just overstimulation. We’re many things right now. We’re afraid. We’re angry. We’re overwhelmed. We’re exhausted. Every single minute of every single day feels like breaking news. And I’m not just talking about the dumpster fire that is US politics (though, let’s be real, that’s its own special kind of wild). I’m talking about breaking news in our day-to-day lives. Breaking news in pop culture. Breaking news in our neighborhoods. Breaking news about that friend we haven’t seen in 10 years. Breaking news about that random person the algorithm picked up and plastered on your feed.
It’s everywhere. It’s on Twitter timelines, Instagram feeds, TikTok FYP, and even in the group chats we can’t seem to mute. It’s breaking news when you’re doom-scrolling. It’s breaking news when you’re joy-scrolling. It’s breaking news when you’re just trying to mind your damn business.
And I’m so overwhelmed. It’s enough.
On one hand, I’m like, “Unplug! Just unplug!” But on the other hand, I’m like, “Wait, what if I miss something? What if there’s an apocalypse and I’m the last to know?” It’s a constant tug-of-war between staying informed and staying sane. And honestly? I think we’re all on edge right now.
So, if you’re feeling this way, I want you to know: you’re not alone. This is a collective everything. A collective anxiety. A collective overwhelm. A collective “What even is happening right now?”
Why Do We Feel This Way?
Well, here’s the thing: we feel this way because it is this way. We’re living in an active dodgeball field. The hits are endless. The information is endless. The responsibilities? Endless. And let’s not even talk about the noise—social media, news alerts, group chats, work emails, family group threads (why are they always so chaotic?), and the constant pressure to be on all the time.
We’re the adults now and let me tell you, nobody warned us about this part. Nobody said, “Hey, by the way, you’re going to be running endlessly on a treadmill while dodging balls from every direction.” Like, what even is this?
Freeze. Unplug. Breathe.
Here’s what I think: in the middle of all this chaos, we need to freeze. Just freeze. Stop. Pause. Take a breath. Because if we don’t, we’re going to snap. January is just the beginning, y’all. People are dropping daily from stress-related ailments. We need to halt. And then we need to figure out what we can do without.
I was just telling my friend Dami about how, when we were younger, news was regulated. It came at a particular time of the day, or through newspapers. We consumed information in a curated format.
But now? Now we’re ingesting breaking news every second of every minute. We’re consuming people’s unfiltered thoughts every second of every minute. We’re bombarded with endless feeds, discussions, and communications. It’s like we’re in an active dodgeball field, getting hit from left, right, and center.
And I’m sorry, but it’s a lot. It’s too much.
So here’s my advice: freeze. Just freeze. And then start pulling out the plugs. Because there are way too many plugged in at the same time, and it can only lead to disaster.
I truly believe that once we create some silence—even if it’s just a small pocket of it—we’ll be able to better visualize, communicate, and digest everything happening around us.
I know it’s hard to take a step back and ignore the chaos around us. So much is going on that affects us and so much is going on that affects people around us and we must do what’s right to speak up for humanity. But I believe there are so many ways in which we can halt. In which we can unplug and step back. Stepping back doesn’t mean we don’t care—it means we’re preserving our capacity to care deeply where it matters most.
Your Homework
SO this week, I challenge you to freeze. Even if it’s just for 10 minutes a day. Unplug. Breathe. And ask yourself: What can I do without? Where can I create some silence?
And if you’re in the mood, hit reply and tell me: what’s one plug you’re pulling out this week? Let’s do this together.
Hugging you from here, seriously.
KO
P.S. Remember: you don’t have to carry the weight of the world. Sometimes, it’s okay to just put it down. 💛
