I have been working on some changes in my life lately. Little things here and there in the hopes to make my life a bit better.
Don’t get me wrong. I love my life and I know how lucky and privileged I am. But existing in this world has become gradually harder. Social media is, in my opinion, a great contributor for that. But in general, things are getting weirder. Or at least my perception of it is.
I’m not what people would consider an optimistic. I’m a cynic. I think we failed as a society (and as a race), miserably, and I have zero faith in humanity. We fucked up. It baffles me that we still solve things by going into war, we are ok with people dying of hunger while some are eating a freaking fungus that costs 2,000.00 buck per kilo.
We are here, struggling with paper straws and recycling our tiny amount of garbage while billionaire fly around in the private jets and industries pollute the whole world.
But I’m here, this won’t change for, hopefully, a long time, so I started trying out a few things to try to shift my perception a bit.
First I left social media and I talk about this here, so I won’t go over this again.
But then I realized I had replaced scrolling on Instagram stories with YouTube Shorts.
Was it better? A bit. Instead of idiotic influencers, stupid pranks and a ton of fake news (which annoys the heck out of me), I was watching cake decorating videos and recent news on astronomy. But still, I was doom-scrolling.
I also noticed that I was binge-watching and rewatching random TV shows on streaming services and not even paying attention to it.
So I went one step further and decided to try a full dopamine “detox”. Well, not actually a detox, because it’s not a toxin, but you get the idea.
I cancelled all streaming services. I deleted all mobile games that were giving me that quick dopamine fix. Not only that, but I started doing things with intent. No more watching YT shorts. Only actual videos, and committed to actually paying attention and not picking up my phone during the video. I started doing things without having an audiobook or a podcast in the background. If I’m cooking, I’m cooking. I started to allow my brain to rest and even get bored.
Working with my phone in a different room. Playing games that require intent.
In a matter of 7 days I realized I was reading more books again, reflecting more on things, more focused on work, studies and working out. I am less tired at the end of the day. I’m sleeping better (back reading books before bed rather than watching TV). So I am enjoying it. Seems to be working.
Another thing that I have been doing is looking for more positive news around the world. The media bombard us with awful news all the time, because this is what gives them an audience (humans are weird, remember?). And I’m not saying we have to ignore bad news. We cannot/should not. But for our own mental health, we should balance it out a bit. So I decided to bring a little bit of the good things going on around the world this week. I hope you enjoy, and it sets you up to start a new week and a new month in a better mood.
1 – Planet and Nature
After the COP30 bizarre silence on fossil fuels, Colombia and The Netherlands Announced Co-hosting the First International Conference on the Just Transition Away from Fossil Fuels. You can read a bit more on that here.
The UK has become the first major economy to put a deadline on new fossil fuel exploration. No more licenses for oil and gas drilling will be issued in the North Sea.
2 – Society and health
Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott donated about 60 million dollars to support disaster resilience and recovery in communities that struggle to rebuild after emergencies, helping fill gaps left by cuts in other funding. Now, I don’t think philanthropists would exist if there was no publicity and taxes benefits involved in that act. Also, billionaires-should-not-exist. That said, I’m glad the money will be used to help people in need.
A groundbreaking monthly injection currently in testing might help people with severe asthma who take steroids daily. In an exciting trial, involving over 300 individuals from 11 countries suffering from severe asthma, astonishingly, 90% of those who received a monthly tezepelumab injection were able to successfully reduce or completely stop their daily steroid use, all while maintaining their symptom control. Tezepelumab, an innovative antibody, specifically targets areas of the immune system to significantly reduce lung inflammation, paving the way for a brighter future for asthma sufferers.
You know how I’m all about healthy eating and habits, and staying away from starchy carbs that impact your blood sugar because diabetes runs in the family (both sides) and I think if there’s something I can do about my health, even if for now is just a preventive measure, that involves a life-style change rather than taking medication, I will always opt for the life-style change. Unfortunately, to people with type 1 diabetes, this is not that simple. Type 1 diabetes requires insulin because it’s not about insulin resistance that can be, in most cases, reverted with diet. It’s about not being able to produce it at all, or producing it in very small amounts. Currently, there’s no cure. But for the first time, scientists were able to turn stem cells into insulin producing cells. This is a huge step towards a more permanent treatment.
Leave a Reply