OVERWHELMED BY CURRENT EVENTS??

+What to do about it!

Friends, we're talking about really getting out of the spin cycle, about really taking your life into your own hands and being in control of your life.

I'm a person of faith, and I'm so encouraged when I get cards and letters from my Healthy Americans. I've said it before and I'll say it again - I have the best audience on YouTube, and many of you are also subscribers to my other channel, which is called "Living Swell with Peggy Hall." That channel is all about positive encouragement. I have over 300 videos specifically designed to help you keep your head above the waves in these stormy seas of life, and on this channel, I am also bringing some of that content as well.

You know that I'm a person who's all about solutions and positivity. People will say, "Peggy, how can you stay so cheerful in the face of all of this hogwash that you're always exposing?" As I say, I'm a person of faith, and I rely on prayer. I rely on the body of Christ—basically others sharing God's love—which is why I wanted to share some wonderful letters of encouragement written to me from you, my lovely Healthy Americans, along with tips for overcoming the overwhelm.

In terms of solutions and what you can do, one of the most important things you can focus on is to get connected with supportive people. This is why I want to share these encouraging messages!

Again, I'm a person of faith. I derive a great deal of benefit through prayer, through fellowship, being with like-minded individuals where we can pray, share, support, and encourage one another.

I aired this video on Friday and I was a little fatigued because I am covering these headlines for you day in, day out - basically all day, every day. It does require me going into the ‘lion's den’ so to speak to keep up on current events.

Many of you are sending me links to articles and videos. I can't see them all, but I do set a few aside in my "to watch" lists, and when I have a chance, I will get to those.

I'm also grateful for those of you that are sharing my Substacks and videos with others who could also benefit from my point of view.

Breaking Out of the Spin Cycle

There are times when I get overwhelmed. It does get wearying, but I have my faith, I have my prayer, I have my fellowship, and I have you—my community.

So my number one solution to really get out of the spin cycle is to stay connected with supportive people.

That's part of the reason I have a YouTube channel and substack. So many of you have said, "Peggy, I come on this channel because my friends and family don't get it."

Someone else left a comment the other day saying, "Whenever I come across something in the news or a headline or a new event, I think to myself, 'I wonder what Peggy would think about this,' and then I go to your channel, and sure enough, we are very close in our outlook."

Then I hear from people who say, "Peggy, I don't agree with you on everything, but I do like to listen, and I appreciate your perspective and how you're able to bring it with humor and good cheer and help us dig deeper."

The bottom line is: stay connected with supportive people.

They don’t have to be 100% like-minded.

How do you find them? Let me know in a comment how you find like-minded people! Here on this channel, there are people making connections in our monthly webinars for our lovely Healthy Americans who are our financial supporters.

I also recommend going to in-person events. If you're going to speak at a board meeting, for example, you could have a card or a way to get in touch with others. Many people have created relationships over these years going to board meetings. That's how I've met a lot of Healthy Americans - at the school board meetings, the board of supervisor meetings, rallies, events, special movie screenings, picnics.

Along those lines, be willing to listen to others and ask them questions. I've done several videos on my Living Swell channel for positive encouragement, and I've brought them to this channel about how to have these hard conversations, how to deal with difficult people, how to stand your ground, and how to speak your mind without losing your mind.

One strategy is about listening to others and asking them questions. For example, somebody said in a comment, "Peggy, you don't understand RFK Jr. He is playing 3D chess. He's got a strategy, and it's going to take time."

So I simply asked a question: "What is 3D chess? Can you explain that to me? I hear a lot of people using that phrase, but I would like to have it explained."

This is really helpful because it actually helps me understand their position, and maybe there's something I'm missing. It also helps the person who's saying these things ask themselves, "Do I really know what I'm talking about? What is 3D chess?" Maybe they don't know what it is either, and they just heard it, and it may prompt them to dig deeper or maybe even revise their perspective.

Another question I asked: "How have you personally benefited from USAID being shut down by Musk? Has this helped you personally?"

I haven't. Maybe that will happen down the road. I would benefit if the TSA was changed, if they stopped making you take your shoes off and go through a screening booth that probably causes cancer. I would personally benefit from that. I would personally benefit from taxes being slashed 20% across the board. That would benefit me personally. Maybe that will happen… I sure hope so!

But just asking by question such as: Why are you so excited about USAID being eviscerated? Why not investigate the billions of dollars going to Musk? I mean, that would be a savings right off the bat - just cancel all of his NASA contracts. That's another question I would ask: How does going to Mars help Americans? How does it help you? It's a valid, honest, sincere, non-snarky question.

Asking questions, I think, is part of the solution because it helps people clarify their positions. Another simple way of asking a question is, "How did you come to that conclusion, and would you like to hear my point of view?" Now you're having a conversation!

Beyond the headlines, what matters most is this:

Live your life fully rather than being consumed by endless information.

Many people feel compelled to read every Substack article before bed or scroll through countless social media posts. But ask yourself: why? This habit steals your most precious resource—time. Our lives are measured in moments, and only God knows how many hours we're allotted.

I sometimes visualize my life energy/time left on earth as a bag of rice, each grain representing a unit of time. Will I carelessly scatter these grains, wasting my life energy watching click-bait videos and scrolling endlessly through Instagram? Or will I invest my hours intentionally?

I refuse to throw my grains of rice haphazardly. My advice? Limit your exposure to the headlines, the news, and the constant noise of social media.

Maybe you'll spend an hour a day watching The Healthy American and doing your research, maybe reading a Substack or two. Limit what you read.

Have healthy boundaries around what you do. If you're scrolling through social media, maybe you set a time limit of 15 minutes, and then you move on, because all of this is taking your life away.

I encourage you to create. Add value to life rather than letting headlines deplete you. Instead of consuming endless hours of content, consider creating something of value instead.

Another important concept is to be informed, not obsessed.

What does that look like?

• Being informed means spending reasonable time—perhaps an hour daily—keeping up on current events and researching issues that are important to you.

• The remainder of your time should be invested in meaningful engagement with family and friends—preferably positive, supportive people who don't constantly complain.

• If you are so riveted by current events and social media and find that you are neglecting your life in terms procrastinating on daily things like laundry, housekeeping, cooking, physical and mental exercise, spiritual development, creative pursuits, etc. that’s a sure sign you are obsessed, not just informed.

So take care of your life, the things that bring you joy - the exercise, the people, the food, the hobbies, the travel. It's okay to do that. In fact, I think it's even more important now more than ever.

Don’t forget to take care of your health - your physical health, your mental health, your emotional health, your spiritual health, all of these things that make up who you are. Let me know in a comment if you can add to that, and then do these things that will add meaning to your life.

P.S. A longtime Healthy American, Amy, who is a life coach in Minnesota, summarized my recent tips so eloquently in her blogpost here. Amy said,"I wrote a blog post with your tips from your last video. What you stated is so perfect because it falls in line with my mission--both personally and with my coaching. Thank you!”