When I was working in journalism, at one point, it became a physical pain, all day, everyday for years. I thought I was sick. And I was too sick that I left the profession. I went to the mountain, rarely have internet, and climb and walk everyday. I then lived by the sea with little internet. Suddenly I had no pain left, no anger, no sadness, no profound pain in my heart. I get what you wrote in the article. the whole awfulness of the world in your palms. I managed to get rid of it and get back to it in my control system to be able to work in my profession and not to be harmed by it.
Many people practicing meditation asks students to "quiet your mind". I think I did it, by not having a connected phone. And things wind down on its own. Thank you for your article.
One of my mentors is a somatic therapist who has been teaching about trauma since long before it became a popular buzz concept. One of the most important things I've learned from her is that our nervous system doesn't know the difference between sensory information that we experience first-hand, and that which we are exposed to via media. Even though our cognitive mind can (usually)tell the difference, our nervous system (and therefore, our ability to self-regulate) can easily get overloaded, and possibly even traumatized, by exposure to images and sounds that depict dangerous/harmful events. Anytime we are traumatized, without successfully resolving the trauma on a visceral level, we add to the level of chronic stress that we carry with us. Depending on our individual physiology and history, it is not unusual to either "shut down" emotionally, or become hyper-reactive, or to vascilate between the two. That's why disengaging from, or limiting our exposure to, media can be helpful.
Wonderful article and learning lesson. I love this word and how these powerful word combinations have been formed in the German language. An excellent accompanied piece to the points being made here is listening to the artful, lush musical effort by the singer/songwriter, Fish (https://fishmusic.scot/discography/weltschmerz/)
Thank you for this. I don’t believe I’ve ever felt this despondent and despairing over the state of humanity as I have these last few weeks. It’s good to have a word for it, and I’m sure you’re correct that the cure for it is several million small mercies. If only those were televised, too.
I learned a lot in this short piece and added a few words to my collection of vocabulary that don’t directly translate.
Are you sure about “The advent of social media and mobile phones has amplified our inclination to feel problems rather than think about them”? Based on most reactions in the comments sections, disagreeing would be impossible. But ideological screaming matches aside, doesn’t it seem people are also becoming numb? Or maybe, it’s not a lack of feeling, but a lack of meaning. Sometimes, I think the world is becoming more nihilistic. We seek constant stimulation instead of experiencing the meaning in stillness.
When I was working in journalism, at one point, it became a physical pain, all day, everyday for years. I thought I was sick. And I was too sick that I left the profession. I went to the mountain, rarely have internet, and climb and walk everyday. I then lived by the sea with little internet. Suddenly I had no pain left, no anger, no sadness, no profound pain in my heart. I get what you wrote in the article. the whole awfulness of the world in your palms. I managed to get rid of it and get back to it in my control system to be able to work in my profession and not to be harmed by it.
Many people practicing meditation asks students to "quiet your mind". I think I did it, by not having a connected phone. And things wind down on its own. Thank you for your article.
The whole world needs more "small mercies".
Be kind. Do small things with great love.
One of my mentors is a somatic therapist who has been teaching about trauma since long before it became a popular buzz concept. One of the most important things I've learned from her is that our nervous system doesn't know the difference between sensory information that we experience first-hand, and that which we are exposed to via media. Even though our cognitive mind can (usually)tell the difference, our nervous system (and therefore, our ability to self-regulate) can easily get overloaded, and possibly even traumatized, by exposure to images and sounds that depict dangerous/harmful events. Anytime we are traumatized, without successfully resolving the trauma on a visceral level, we add to the level of chronic stress that we carry with us. Depending on our individual physiology and history, it is not unusual to either "shut down" emotionally, or become hyper-reactive, or to vascilate between the two. That's why disengaging from, or limiting our exposure to, media can be helpful.
Thanks. Is there a word for feeling overwhelmed and just stop caring?
Excellent. Your framing list of compound expressions in German invites complex thinking.
This was wonderful.
I’m always happy to learn new words, especially one that feels so applicable now. Thanks for the very thoughtful and interesting piece :)
“Jesus, get me off this rock” is a pretty great summation.
Wonderful article and learning lesson. I love this word and how these powerful word combinations have been formed in the German language. An excellent accompanied piece to the points being made here is listening to the artful, lush musical effort by the singer/songwriter, Fish (https://fishmusic.scot/discography/weltschmerz/)
Thank you for this. I don’t believe I’ve ever felt this despondent and despairing over the state of humanity as I have these last few weeks. It’s good to have a word for it, and I’m sure you’re correct that the cure for it is several million small mercies. If only those were televised, too.
I learned a lot in this short piece and added a few words to my collection of vocabulary that don’t directly translate.
Are you sure about “The advent of social media and mobile phones has amplified our inclination to feel problems rather than think about them”? Based on most reactions in the comments sections, disagreeing would be impossible. But ideological screaming matches aside, doesn’t it seem people are also becoming numb? Or maybe, it’s not a lack of feeling, but a lack of meaning. Sometimes, I think the world is becoming more nihilistic. We seek constant stimulation instead of experiencing the meaning in stillness.
Nice. "Weltschmerz" is now a little arrow in my growing quiver.
Love this, thank you. Is there an antidote for “Weltschmerz”? What’s the word for it?