The News Not Noise Letter: Abortion access for millions rests on one vote.
The Abortion showdown in North Carolina. Plus: Trump-Russia-what? Desantis goes further. Martha makes waves. And Dr. Samantha Boardman on how to stop ruminating in 6 steps.
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This weekend a member of the News Not Noise community tweeted that this is the only place she gets information because it’s “news that doesn’t require a xanax”. #NoXanaxNews. Love that. It is my goal to give you info that doesn’t trigger your anxiety.
But that’s challenging right now because there’s a lot of difficult information. I feel it. And when I feel it, I know you do too. I work through my stress with exercise (cross-body movement and twists really help me bring down anxiety), meditation (I listen to a directed meditation everyday), taking walks with Bruno, breaking agreements with negative stories in my head, and turning to experts I trust for advice. One of the experts I rely on is my friend, Dr. Samantha Boardman.
Today I’m sharing some top headlines and advice from Dr. Boardman about how to stop the cycle of worrying and rumination. It’s from her Substack called The Dose and I’ve found these six tips super helpful. Hope you do too!
Here are today’s top headlines:
One Vote Decides Abortion for Millions: North Carolina has become a last-resort option for those who seek abortions in the south, because it allows abortion until 20 weeks. That’s poised to change. The state’s GOP-run legislature passed a 12-week abortion ban (and other limits), which the Democratic governor just vetoed. If ⅔ of the legislature votes to override the veto, the ban goes into effect. Do they have the votes? Unclear. If even one Republican doesn’t vote – the veto holds and abortion remains legal up to 20 weeks. This is all complicated by the fact that a Democrat, Tricia Cotham, flipped parties this year and became a Republican giving the GOP a supermajority, even though she represents a solid blue district.
Durham Nothing-Burger: Today John Durham, a special counsel appointed by Trump’s Attorney General Bill Barr, released his final report on the Russia investigation into Trump. He found that the FBI showed "a lack of analytical rigor, apparent confirmation bias" and should not have opened a full investigation into Trump’s ties to Russia. But he also did not find enough material to recommend a single change at the FBI and the two prosecutions he brought led to an acquittal and a not guilty verdict. The investigation reportedly cost $6.5 million. Former President Trump nonetheless posted that the report proves “the American Public was scammed” and the GOP House has asked Durham to testify.
Florida Man: Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is up to it again. Today he signed a bill that will bar Florida’s institutions of higher education from funding diversity, equity and inclusion programs. A Florida teacher says she’s under investigation by her school and the state Department of Education for screening a Disney movie, Strange World, which includes an openly gay character. And the Florida legislature is poised to modify a law known as the resign-to-run rule; the change will allow Gov Ron DeSantis to run for president without resigning as governor.
International news:
A Saturday truce between Israel and the Islamic Jihad continues to hold. It ended days of intense violence in Israel and Gaza.
In Turkey, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is headed to a May 28 runoff election when voters will decide whether the autocratic leader who has been in power 20 years will continue to lead this key NATO nation.
A Russian news outlet reported that four Russian aircraft were downed in Ukraine, which would be the worst loss for the Russian air force since the war began. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky has been meeting with leaders in Europe. Today he sat down with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak who promised to send Ukraine hundreds more missiles and drones.
Baseball Bat Attack: A man wielding a baseball bat attacked two people at the Virginia office of Democratic Rep Gerry Connolly. No word on a motive. Last year the same man sued the CIA for $29 million claiming he was being tortured “from the fourth dimension.”
Health Insurance, Not So Healthy: Stat News, a fantastic source for medical and health care news, reports that UnitedHealthCarePlans, a big health insurance provider, is making it harder for its customers to get a colonoscopy. According to Stat, the insurer is now requiring pre-authorization to get the procedure covered and physicians say that can add dangerous delays to a sometimes life-saving diagnostic tool. Read the article for the insurer’s carefully worded explanation.
Hot Martha: And we can’t miss mention of Martha Stewart as a Sports Illustrated swimsuit cover model. (Yes, I know it’s a challenging model of female empowerment, but still, go Martha). She’s one of four cover models and, at age 81, the oldest in their history. She says, “Usually I'm motivated by pay. But this time I was motivated by showing people that a woman my age could still look good, feel good, be good. I thought that this is kind of historic and that I better look really good." Yup. Crushed it. That’s pretty good.
With those headlines there’s plenty of material for rumination. Cue Dr. Samantha Boardman.
Science-backed advice to stop rumination from Dr. Samantha Boardman, author of The Dose:
This is an excerpt from Dr. Boardman’s newsletter, This Is How to Stop Ruminating: 6 strategies to cure emotional reflux.
“Do you ever get stuck in a mental loop, rehashing what happened, replaying what was said, revisiting the scenario over and over again in your head? This is rumination. Rumination is a persistent and repetitive pattern of self-focused thinking, which includes analyzing reasons for negative mood and failure.
While rumination is not a clinical diagnosis, going over what is bothering you again and again with a fine-tooth comb and scrutinizing every little detail of what has happened or might happen can play a role in the onset and maintenance of depression. Since a negative mood leads to recurrent analysis and self-focus, and ruminative self-focus exacerbates negative mood, high ruminators can get trapped in a reciprocal loop with a negative mood and rumination sustaining each other.
The good news is that there are strategies to interrupt this negative thinking pattern. Here are 6 ways to break the rumination cycle:
1. Take a walk in the park
A study published in the Journal of Environmental Psychology found that walking in a natural setting is a powerful rumination reducer and mood lifter. Strolling in a green environment elicited more awe and externally-oriented thoughts than walking along city streets. Just 30 minutes was enough to disengage participants from dwelling on distress.
2. Schedule time to worry
As counterintuitive as this sounds, setting aside 20 minutes of time each day to let your worries run wild can actually reduce rumination. Giving yourself permission to self-immerse during a fixed period frees up space to be more present and engaged during the rest of the day.
3. What would you tell a friend?
If you are stuck in a rumination loop, consider how you would advise a friend who was in the same predicament. Research shows that this technique of “decentering”—shifting the focus away from yourself and towards someone else—promotes clearer thinking about one’s own issues. Decentering is also linked with cultivating greater humility and an awareness of one’s own shortcomings, and with feeling greater appreciation for another person’s point of view.
4. Exhale
Do a breathwork activity known as cyclic sighing. You can find a link to a video and a step by step explanation at The Dose.
5. Time Travel
Imagining what your future self might think about a current stressor has been shown to reduce the emotional toll of the present.
6. Whatever you do, refrain from co-ruminating
Excessive complaining and rehashing personal problems with someone else is known as co-rumination and can amplify stress, especially in those who are already feeling down. Ask,“If someone else were in this situation, what advice would you give them?” Rather than dwelling on the details, help others generate a plan of action.
For more detail on these steps check out Dr. Boardman’s post here and you can find articles on topics like how to apologize, how to stop catastrophizing and how to turn ill-will into good-will at The Dose.
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