Why You Might Dissociate While Reading the News
Why You Might Dissociate While Reading the News
You open your phone to “just check headlines for a minute.”
Twenty minutes later, you’re still scrolling. You’ve read multiple articles. You’ve seen the images. You’ve absorbed the commentary.
But if someone asked you what you just read, you might struggle to explain it.
Your body feels heavy. Your mind feels foggy. The room seems slightly distant. You’re technically present — but not fully here.
If that sounds familiar, you’re not losing it. And you’re not broken.
You may be dissociating.
We are living in a time of constant exposure to distressing information. Violence. Exploitation. Political unrest. War. Injustice. Institutional betrayal. And it doesn’t just appear once — it repeats, refreshes, updates, and cycles through our feeds at a pace the human nervous system was never designed to handle.
For many people, especially those with trauma histories, there comes a point where the system simply says, “This is too much.”
And when that happens, the brain shifts into protection mode.
One of those protective responses is dissociation.
When the Mind Creates Distance
Dissociation is not dramatic or theatrical the way movies portray it. It often shows up quietly.
It can feel like zoning out. Like your emotions have dimmed. Like your body is present but your mind has stepped slightly outside of it. It can feel foggy, unreal, disconnected. You may lose track of time. You may realize you’ve been reading but haven’t truly absorbed anything.
This is not weakness. It is not avoidance. It is not failure.
It is biology.
When something feels overwhelming — whether because it is intense, familiar, threatening, or simply too much for too long — the brain creates distance. If fight-or-flight can’t resolve the stressor, the nervous system may shift into freeze. And freeze often feels like dissociation.
The body says, “I cannot fight this. I cannot run from this. So I will turn the volume down.”
Why the News Hits So Hard
There are several reasons modern media can push the nervous system toward that protective shutdown.
First, there’s the sheer repetition of threat. The human brain evolved to respond to immediate, localized danger — not to global alerts delivered every hour. When you repeatedly consume stories about violence, harm, or corruption, your body doesn’t necessarily register that these events are geographically distant. It simply detects threat signals over and over again. Stress hormones rise. Muscles tense. Breathing shifts. If that activation doesn’t get resolved, the system can flip into shutdown.
Then there are trauma echoes.
If you’ve experienced interpersonal trauma — abuse, neglect, betrayal, systemic injustice — certain headlines can resonate in a way that feels personal. Even if the details differ, themes of powerlessness, exploitation, or institutional failure can activate stored memory networks in the body. The brain doesn’t always distinguish between “this happened to someone else” and “this feels familiar.”
Suddenly, what you’re reading isn’t just information. It’s activation.
And if that activation becomes too intense, dissociation may follow.
There’s also the factor of helplessness. When you read about devastating events and there is nothing immediate you can do to change them, it can mirror earlier experiences of having no control. The nervous system does not respond well to prolonged powerlessness. When it senses overwhelm without agency, it may default to shutdown.
And finally, there’s overstimulation. The pace of modern media is relentless. Notifications, graphic images, conflicting opinions, commentary layered upon commentary. Even without trauma history, that level of input can overload the brain. Dissociation becomes a way to reduce the incoming noise.
The Freeze Response in Real Time
Most people are familiar with fight-or-flight. We talk about anxiety and adrenaline. We recognize racing hearts and quick reactions.
Freeze is quieter.
Freeze feels like heaviness. Blankness. Emotional muting. Spacing out. It can feel like your internal world just went quiet.
If you’ve ever noticed yourself going still inside while reading distressing news, that may be your nervous system shifting into freeze to protect you.
It is not a character flaw. It is an adaptive response.
When Dissociation Becomes a Pattern
You might start to notice subtle patterns. You scroll longer than you intended but retain very little. You feel emotionally flat afterward. You struggle to transition back into your day. Conversations feel slightly distant. Your body feels tired, even though you haven’t physically exerted yourself.
If you live with PTSD or complex trauma, this may happen faster or more intensely. Your system may already be primed for threat detection, making it easier to tip into overwhelm.
Again — this does not mean you are “too sensitive.”
It means your nervous system has learned to survive.
Protecting Your Nervous System in a 24-Hour News Cycle
You can care deeply about the world and still set boundaries around how you consume it.
Staying informed does not require constant exposure.
It may help to create intentional structure around media use. Choosing one reliable source instead of scrolling multiple feeds. Avoiding late-night consumption when your system is already tired. Setting time limits. Checking in with your body before and after reading heavy material.
Notice your breath. Notice your shoulders. Notice whether your body feels grounded or slightly distant.
And if you feel yourself drifting, gently orient back. Look around the room. Name what you see. Press your feet into the floor. Take a slow breath. Feel the chair beneath you. These small actions signal safety to the nervous system.
If dissociation feels frequent, intense, or hard to recover from, that’s not something you have to navigate alone. Trauma-informed therapy can help you understand why your system responds this way and build stronger regulation tools.
You Are Not Weak for Stepping Away
We are living in an era of relentless information. The human brain was not designed to metabolize global suffering in real time, every day, without pause.
If your mind occasionally disconnects while reading the news, it is not failing you. It is protecting you.
You are allowed to limit your exposure. You are allowed to protect your peace. You are allowed to step back without being indifferent.
Caring about the world does not require sacrificing your mental health.
At Prospering Minds Counseling, we work with individuals navigating trauma responses, dissociation, and nervous system overwhelm. If the news has been feeling heavier than usual and you find yourself disconnecting in ways that worry you, support is available.
You can stay informed.
You can care deeply.
And you can protect your nervous system at the same time.
If you’re ready to explore that balance, we’re here to help.
