Recently I found myself feeling very low and stressed, but Health wise I feel good and I couldn’t understand why I was feeling in such a low mood.

The cause came to me whilst watching the TV news, I was constantly occupying my mind about global issues, war in Ukraine, China’s behaviour over the south sea region and the American Elections and the chaos that a second Trump presidency would unleash.

I realised that whilst it’s important to be aware of global affairs, obsessing over things that I cannot influence or change is a waste of mental energy and time.

We have to trust that our politicians will make the right choices, out of self interest if nothing else.

The world has been through so many situations like this. We need to go with the flow whilst doing what we can. Protest through the ballot box and hassle your representatives. Recycling and being environmentally conscious are your easy way to change the world a little at a time and vote for politicians who offer real hope, not nationalist prejudice and self interest or greed.

I have faith in the younger generation. Boomers (of which I am at the tail end of) have exploited our world without care and are very entitled, prejudiced and often deliberately ignorant. You only need to read the comments on Facebook posts about Electric Cars or climate change to see evidence of this. They constantly repeat long disproven misinformation. They didn’t have to change, didn’t have to worry about exploiting the natural world and don’t want to.

It is easy for boomers to just shout ‘woke’ at people simply because they display empathy but look at the world leaders produced by that generation, still fighting wars over territory, fostering and weaponising hate amongst people who normally get on just fine.

It is our children’s generation that give me hope for future and the sooner they are running the world the better.

So I do much less doomscrolling of news stories, I steer clear of Facebook and X which can be toxic and I focus on mindfulness and keeping a clear head. If I get the chance to contribute to change, I take it but I accept that my influence is limited.

Getting out into nature at every opportunity is a great way to incorporate some mindfulness and positivity into my day. A blue sky and birdsong can do wonders for your mood and generally cost nothing.

So, clear your email inbox, unsubscribing as you go. Delete X and Facebook from your phone and build time into your day for some meditation. Just a few minutes to clear your mental clutter will make you feel like a different person.

Finally, focus your time and mental space on your family and the small things that make every day a little better.