On the Monday after Thanksgiving, I woke up to my usual daily routine. Make coffee. Let the dog out. Wake up the kids. Turn on the CBS Evening News from the night before. This Monday, however, was different. I was turning on the news for the first time in a week. On the Sunday before Thanksgiving, having grown tired of the daily dose of sexual harassment scandals, Donald Trump faux pas and outbreaks of violence, I decided to embark on an experiment. I was going to take a week away from the news. The news had become the clingy, cranky boyfriend that leaves me stressed and emotional, and I needed a break! No televised news segments, no reading articles on Facebook, and sticking only to the fiction story in my weekly issue of The New Yorker. Here is what happened...

I never realized just how difficult it would be to break up with the news. Even while not watching or reading any of the headlines, I was not able to avoid it. First thing on Monday morning, less than 24 hours into my breakup with the news, one of my friends sent a text in our group chat, dismayed at how people could be posting "RIP Charles Manson" as though he deserved peace in the afterlife. This was how I found out that Manson had died. The news was using my friends to get to me. Well played, news. Well played.

The next day the news used social media to make sure I knew it was still there, living it up without me. Someone posted an article in a Gilmore Girls fan group on Facebook, because Lorelai and Rory were known Charlie Rose fans. All I read of the headline was "Charlie Rose Accused", and I stopped there and continued scrolling. That was all it took; three words out of a headline to know that he was the latest high profile man to be accused of sexual misconduct. I wondered how many more men would be exposed before sexual harassment stories begin to fade into the background, so ubiquitous that it is no longer capable of capturing our attention.

Perhaps it was the Thanksgiving holiday commanding everyone's attention, or perhaps the news realized its attention-getting tactics weren't going to work on me, but the rest of the week passed without anymore bits of information infiltrating my life. I was finally able to have the break I so desperately needed. At first, I wasn't sure how I felt about it. I like to be informed. I don't like to be in the dark about what is happening around me. And I like to be able to participate in conversations that inevitably pop up in social settings. The news might be a clingy boyfriend, but it's also a popular one that everyone knows and wants to talk about.

The first thing I noticed is that I wasn't angry first thing in the morning. Let's face it -- news stories are seldom positive. I was starting my day with stories of violence, politics (when is that ever a pleasant subject?), power-hungry men taking advantage of women...all topics that evoke feelings of anger, frustration and anxiety. Instead of catching up on the news, I started every morning that week with a cup of coffee and an episode of quips and witticisms from Lorelai Gilmore while applying my makeup and styling my hair. It is impossible to be angry when watching Gilmore Girls, and I began every day in a cheery, bouncy mood. I took this as proof that we always need fun and empowering girlfriends in our lives to sustain us!

Part of not reading news articles on social media, was not reading the comment section below the articles. This was probably my favorite part of the breakup. If you read my last article about people who get off on criticizing others, then you know how I feel about bullies and mean people. Nowhere will you find more harassment and name-calling than in the comment section below a political news article. To borrow the words of Frank McCourt, why do people have to bother people? Why can't people respect that others may have different opinions, and that that's not only okay, but encouraged in a free society? There is no need, ever, to bash and belittle others, and the peace I felt at not bearing witness to this for a week was elating.

When Thanksgiving came, I spent the day with family. I avoided conversations about the news and politics, changing the subject quickly if something came up. This lead to more personal conversations, and I even learned some things about the lives of family members that I don't see often. Without the cloud of "what is this world coming to" hanging overhead, or the potential conflict of mismatched political ideologies, I found myself more in the moment and connected to the people I was with. It was one of the best Thanksgivings I can ever remember having.

Isn't it funny how the more drama we see, the more we crave it? It's like the disaster that makes your stomach turn, yet you can't stop watching it. It's like the caffeine that you know isn't good for you, but you have to have it every day. What happened when I quit, cold turkey? Ultimately I found peace. An improved mood. Feelings of security and confidence. I was more focused on the things that make me happy, and more connected to the people around me. I felt better about my life and about the country I live in. I started feeling more optimistic about the future.

At the end of the day, it is important to be informed and know what is going on in the world, because it does directly affect our lives. A relationship with the news is necessary, but it needs to be a healthy one. The news and I are back together, but what I've discovered during our breakup will change the relationship for the better. I will take it in passing, and not read through comments tied to articles. I will remain informed, but not obsess or overthink the details. In turn, I think this will make me a stronger, more objective writer. And, most importantly, it will make me a freer, happier person.