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We live in a broken world. Unpleasant experiences may happen anytime, whether it is a consequence of our own doing or an effect of other people’s choices, actions, or words. As much as we want to avoid stress, conflict, and disappointments in life, our world is imperfect. Each individual has his or her own way of coping. This is pivotal because our response or our coping mechanism can either positively or negatively impact our over health and wellbeing.
It is but normal to seek entertainment and forms of distraction to destress and recalibrate our minds. However, we cannot allow ourselves to dive deeper into what we call escapism.
According to researchers Hannu Jouhki and colleagues in their longitudinal study on Escapism and Excessive Online Behaviors conducted in Finland during the COVID-19 pandemic,
“Escapism is the tendency to distract oneself from real-life problems. It can also be conceived as shutting meanings out of one’s mind and freeing oneself from self-awareness for a while. Escapism has been identified as one of the key drivers behind online behaviors in both adaptive and maladaptive ways.”
Escapism is not limited to online behaviors. It creates a fantasy and gives one the feeling of being high from the influx of happy hormones or dopamine. Thus, escaping the reality of one’s situation. Escapism can come in various forms, ranging from emotional eating, sugar addiction, excessive shopping, excessive obsession with celebrities, vices such as gambling, gaming, habitual use of substances, sexually deviant behaviors, infidelity even pornography.
When you are deep into escapism, it disrupts your everyday life. It consumes you. There is a sense of losing control that strongly compels you to give in to whatever activity or substance that you need to feel that void and escape reality.
Individuals who crave the feeling of being high on dopamine to make them happier can get it from loading up on sugary stuff. That sugar rush will eventually result to crashing, and they feel more awful afterwards. It is a cycle that will inevitably damage their minds and bodies
Another common way to escape is to seek entertainment in the guise of needing relaxation. Binge watching shows or excessive online behavior like gaming and social media browsing can disrupt sleep, promote a sedentary lifestyle, and make one totally unproductive.
Inadequate sleep has been associated with mood alterations, insulin resistance and diabetes, obesity, cancer, heart diseases, among other chronic diseases. Furthermore, living a sedentary lifestyle can cause weight gain, specifically in the belly area, mental health problems, sleep problems, cardiovascular diseases, and more. After all, sitting is the new smoking. It slowly kills you.
If you are into escapism, it is not something that can be addressed overnight. You cannot just say you will quit and go cold turkey. It will drive you mad. Especially if you have been used to hijacking your dopamine levels by engaging in instant gratification that creates a surge in dopamine production in the brain, resulting in pleasure. Think of how recreational drugs like marijuana or cocaine make one high. However, you can make a decision to heal. It is a process that would need commitment. Most may even need the help of psychologists and psychiatrists. If it involves eating problems and food-related issues, then a functional nutritionist dietitian must also be on board.
The first thing to do is to acknowledge that you are escaping from something, a situation, or someone. Get down to the root cause of the situation. Identify your triggers and what you do to cope. It would be good to write down your triggers and what coping mechanisms you used. For example, you can say, “I felt shamed by my colleague because I am overweight and I ate 1 large bag of chips.” That is a way of listing the trigger and the coping mechanism.
I once had a patient who could consume an entire loaf of bread after she had a row with a family member. Therefore, it is important to face the reality of the situation. Shame, fear, panic, anxiety, and other negative emotions may be present. You do not need to deny them. Acknowledge how you feel, but decide to respond in a positive way by learning healthy coping skills.
If your form of escapism is to emotionally eat, it is prudent not to stock up on unhealthy food. When you are triggered, you can instead eat healthy options like fruits or veggies, like carrot sticks, or simply drink water first. I once had a patient who felt the early signs of psychosis after consuming cheese and processed cheese for days. She chose to eat carrots, and she miraculously felt better. This is because plant food sources are low in sugar (even natural sugars from fruits are healthy) and high in phytonutrients that quell inflammation in the body. Making the cells function optimally.
Now, eating plant food and drinking water may not be enough at first. You have to let the steam off. Therefore, after taking something orally, you can practice other coping mechanisms, such as taking a walk. Even if you have to just pace inside your room, just get moving. This type of distraction will help you cope in a positive way.
If your way of escaping is binge-watching shows, you can allow yourself to watch for a reasonable time of less than two hours a day. Decide on the time limit before you begin and set an alarm to remind yourself. When the time is up, tell yourself that tomorrow is another day and you can watch again. Get up and do an activity that will be a healthy distraction. In most cases, I would recommend walking or talking to a loved one. If it is close to bedtime, you can read a book with a reading light so you can have some downtime and promote better sleep.
There is always hope for everyone who is suffering from escapism. This is not something to be ashamed of while you try to help yourself on your own. Seek counseling and professional help if you are struggling. But begin by making a decision to heal.
