By Lynn Otto, LPC – GroundShift Counseling
I’m not saying ignorance is bliss, but sometimes more information isn’t helpful. This post invites you to reflect on the impact of information overload on your wellbeing, and the possibility of living well with uncertainty.
Maybe you were born into the information age, and there’s never been a time in your life when you didn’t have access to much of the world’s information. Or maybe you can remember when finding information required going to the library or making phone calls to experts. In the late 1980s, less than one percent of the world’s stored information was in digital form. Within a couple of decades, that number soared to nearly all of it. And now we have AI giving us answers to any question we might have, sometimes accurately and sometimes not.
Does this easy access to information make our lives better? The time we spend on our phones would indicate that this access is really important to us. Every day brings more news, more commentary, more advice, more reactions. And every day brings more uncertainty! It’s harder to know what’s real, and harder to hold on to any sense of stability.
The Cost of Seeking Certainty
Human brains are wired to predict and prepare. We settle when life feels somewhat stable. When reality feels contradictory or fast-moving, the nervous system shifts into scanning mode, looking for danger or problems to solve.
Lately, I hear people say things like, “I feel on edge all the time.” “I can’t stop doomscrolling.” “I don’t know what to believe anymore.” “I feel overwhelmed, but also guilty for unplugging.”
That makes sense. Your mind is trying to protect you. We believe that if we know more, we are more in control. But constant scanning doesn’t actually create safety. It creates overwhelm and fatigue. More information doesn’t necessarily calm us. Conflicting interpretations, emotionally charged commentary, and confident overstatements often amplify anxiety instead of resolving it.
Complete certainty isn’t possible, so it’s important to learn how to live well alongside uncertainty.
Learning to Live with Uncertainty
Living with uncertainty is less about controlling the world and more about building steadiness and psychological flexibility. This means learning to
- calm your nervous system
- notice and unhook from spiraling thoughts
- tolerate—even accept—some “not knowing”
- act from your values rather than from fear
This is the work I do at GroundShift Counseling.
The name “GroundShift” reflects two experiences many of us recognize. Sometimes it feels like the ground has shifted beneath us: a loss, a health scare, political upheaval, a relationship rupture, or a season of anxiety we didn’t expect. In those moments, steadiness can feel hard to find.
And sometimes counseling creates a different kind of shift, not destabilizing, but transformative. A shift in perspective. A shift in long-standing patterns. A shift in how we relate to anxiety and uncertainty.
At GroundShift Counseling, I offer steady help for life’s upheavals, whether you’re trying to regain your footing or are looking for meaningful change.
An Invitation
Uncertainty may be part of modern life. But being overwhelmed by it doesn’t have to be. If you’re feeling untethered, anxious, or worn down by the noise, counseling can offer a grounded space to slow down, sort through what’s real, and reconnect with what matters most.
If that kind of support would be helpful, I’d be glad to talk with you.