We’re Living in Cognitive Collapse

I remember when I was sitting in history class 15 years ago, reading about wars and people starting wars, or killing innocent people, or getting others killed for what? For honor? ego? legacy? For something they probably wouldn’t even live long enough to see? I judged them. I thought it was stupid. Why would anyone choose violence or step into something that could destroy so many lives instead of just staying home and protecting their peace, their family, and their life? There must be better things to do than violence. Like I don’t know… maybe start a bakery, learn pottery, get really into gardening, painting, reading books? Literally anything feels better than war.

To me, it all felt like something that belonged in the past. I believed that now, in modern times, we knew better. I thought back then, people made choices based on misunderstanding because they lacked enough information or had limited communication. Wars, in my mind, were the result of confusion, misinterpretation, and not fully understanding each other.

And I thought at that time that things were different. That with better technology, faster communication, and more access to information, it should be easier for people to understand each other. Easier to explain, to clarify, and to avoid conflict before it turns into something worse.

But now I’m seeing something else. With the rise of social media and AI, information became faster and more chaotic. The world didn’t just change, it accelerated, and humans didn’t evolve at the same pace as the tools we created. What AI and technology in general did is make everything faster, cheaper, and more scalable. That also means that bad intentions scale faster too. Before, a malicious person could lie to 10 people but now they can lie to 10 million with better grammar, fake images, fake videos, and confidence.

I used to think misinformation was just about wrong facts, but now I see it’s also about too much information, too many voices, too many versions of the “truth” competing at once. It looked like we are living in a world where everyone is talking at the same time and you’re just supposed to know what to believe. Instead of making life simpler, it just adds more pressure, because we’re constantly asked to process more than our minds were ever built to hold. When everything feels urgent, your brain stops slowing down enough to actually question anything. The real battle is clarity vs confusion and right now, confusion is winning because people are overwhelmed.

I think the real issue is not that technology is bad, but that it has amplified bad intentions, and humans are feeling overwhelmed. Because now, it’s not just about whether something is true or false anymore. It’s about having the mental space to even figure that out.

And it’s not only fake news. There are also new kinds of scams that move through the same system of speed and trust. Love scams, investment scams, fake job offers, phishing links, impersonation accounts, and messages that look like they come from banks, friends, or even government agencies. The forms keep changing, but the pattern is the same: urgency, emotion, and pressure to act without thinking.

A simple way to start recognizing scams is to notice the emotional pattern first, not just the content. If something is rushing you, if it’s making you feel fear, excitement, urgency, or attachment too quickly, that’s usually the first warning sign. Real opportunities and real people rarely demand instant decisions.

So what do we do with all of this?

I don’t think the answer is to “go back” or to erase AI or technology. That doesn’t really feel possible anyway because technology doesn’t reverse, it can only evolve and honestly, it wouldn’t fix the deeper issue. Instead, I think it’s about rebuilding something inside all this noise.

For fake news, don’t use social media as your source of news. Rely instead on established news organizations, official statements, and sources that have accountability rather than virality. If something feels emotionally intense or shocking, assume it needs verification. And remember, if something spreads fast, it doesn’t automatically mean it’s true.

Most importantly, slow down your own mind instead of reacting instantly. Learn what to ignore, what to verify, and what to trust slowly. So much misinformation right now are suceeding not because people are careless, but because they are tired. They’re scrolling too fast, trusting too quickly, and not pausing long enough to question anything. That’s why it’s important to slow down, think, and refuse to be easily manipulated.

I used to think the world was becoming clearer as it advanced. But now it feels like clarity is something you have to actively protect and consciously choose. Hopefully, that’s the shift we’re all going through right now, not just learning more, but learning how to think slowly again in a world that never stops speeding up. Manifesting a calmer, clearer life for all of us ✨