No matter where you fall politically, chances are that you’re stressed out about the U.S. elections this fall. We are deciding on a president, congress people, governors, state and local representatives, and ballot initiatives. In our always-connected world with a 24-hour news cycle, it never feels like the news is good. Doing your due diligence to find out where people stand can leave you feeling upset, isolated, and angry.

You’re not alone. A poll by the American Psychiatric Association showed Americans are stressed in general about the future of the country:

  • 73% of Americans report being anxious about the upcoming election
  • 70% are anxious about current events
  • 77% are anxious about the economy
  • 69% are anxious about gun violence

Political rhetoric is usually dialed up in an election year, but it’s now more normal for it to be especially divisive and polarizing. You can’t control what politicians or the media do or say, but you can control how you react to it.

Election Season Stress Management Tips

Focus on what you can control instead of what you can’t. Here are some ways to get started:

  • Create a routine. A routine helps you feel in control and keeps you from spiraling when things seem unpredictable. Include time to connect to real people in your life and do things you enjoy or things that give you purpose. Have a plan to manage your emotions, whether it’s meditation, taking a walk, engaging in a positive psychology technique listed below, or something else.
  • Set boundaries around media consumption. This is part of creating a routine. Set specific times to engage with politics, world events, and social media in general. Try to avoid anything upsetting before you go to bed; you want your mind to start to relax not to ramp up. The news will be there tomorrow.
  • Learn more from trusted sources. If you want to know where a politician stands on a particular issue, look it up on their website. Check facts on sites like PolitiFact or Snopes or look for confirmation of a story across multiple sources.
  • Get involved and volunteer. This doesn’t have to be about politics. If you feel strongly about a cause, connecting to it might help you feel focused and productive. Also studies show volunteering raises your self-esteem, pride, and empowerment.
  • Plan your talking points. If you want to talk about politics, make sure the other person is interested, know what points you want to make, and be willing to listen to their points. You can have productive conversations even if you don’t agree, but if things get heated, know when to walk away.
  • Vote. Exercise the power you have. Make sure you’re registered and vote regardless of if you think your candidate won’t win or your ballot issue won’t pass.

Positive Psychology Techniques

At Youturn Health, we’re big believers in positive psychology, which are techniques that help you focus on your strengths to help you improve life satisfaction.

The Free Three

The Free Three are three activities that, if you engage in daily, are guaranteed to improve your mood.

  1. Go outside. Get out into nature for 15 minutes a day.
  2. Listen to music. Not just any music, but the kind that makes you sing and dance along like no one’s watching.
  3. Laugh. Listen to a comedian, hang around someone who’s funny, watch a video on YouTube. Find a way to give yourself a big belly laugh.

Three Good Things

Our brains are wired to notice the negative things in life; it’s what’s helped keep humans alive for so long. But it also means we miss all the good things that happen to us every day. To help change your focus, try practicing Three Good Things: Every day at the same time of day, write down three good things that happened to you. Commit to doing it for 30 days and commit to not repeating yourself.

You’ll quickly go through the standard things people are happy for (e.g., family, friends, a roof over your head, etc.), and you’ll start to notice all the little good things that happen (e.g., good traffic, no lines at checkout, friendly interactions with strangers).

PERMA

PERMA Is an acronym that helps you focus on the core things that make people happy:

  • Pleasure: Do something you genuinely enjoy.
  • Engagement: Do something that you’re so in to that it makes you lose track of time.
  • Relationships: Focus on quality, not quantity.
  • Meaning: Find meaning in life; it doesn’t have to be religion, it could be philosophy or anything bigger than yourself.
  • Attitude: Choose your response to any given situation.

Journaling

Get your thoughts out of your head and onto a piece of paper. It can be so therapeutic. Journal about your day or use prompts to reflect or express yourself.

For more information on stress management, please visit our Stress Management resource page. If you’re a Youturn Health member, we recommend taking our Stress Management, Burnout and Mindfulness, and Energy Work courses (login required; if you don’t know your login, please call/email Admissions: 888-520-1868 or admissions@youturnhealth.com.)