By Leah Harris
These chaotic and uncertain times, punctuated by a frantic 24-hour news cycle and constant access to information via social media, are having a profound effect on Americans’ mental well-being.
A new paper published in Social Science and Medicine studied the effects of the political climate on 148 women in Georgia between 2023 and 2024, found that political stress significantly worsened their mental health outcomes. These findings underscore existing research showing that political stress is in some ways unique among other sources of stress.
“There’s something distinctive about the way politics is stressing us out,” Jayme Renfro, a political science professor who has researched election stress, told the American Psychological Association. “Political anxiety is a thing that is separate from, or at least a distinct part of, stress and anxiety in general.” Given that these collective circumstances and stressors are likely to persist, what are some strategies for staying grounded in the face of the storm?
Evaluating our media consumption patterns.
For many of us, information-seeking is a way of coping with anxiety, but as late-night doomscrollers know well, it doesn’t usually have the intended effect. While some experts may recommend taking media breaks for days on end, for many people turning away is not an option—particularly those from the communities most impacted by rapid social and political change. When tuning out is not an option, we can consider changing the ways we tune in. Is it possible to stay informed while keeping overwhelm at bay, by reading or listening to a daily summary of trusted analysis? Instead of taking multi-day news breaks, are micro breaks of a few hours or half a day within reach?
Connection, connection, connection.
Political stress may be unique among forms of stress that we face, but there is also an inherently communal aspect to it: Everyone is experiencing it together, to some degree or another. While it can be tempting to isolate during times of stress and overwhelm, connection is a trusted touchstone. Whether getting together with loved ones for meals, dancing with others, going for walks, engaging in community care work, or doing a collective project, leaning into and strengthening our networks can buffer us, individually and collectively, from the most harmful effects of political stress.
Listen to painful emotions while rooting into our deepest values.
Experts on political stress agree that it’s important to listen to and accept all of our emotions, honoring the valuable information they provide. In fact, research indicates that those who use cognitive reframing strategies to “change their minds” about the situation are less likely to take any kind of action.
There’s emerging science to suggest that when we root our motivation in values like love, pride, courage, compassion, admiration, and gratitude, we can stay engaged while reducing the impact of the ongoing political climate on our bodies and minds. Studies are underway to study the role of positive emotions in reducing the impact of political-related stress and anxiety on voters who engage in social change work. Early results prove promising.
“Just as negative emotions help drive us to take action, so too do our positive emotions,” researcher Brett Ford told the American Psychological Association. “These kinds of socially engaged emotional experiences appear to help push people to get involved, but with less cost to their well-being.”
For further exploration:
- Study: Politics Negatively Impact Georgia Women’s Mental Health (Emory University)
- Existential uncertainty: how it affects your mind – and what you can do about it (The Conversation)
- The impact of election stress: Is political anxiety harming your health? (American Psychological Association)
- VIDEO: How to cope with political stress with Brett Q Ford and Kevin Smith (American Psychological Association)
- AUDIO: Politics and Emotional Regulation: How to Protect Wellbeing and Sustain Engagement with Brett Q Ford (This Election podcast)
Leah Harris is a non-binary, queer, neurodivergent, disabled Jewish writer, facilitator, and organizer working in the service of truth-telling, justice-doing, and liberation. They’ve had work published in the New York Times, CNN, and Pacific Standard. You can learn more about their work at their website and follow them on Instagram.