The current political climate in the United States is more polarized than ever, with many people experiencing heightened levels of stress, anxiety, and even despair over the state of the country. Social unrest, economic uncertainties, global crises, and social media and the 24-hour news cycle keep people in a near-constant state of worry and frustration.
Understanding the Psychological Impact of Political Stress
The political climate in the U.S. is fraught with division, misinformation, and unpredictability, all of which can take a toll on mental health. Many individuals report experiencing heightened anxiety, anger, depression, and even feelings of helplessness due to political events. A survey by the American Psychological Association (APA) found that a significant portion of Americans feel that politics is a major source of stress in their lives. This phenomenon has been coined “election stress disorder” and extends beyond election cycles to encompass ongoing political and social conflicts.
Some of the common psychological effects of political stress include:
- Increased Anxiety: Constant exposure to distressing news can lead to excessive worry, fear of the future, and even panic attacks.
- Depression and Hopelessness: Feelings of powerlessness over political events can contribute to sadness, fatigue, and withdrawal from social activities.
- Anger and Frustration: Many individuals find themselves in heated arguments with friends, family, or online communities, which can lead to increased stress and emotional exhaustion.
How Therapy Can Help:
1. Identifying and Challenging Cognitive Distortions
One of the key components of CBT is identifying and restructuring unhelpful thought patterns. When it comes to political stress, cognitive distortions can intensify feelings of despair or anger.
For example:
- Catastrophizing: “If this candidate wins, my life will be ruined.”
- Black-and-white thinking: “People who disagree with me are completely wrong and dangerous.”
- Personalization: “The state of the country is my responsibility, and I’m failing if I don’t do more.”
It can be helpful to instead of catastrophizing, an reframe the thoughts as: “This outcome is disappointing, but I have the power to influence change in other ways.”
2. Practicing Emotional Regulation
CBT teaches techniques such as mindfulness, deep breathing, and grounding exercises to help individuals manage emotional responses. Given the intensity of political discourse, learning to step back and regulate emotions can prevent impulsive reactions and reduce stress.
For example:
- The 5-4-3-2-1 Technique: A grounding exercise that helps bring attention to the present moment by identifying five things you see, four things you touch, three things you hear, two things you smell, and one thing you taste.
- Cognitive Defusion: A technique from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) that encourages detaching from distressing thoughts. Instead of saying “I am anxious about politics,” one can say “I am noticing that I am having an anxious thought about politics.”
- Radical Acceptance: Accepting reality as it is rather than resisting it can help reduce frustration. For example, instead of dwelling on an election result, focusing on what actions are within one’s control (ex. fundraising, campaigning, protesting).
3. Setting Healthy Boundaries with News and Social Media
Many people fall into the trap of doomscrolling—endlessly consuming negative news—which worsens anxiety. It is important to set boundaries with news consumption and social media engagement. 
Some practical strategies include:
- Setting Time Limits: Allocating specific times of the day to check the news rather than consuming it constantly.
- Updating Social Media Feeds: Unfollowing sources that create unnecessary stress or promote misinformation.
- Practicing Digital Detox: Taking regular breaks from screens and engaging in offline activities that bring joy and relaxation.
4. Developing Constructive Coping Strategies
Instead of ruminating on distressing political events, take constructive action. Engaging in meaningful activities can restore a sense of control and purpose. Often these strategies connect us to the values we have for ourselves (e.g., helping others, justice, freedom).
- Re-visit hobbies and interests: that we might have had. Reengaging with interests can provide us a sense of control, purpose, and empowerment.
- Connect with Communities: Get involved with a community of like-minded people. The news and social media can leave us feeling alone and isolated. Finding like-minded and supportive communities can help us feel connected in this very disconnected and divided world.
Some aspiration or value focused strategies include:
- Advocacy and Volunteering: Getting involved in local political groups, community service, or activism can transform anxiety into action.
- Focusing on Local Change: Shifting focus from national politics to local initiatives can make political engagement feel more tangible and rewarding.
- Donating money: Sometimes we aren’t able to take specific action on our own. In this case donating money to causes or organizations which advocate or fight our values can feel meaningful.
5. Validating and Practicing Self Compassion
It is important to recognize that your feelings are valid and that many others likely feel similar to you. You are not alone. Social media and the news provide a specific and narrow view that are not representative of an entire population. There is also a lot of misinformation being shared. However, when a group we are part of is being targeted, attacked, or having freedoms and rights taken away it is expected and common to experience high levels of anxiety and distress. In these cases, It can be helpful to accept our feelings and practice self compassion. Instead of saying to yourself “I shouldn’t feel this, things need to be different” say “this is hard, I’m going to be kind to myself and do what I can to make changes.” Beating ourselves up for how we feel won’t help us make positive changes in our world.
Conclusion: Finding Balance in a Chaotic World
The political landscape in the U.S. is unlikely to become less stressful anytime soon. As individuals we have limited time, resources, and ability to make change. Finding balance is all about realizing what we have within out control, using our emotions as motivation, and practicing self compassion.
Abrams, Z. (n.d.). The impact of election stress: Is political anxiety harming your health?. Monitor on Psychology. https://www.apa.org/monitor/2024/10/managing-political-stress
