Constable: Stress declared winner in 2020, but we don't have to let it rule
If you are freaking out over the election results, stop it.
Why engage in a new freak-out about whether Donald Trump or Joe Biden will be named as president of the United States for the next four years when you could simply continue your old freak-out about how the coronavirus might kill 250,000 Americans by Thanksgiving and continues to separate us from loved ones, ruin our economy and threaten our very way of life?
Then there's always that everlasting question about what is wrong with the Chicago Bears' offense.
Clearly, we have a lot to stress about.
“Our phones have been ringing off the wall,” says psychologist Denise Casey, founder and director of Barrington Behavioral Health & Wellness. “I have spent many hours with clients discussing their fears and concerns.”
Nearly eight in 10 adults cite the coronavirus pandemic as “a significant source of stress,” according to the “Stress in America 2020” report by the American Psychological Association. Another 77% of adults say the “future of our nation” is the source of their stress. And that was before our current election drama, where half our nation is consumed with the frightening idea that the other half is a crazy and evil assortment out to destroy the country we love.
Nearly half of adults say stress has taken a physical and emotional toll. About one in every five people report tension in their bodies, angrily “snapping” at people, experiencing unexpected mood swings or screaming at a loved one. Not included in the study are the small percentage who carry an AR-15 to a peaceful protest or loot a liquor store.
More than seven in 10 Americans (71%) say this is the lowest point in our nation's history that they can remember, which makes me wonder if the other 29 percent are old enough to remember the Civil War. But it's our younger Americans who are most in danger of long-term consequences of persistent stress and trauma, according to the stress study.
Members of Generation Z, which includes everyone from age 13 to 23, are facing “unprecedented uncertainty” and “elevated stress” and already report symptoms of depression, the study says. It's stressful to worry about whether you'll ever be able to go to middle school, high school or college, get a job, travel, have a normal date, or avoid getting punched in the mask or mouth by someone with a different political view.
People initially looked at the pandemic as “a month at home,” Casey says. “That sprint turned into a marathon.”
Piling on the stress of this election has people saying, “I can't believe my neighbors,” the psychologist adds.
In a world where we can't control whether the neighbors will wear masks or how the state of Pennsylvania votes, we can control our response. “Are we trying to escape, or are we doing things that will be life-giving?” Casey asks.
“What are your COVID bonuses?” she says, noting patients found comfort in everything from comfy slippers and cooking to therapy dogs and nature walks.
Our autonomic nervous system gives us sympathetic responses known as “fight or flight” and parasympathetic responses known as “rest and digest.” One is exciting, and the other is calming.
“We keep our foot on the pedal of stress by the perception of threat,” she says.
Taking a nature walk, playing with a dog, cooking a tasty meal, or simply being kind and helping other people is healthier than eating a pint of ice-cream while glued to the toxicity of all those posts on social media.
“Ultimately, people want to feel safe,” Casey says. That doesn't mean avoiding anything stressful.
“You function at your best when you have an optional level of stress,” Casey says. “Stress can be good.”
Take comfort in the fact that people are not just giving up and curling into the fetal position.
“Regardless of what side you were on, people came out in record-breaking droves to vote,” she says. Things could improve.
“One more thing that is vital to coping — hope,” Casey says. “We always need to hold on to hope.”