Visit your YouTube account, and you’ll immediately see a political ad interrupting your feed. Turn on Spotify, and you’re interrupted by similar angry and accusatory election ads. The news coverage, social media and TV are filled with endless cycles of negative campaigning. If you’re like many other college students, you’re worried about how the election outcome will impact your life. Here are some tips for managing the stress from the Madison College counseling office.
Dial Down the News.
- It is important to be informed about the news. Sometimes, though, news organizations and social media exaggerate content to get us engaged, which can cause us more stress.
- Stick to news organizations that are more likely to be even-handed about the news and are less sensationalized.
- Get your news of the day from a brief review once or twice a day, and avoid being tapped into the news all day long.
- Consider ways to balance your news with opposing viewpoints and cultivate curiosity about how those views developed.
- Debrief the news with family and friends to keep it in perspective.
Ramp up your self-care.
- Chronic stressors like election news can wear us down, so it can help to intentionally boost your healthy habits this election season.
- Take small steps to strengthen the “big four” of sleep, nutrition, exercise and social connection.
- Choose a couple of small goals to intentionally improve to resilience this election season.
- Use Madison College Resources to cope with school and life.
Get involved in something.
- A big election is mostly out of your control, even though it may impact us in very real ways. This uncertainty can elevate your stress.
- Choosing to get involved in helping others or helping in the election can help us feel better in the face of this uncertainty.
- Madison College Student Life Office has a great volunteer center as well as election activities.
Resist extreme partisanship.
- It is normal and healthy to have strong views on social issues. It does not help, though, to have extreme contempt for certain opinions or parties.
- Building curiosity about opposing views can help us avoid counterproductive partisanship.
These tips can also be found at Ideas for Managing Election Stress.
Brought to you by Madison College Counseling Services. For counseling support, please call 608.246.6076 or visit Mental Health Counseling Services.