2 weeks Ago
Election day is just a short week away, and while many have already cast their ballots or soon will, there’s still an undeniable feeling of trepidation and anxiety over the final outcome. Most readers of this column don’t live in a swing state, where residents are being bombarded with nonstop political ads — yet the news cycle and campaign rhetoric are exhausting, no matter where you live. I will be glad when the election is over for this reason alone.
You see, I’m a proud, card-carrying news junkie. I love a breaking news story as much as anyone. My mornings consist of reading newspapers and online subscriptions while enjoying my coffee/creamer.
I read in this order: the local paper (our beloved News-Gazette), a regional paper (The Chicago Tribune), a national paper (the Wall Street Journal) and finally, many, many newsletter subscriptions. When my husband walks into the kitchen to get his coffee (no creamer) and sees me deep in reading mode, he knows he could yell “the house is on fire” and I’d just nod and say “that’s nice” and “good morning” as an afterthought. I really do get that sucked in.
But lately, it’s become too much. This election seems even more divisive than the last one. And this time around, there’s less to distract me.
I’m retired. There’s no job to tear me away from the news. My kids are grown and flown.
It’s so easy to get worked up about the never-ending political drama, to become anxious and overwhelmed ...
to feel helpless. Thankfully, there are ways to mitigate those feelings — to disconnect. For me, there’s no better mood lifter than heading out for a long walk while listening to an uplifting podcast (usually Mel Robbins).
Or, I’ll go on a baking binge and try out a new recipe from “Sally’s Baking Addiction.” And a friendly game of pickleball always distracts me from the woes of the world. At least temporarily.
But I always come back to the news. Because I want to be informed — and maybe, and likely, there’s a new development that sends the pundits and the journalists spinning away. An unearthed discovery about a candidate’s misstep.
A shift in the polls. A spicy interview. The possibilities are endless — and fascinating.
I wasn’t excited to vote this year. I would have liked better candidates to choose from — and since the outcome of the presidential election hinges on a couple of counties in a handful of swing states, it feels as if my vote was a foregone conclusion. But I did vote — with the expectation that whoever is elected will work with Congress, with the best interests of our country in mind.
And also, with the hope that the next four years will not be as divisive as the past eight. A girl can dream ..
. There is another compelling reason to vote — and that’s for local and state offices. While we may not feel we can have impact on the presidential election, our vote will count closer to home.
These are the candidates who will make decisions about how our community, our county and our state are run. These decisions will affect our daily lives in the towns we live in. It helps to stop fretting about things we can’t control, and instead roll up our sleeves and get involved in local organizations, attend meetings where we can give input (school board, county board, city council, to name a few) and to volunteer.
Journalist and podcaster Dan Harris writes about this on his Substack, “How to Survive the Election:” “One of the biggest issues I, and many of us, struggle with during this nail biter of an election is the feeling of powerlessness. A terrific antidote to this is to get active locally. You may not be able to impact the outcome, but there’s a lot you can do in your own sphere which can restore your sense of agency.
” “You can volunteer on a campaign. Or you can take action on a completely unrelated front. Volunteer in a food kitchen.
Or an animal shelter. If you’re busy, you don’t even need to volunteer. You can just try to be a little bit more helpful to friends and family.
Have you ever noticed what it feels like to simply hold the door open for somebody? Pay attention to that feeling. It’s infinitely scalable.” Follow Dan at: danbharris.
substack.com . Having gotten this off my chest, I’ll now read just one more article (promise) and then I’ve got a walking date with a very needy Italian Spinone.
Three miles and we’re both in a great mood! Give it a try — your mental health will thank you. And remember, we really are all in this together..
