How to cope with post-election anxiety

In Spokane County, 50% of voters voted for Donald Trump, meaning about half of the county is celebrating the election outcome, while the other half may be experiencing feelings of sadness or anxiety.

The election season was contentious from heated debates, to attack ads and ballot box arson.

“The emotions get really high around elections, and people can feel really strongly either way,” said Caitlin Hill, a local marriage and family therapist.

4 News Now set up a whiteboard downtown asking people how they felt post-Election Day.

Some people wrote they are feeling happy, while others wrote that they were scared and sad.

“A bit disappointed, a bit disheartened,” wrote one responder.

Hill said it’s important to let yourself feel all of the emotions.

“Whatever it is you’re feeling, whether you’re stressed or fearful, or happy, or maybe both, it’s okay to feel multiple ways about one thing, and just trying to figure out how to just let yourself have those feelings and then eventually try to communicate them with someone who you trust,” she said.

For many Gonzaga students, this was their first time voting in a presidential election.

“Emotions of anxiety is predominately what students are presenting with,” said Jennifer Fountain, Dean of Student Wellbeing.

Fountain emphasized the importance of self-care during times of anxiety.

“We have resources on campus where students can seek support, but [it’s important] to really prioritize their mental health, to identify activities and people where they find joy and to know that those feelings matter, that they matter,” she said.

Elections can also cause divides within families, so Hill said it’s important to think about how we can best tend to those relationships.

“Just remembering that this doesn’t have to divide us. Who we vote in, or who was our president doesn’t have to separate communities or cause dividing lines, unless we let it. And so, just remembering that empathy is huge,” she said.