RALEIGH, N.C. — Regardless of who you voted for in the 2020 presidential election, many people are experiencing stress and anxiety.
Some studies show nearly 70% of Americans said the Presidential election caused them significant stress.
So what are the ways we can deal with the stress and anxiety in healthy ways?
Wake Tech Community College instructor and author J. Dana Trent talks and writes about this topic often.
She encourages all of us to practice what she calls the "ABCs."
- A — Acknowledging our feelings
- B — Being patient with ourselves
- C — Choosing calm
Trent says one of the best ways to acknowledge your feelings is to write them down in a journal. She also suggests meditation. Trent practices meditation just three minutes at a time.
"When we can do work on ourselves and realize what we are thinking and feeling and be gentle with ourselves, we can then extend empathy to others,” Trent says.
She says now is a great time to learn and practice having conversations with people we don't always agree with. But we must start with a calm mindset.
"We can seek opportunities among our community members, our neighbors to rebuild those relationships one breath at a time," Trent says.
Trent is a good example of dealing with different belief systems, as she herself is in an interfaith marriage.
"I am a Baptist who is married to a devout Hindu," Trent says. "For years we have navigated many, many differences and challenges in our household.”
Trent has written four books on coping with grief and loss, as well as exploring meditation. She is currently in the process of writing her fifth book.