How to NOT Spiral in the Current Political Climate

In this current political administration, we cannot help but feel a sense of helplessness with the Executive Orders commanded by the current President. Day by day, the media and news outlets churn out what seems to be a never ending nightmare, inducing oligarchic dystopia with no way out. This causes those of us who dissent from the views of the current administration to overthink the future of many of the lives who are at risk thanks to the hatred and xenophobia of the right. Through this, I had to learn that, although the road looks dark ahead, there is always light at the end of the tunnel. I am not saying that toxic positivity or being altruistic to the suffering of others is the solution; instead, ground yourself in the reality that this will only last four years. Forget doom scrolling and take action instead of spiraling into oblivion. With this in mind, here are three ways you can calm yourself, take action within this political climate, and how to process the overcoming dread that could be these next four years:

1. Grounding

This self-soothing tool used by mental health professionals helps patients to ‘ground’ themselves into the present. Believe it or not, we are not sitting in the Oval Office, but you could be, for example, at the university listening to a lecture, or in your room just taking a break from reading an assignment. Being in the present moment is important, although we want to always be politically aware, but it is our tendency to overthink the outcomes, which leads us to forget the present and instead, take our focus completely. One way I ground myself into reality is by thinking about what my tasks are, like what essay do I have to write, what do I need to feed myself, what do I have to correct, or what do I need to clean. Making a to-do list helps me ground myself into the reality I need to focus on, which is my studies and my job, not what the President has to say about x or y topic. Another way to ground yourself is the 5-4-3-2-1 method, where you essentially name five things you can see, four things you can feel, three things you can hear, two things you can smell, and one thing you can taste. Although lengthy, this way to ground yourself helps you locate yourself where you actually are, making your brain shut off intrusive thoughts. If you want to be active and make a change to try and change the status of the country right now, volunteering is an amazing way to ground yourself while also helping your community. Support your local shelter, help out in the university community, volunteer at a non-profit organization, the opportunity to help is always available and making a difference in your local community is more important than whatever the President is trying to do.

2. Limit

If you are like me and always want to stay up to date with everything happening in the news, sometimes you may need to limit the content you consume. Within the first hours of the President’s win, my stress levels went up and my heart palpitations were uncontrollable due to my doom scrolling through TikTok and Twitter (I refuse to call it X). My emotions were uncontrollable because of the overwhelming content that was appearing on my “For You” page, to the point that I could not deal with my feelings for a week. Although we know now that this is the intention of the current administration for the people to feel too helpless and distraught to do anything, one piece of advice that stuck to me during this time was to limit the amount of news I was consuming. This doesn’t mean that you will be oblivious to the news nor be apolitical, but limit the content you consume if you know it’s going to deteriorate your state of mind. As the news cycle continues with news and news, just know that they are not doing it to be pushers of misery and misinformation, but doing their job to inform the public. If you find yourself bombarded with horrible news, step back and start looking at content you know you can trust. Secondly,  don’t jump to conclusions, as this current administration has had a track record of not 100% fulfilling their promises. One article that helped me was written by Ezra Klein, an opinion columnist from the New York Times, who wrote a detailed article titled “Don’t Trust Him,” in which he essentially details the nefarious ways in which this current administration are just yes men to his surface plans. 

3. Have Fun

This might seem an oblivious and controversial take, but here is the thing, for us to maintain our sanity, escapism is necessary. It doesn’t mean that you will be Sally Bowles a lá Cabaret and just shrug everything off to party; but if needed, read that book that you have in your TBR, go out with your friends, go to that dreaded bachelorette party, or drink that little fruity drink you wanted. Having fun is not a sin, you are not a bad person for wanting to take your mind off of things that are hindering your well being, you are not being oblivious to the current state, you are a person who is trying to survive, and sometimes that mental escape is more than needed. Dan Savage, a sex columnist for the Portland Mercury, responded in his advice column “Savage Love” to a woman whose girlfriend’s stay-at-home son was exhibiting obnoxious behavior related to toxic masculinity and held homophobic views towards his mother and her partner. She was worried about her partner’s relationship with her homophobic son. In this column, titled “Trump and Dump,” Savage ends the article by addressing the wave of MAGA brainwashing and the current state that we live in, especially for targeted groups like minorities and the LGBTQ+ community, emphasizing the need for community with friends and loved ones to navigate these troubling times. He concludes with a reminder of the days of the Reagan administration and their lack of response during the AIDS epidemic, where he writes: 

“Anyone who tells you that making time for joy—however you define it—is a distraction or a betrayal has no idea what they’re talking about. During the darkest days of the AIDS Crisis, we buried our friends in the morning, we protested in the afternoon, and we danced at night. The dance kept us in the fight because it was the dance we were fighting for. It didn’t look like we were going to win then and we did. It doesn’t feel like we’re going to win now but we could. Keep fighting, keep dancing.”

The emphasis on dance shows that we, as a group, should not feel guilty about having fun, but rather stick to what we like and what provides an escape, because in reality, they don’t want us to have fun, they want us to be beaten and broken. Having fun is a form of resistance to this administration, keeping our spirits high and our goals driven is the resistance that should be talked about. Protesting and dissenting is one part of the job, but having fun and making light within the darkness that we live in is a more powerful resistance than you can imagine. 

With these tips, I hope that you as the reader can find comfort knowing that we are all in this together. Things seem dark at the moment, but the tiny rays of light can lead us into the collective resistance that this administration is trying to muffle. 

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• mental health
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