With only few days left before the elections day on May 9, mental health advocates and a private medical center offered tips on how to deal with election stress and anxiety.
The Medical City Clinic shared these tips via an infographic on Facebook on May 4.
“The levels of anxiety can get pretty high when dealing with the uncertain, especially if what we are dealing with involves our future for the next 6 years,” the post reads.
“Here are a few ways on how you can deal with election-related stress,” it added.
In the infographic, the private clinic listed the following tips:
- Limit your media consumption. Turn off your newsfeed or take a digital break from your gadgets. Take some time for yourself.
- Avoid discussions that might produce unhealthy conflict. Be aware of how much you’re discussing the election with friends, family members or coworkers.
- Vote!
- Take a proactive step. Seek out balanced information on the candidates and issues and make an informed decision.
- No matter the result, life will go on. Avoid catastrophizing and maintain a balanced perspective.
The clinic cited the Cleveland Clinic’s website as the source for this information.
Another private organization called the Philippine Mental Health Association Inc. also shared anxiety awareness and tips on how to cope with it via their Facebook page.
Several users have recently been sharing tweets and posts about experiencing stress and anxiety amid the looming national elections.
“Election anxiety hitting hard right now. Vote wisely people,” one Twitter user said.
“Literally having election anxiety ‘cause I can’t deal with an incompetent government for another six years anymore,” another user tweeted.
Some expressed their lack of focus at work and fears of having an anxiety attack through humor in the form of meme-like graphics.
Due to these posts of personal anecdotes on election anxiety, some mental health advocates initiated to share tips on how to cope with it.
They also shared similar tips that the Medical City Clinic offered on its Facebook page.
Election anxiety and stress coping thread 🧵
It is a stressful election season here with many people staving off feelings of dread and despair. But this gets a bit harder the closer we are to the elections.
Here are some tips to cope with it.
— AJ Sunglao (@junsunglao) May 4, 2022
On May 9, voters in the Philippines will elect the next government officials who will run the country for the national and local positions for the next six (president and vice president) or three (senators, congressmen, and local politicians) years.
This collective election anxiety was also felt during the midterm elections in May 2019.
At that time, some social media users shared stress amid the questions and concerns on the partial unofficial tally of the polls.
READ: Post-election stress? Here’s how you can keep calm and carry on after elections
