15 Stress Relievers To Try on Election Day

Key TakeawaysThe 2020 election cycle has been emotionally fraught. It’s normal to feel anxious.Set aside time to examine your feelings and de-stress.Certain activities can help you simultaneously relax and focus on something other than politics.

Key Takeaways

The 2020 election cycle has been emotionally fraught. It’s normal to feel anxious.Set aside time to examine your feelings and de-stress.Certain activities can help you simultaneously relax and focus on something other than politics.

It’s finally here. After months of speculation, polls, and sponsored advertisements, it’s the last chance for Americans to cast their vote in the 2020 presidential election. With a promise from the White House to challenge votes they deem to be suspect, the result of the contest likely won’t be known for a few days—or weeks. For those living with anxiety, it’s normal to be worried about the outcome. Here are some ways to fight the stress on election night.

The biggest tip? Uninstall social media from your devices, even if just for one day. According to Janice Presser, PhD, who specializes in human infrastructure management and relationships, it will make you feel powerful.

Acknowledge Scary Thoughts As They Occur

It’s understandable that you’re anxious. “The first step is to notice catastrophic thinking,” Debra Kissen, PhD, MHSA, CEO of the Light On Anxiety CBT Treatment Center, tells Verywell. “This type of thinking is normal. It’s the brain trying to turn its attention to surviving—it’s thinking of different scenarios so it knows how to react.”

Take a moment to acknowledge your worry and to remember a time when your worst-case scenario did not come to fruition. “When we avoid exploring our fear, it’s like watching a scary movie with our hands over our eyes,” Kissen says. “It’s much scarier when we block it out. But if we watch the movie head-on and look at our fears, over time, it becomes less and less scary.”

Practice a Yoga Breathing Technique

Pranayama, also known as yogic breathing, is the practice of controlling your breath. Slow and thoughtful breathing has been shown to relieve stress and anxiety.The aim is to slow your mind and control your breath. The thoughtful breathing technique also supplies oxygen your brain.

Try this: Take a deep breath through your nose, allowing the air to fill your lungs. Hold your breath for a second, then expel a small amount of air from your mouth. Next, exhale slowly through your nose.

Surround Yourself With Lavender

When you need a quick burst of calm, try using lavender to lessen anxiety. Studies have shown the scent of lavender can help mild anxiety. Light a candle scented with the herb, or slather a lavender-laced lotion on your forearms.

Cook Something

A preliminary study from 2018 found there may be therapeutic benefits to cooking. What you make doesn’t matter—it could be chocolate chip cookies or filet mignon. The clear methodology of cooking may help self esteem and quality of life.

Sip Hot Chocolate

This sweet drink is rich in flavanols, chemicals that can help reduce blood pressure.If you can, make the drink from scratch to reap the benefits of cooking.

Listen to Lo-Fi Music

YouTube hasseveral channelsdevoted to calming low fidelity music. Studies about the music are preliminary, but research shows the digital beats stir up a sense of nostalgic calm.

Think About Tomorrow

When the news is overwhelming, it can be helpful to think about the immediate future. If you find yourself in despair, think about what you’ll wear tomorrow. Or what you’ll have for breakfast. Taking yourself out of the immediate moment can remind you how anxiety can be fleeting.

Color

Give yourself permission to doodle or draw. Print a sheet or two from a website likeSuper Coloringand let your mind wander as you complete the picture. Creative activities can help ease anxiety, and a picture is something you can complete in a short time.

Clean and Organize

Legs Against the Wall

Iyengar yoga pose Viparita Karani, otherwise known as “legs against the wall,” is a popular yogic stress-relieving pose. When you place your legs against a wall with your hips resting on the floor, circulation to your head improves, which can feel refreshing. Try a five-minute Viparita Karani pose to ease your election anxiety.

Ground Yourself

Take a moment to do a grounding exercise. “Feel the weight of your feet on the floor, experience the way you’re sitting in your chair,” Kissen says. “This will bring you the present moment instead of imagining a future catastrophe.”

Take a Dance Break

Turn up the music and start dancing. A recent study suggests dance movement decreases depression and anxiety and increases quality of life, as well as interpersonal and cognitive skills.

Do a Jigsaw Puzzle

The act of placing puzzles pieces together can lower stress—both short-term and long-term. Working through today’s stress with puzzles can also help with cognitive training, which can prevent age-related cognitive decline.

Pet Your Dog (or Cat)

No Pet? Look at Pet Videos Instead

What This Means For YouStress is normal, especially when it comes to the 2020 presidential election. Allow yourself the freedom to worry, but take part in activities meant to alleviate stress. Reach out to your friends and family. They want to help.

What This Means For You

Stress is normal, especially when it comes to the 2020 presidential election. Allow yourself the freedom to worry, but take part in activities meant to alleviate stress. Reach out to your friends and family. They want to help.

The information in this article is current as of the date listed, which means newer information may be available when you read this. For the most recent updates on COVID-19, visit ourcoronavirus news page.

10 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Sengupta P.Health impacts of yoga and pranayama: a state-of-the-art review.Int J Prev Med. 2012;3(7):444-458.Zaccaro A, Piarulli A, Laurino M, et al.How breath-control can change your life: a systematic review on psycho-physiological correlates of slow breathing.Front Hum Neurosci. 2018;12:353. doi:10.3389%2Ffnhum.2018.00353Koulivand PH, Khaleghi Ghadiri M, Gorji A.Lavender and the nervous system.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2013;2013:1-10. doi:10.1155%2F2013%2F681304Farmer N, Touchton-Leonard K, Ross A.Psychosocial benefits of cooking interventions: a systematic review.Health Educ Behav. 2018;45(2):167-180. doi:10.1177%2F1090198117736352Hollenberg NK, Fisher NDL, McCullough ML.Flavanols, the Kuna, cocoa consumption, and nitric oxide.J Am Soc Hypertens. 2009;3(2):105-112. doi:10.1016/j.jash.2008.11.001Winston E, Saywood L.Beats to relax/study to: contradiction and paradox in lo-fi hip hop.IJ. 2019;9(2):40-54. doi:10.5429/2079-3871(2019)v9i2.4enKoch SC, Riege RFF, Tisborn K, Biondo J, Martin L, Beelmann A.Effects of dance movement therapy and dance on health-related psychological outcomes. A meta-analysis update.Front Psychol. 2019;10:1806. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01806Fissler P, Küster OC, Laptinskaya D, Loy LS, von Arnim CAF, Kolassa I-T.Jigsaw puzzling taps multiple cognitive abilities and is a potential protective factor for cognitive aging.Front Aging Neurosci. 2018;10:299. doi:10.3389%2Ffnagi.2018.00299Cole KM, Gawlinski A, Steers N, Kotlerman J.Animal-assisted therapy in patients hospitalized with heart failure.Am J Crit Care. 2007;16(6):575-585; quiz 586; discussion 587-588.Nittono H, Fukushima M, Yano A, Moriya H.The power of kawaii: viewing cute images promotes a careful behavior and narrows attentional focus. Paterson K, ed.PLoS ONE. 2012;7(9):e46362. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0046362

10 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Sengupta P.Health impacts of yoga and pranayama: a state-of-the-art review.Int J Prev Med. 2012;3(7):444-458.Zaccaro A, Piarulli A, Laurino M, et al.How breath-control can change your life: a systematic review on psycho-physiological correlates of slow breathing.Front Hum Neurosci. 2018;12:353. doi:10.3389%2Ffnhum.2018.00353Koulivand PH, Khaleghi Ghadiri M, Gorji A.Lavender and the nervous system.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2013;2013:1-10. doi:10.1155%2F2013%2F681304Farmer N, Touchton-Leonard K, Ross A.Psychosocial benefits of cooking interventions: a systematic review.Health Educ Behav. 2018;45(2):167-180. doi:10.1177%2F1090198117736352Hollenberg NK, Fisher NDL, McCullough ML.Flavanols, the Kuna, cocoa consumption, and nitric oxide.J Am Soc Hypertens. 2009;3(2):105-112. doi:10.1016/j.jash.2008.11.001Winston E, Saywood L.Beats to relax/study to: contradiction and paradox in lo-fi hip hop.IJ. 2019;9(2):40-54. doi:10.5429/2079-3871(2019)v9i2.4enKoch SC, Riege RFF, Tisborn K, Biondo J, Martin L, Beelmann A.Effects of dance movement therapy and dance on health-related psychological outcomes. A meta-analysis update.Front Psychol. 2019;10:1806. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01806Fissler P, Küster OC, Laptinskaya D, Loy LS, von Arnim CAF, Kolassa I-T.Jigsaw puzzling taps multiple cognitive abilities and is a potential protective factor for cognitive aging.Front Aging Neurosci. 2018;10:299. doi:10.3389%2Ffnagi.2018.00299Cole KM, Gawlinski A, Steers N, Kotlerman J.Animal-assisted therapy in patients hospitalized with heart failure.Am J Crit Care. 2007;16(6):575-585; quiz 586; discussion 587-588.Nittono H, Fukushima M, Yano A, Moriya H.The power of kawaii: viewing cute images promotes a careful behavior and narrows attentional focus. Paterson K, ed.PLoS ONE. 2012;7(9):e46362. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0046362

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Sengupta P.Health impacts of yoga and pranayama: a state-of-the-art review.Int J Prev Med. 2012;3(7):444-458.Zaccaro A, Piarulli A, Laurino M, et al.How breath-control can change your life: a systematic review on psycho-physiological correlates of slow breathing.Front Hum Neurosci. 2018;12:353. doi:10.3389%2Ffnhum.2018.00353Koulivand PH, Khaleghi Ghadiri M, Gorji A.Lavender and the nervous system.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2013;2013:1-10. doi:10.1155%2F2013%2F681304Farmer N, Touchton-Leonard K, Ross A.Psychosocial benefits of cooking interventions: a systematic review.Health Educ Behav. 2018;45(2):167-180. doi:10.1177%2F1090198117736352Hollenberg NK, Fisher NDL, McCullough ML.Flavanols, the Kuna, cocoa consumption, and nitric oxide.J Am Soc Hypertens. 2009;3(2):105-112. doi:10.1016/j.jash.2008.11.001Winston E, Saywood L.Beats to relax/study to: contradiction and paradox in lo-fi hip hop.IJ. 2019;9(2):40-54. doi:10.5429/2079-3871(2019)v9i2.4enKoch SC, Riege RFF, Tisborn K, Biondo J, Martin L, Beelmann A.Effects of dance movement therapy and dance on health-related psychological outcomes. A meta-analysis update.Front Psychol. 2019;10:1806. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01806Fissler P, Küster OC, Laptinskaya D, Loy LS, von Arnim CAF, Kolassa I-T.Jigsaw puzzling taps multiple cognitive abilities and is a potential protective factor for cognitive aging.Front Aging Neurosci. 2018;10:299. doi:10.3389%2Ffnagi.2018.00299Cole KM, Gawlinski A, Steers N, Kotlerman J.Animal-assisted therapy in patients hospitalized with heart failure.Am J Crit Care. 2007;16(6):575-585; quiz 586; discussion 587-588.Nittono H, Fukushima M, Yano A, Moriya H.The power of kawaii: viewing cute images promotes a careful behavior and narrows attentional focus. Paterson K, ed.PLoS ONE. 2012;7(9):e46362. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0046362

Sengupta P.Health impacts of yoga and pranayama: a state-of-the-art review.Int J Prev Med. 2012;3(7):444-458.

Zaccaro A, Piarulli A, Laurino M, et al.How breath-control can change your life: a systematic review on psycho-physiological correlates of slow breathing.Front Hum Neurosci. 2018;12:353. doi:10.3389%2Ffnhum.2018.00353

Koulivand PH, Khaleghi Ghadiri M, Gorji A.Lavender and the nervous system.Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2013;2013:1-10. doi:10.1155%2F2013%2F681304

Farmer N, Touchton-Leonard K, Ross A.Psychosocial benefits of cooking interventions: a systematic review.Health Educ Behav. 2018;45(2):167-180. doi:10.1177%2F1090198117736352

Hollenberg NK, Fisher NDL, McCullough ML.Flavanols, the Kuna, cocoa consumption, and nitric oxide.J Am Soc Hypertens. 2009;3(2):105-112. doi:10.1016/j.jash.2008.11.001

Winston E, Saywood L.Beats to relax/study to: contradiction and paradox in lo-fi hip hop.IJ. 2019;9(2):40-54. doi:10.5429/2079-3871(2019)v9i2.4en

Koch SC, Riege RFF, Tisborn K, Biondo J, Martin L, Beelmann A.Effects of dance movement therapy and dance on health-related psychological outcomes. A meta-analysis update.Front Psychol. 2019;10:1806. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01806

Fissler P, Küster OC, Laptinskaya D, Loy LS, von Arnim CAF, Kolassa I-T.Jigsaw puzzling taps multiple cognitive abilities and is a potential protective factor for cognitive aging.Front Aging Neurosci. 2018;10:299. doi:10.3389%2Ffnagi.2018.00299

Cole KM, Gawlinski A, Steers N, Kotlerman J.Animal-assisted therapy in patients hospitalized with heart failure.Am J Crit Care. 2007;16(6):575-585; quiz 586; discussion 587-588.

Nittono H, Fukushima M, Yano A, Moriya H.The power of kawaii: viewing cute images promotes a careful behavior and narrows attentional focus. Paterson K, ed.PLoS ONE. 2012;7(9):e46362. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0046362

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