How to deal with election anxiety

(WJBK) - We all feel stress in our everyday lives, but lately there's a new trigger -- the election.

On both sides of the political spectrum, people are feeling election stress. It's the feeling you get when mom and dad keep fighting and you want to just hide in your closet and cover your ears.

It's called election stress.

"I think the election is making the stress that people already have in their lives more stressful," says counselor Julie Booksh.

According to the American Psychological Association, about half of people surveyed - both Democrats and Republicans - say the election is causing them stress.

Booksh blames a lack of control and a lack of hope, and then there's the issue of the conflict we find when we disagree. So maybe we need to make room for other opinions.

"I think that people walking away from conversations really angry and really upset, I think that that is a reflection of our need to learn to have difficult conversations and to make space and room for people to not have the same opinion as us," she says.

So, what's the solution? You want to be engaged in the political process, but how can you find a healthy balance?

"Zoom in, look at local politics, get involved into some of that, because there's a whole lot that we need to do here as well and that may effect us more even than the federal or the presidential election," suggests Booksh. 

No matter what is setting off your stress level, remember to find a way to let go of what you can't change, and work on what you can change.

"The most important thing for us to remember is that you are the number one person who has control over your life," she says.

Other ways to reduce your election stress are to limit your time on social media, get outside and go for a walk and appreciating what's good without focusing on all the conflict.