Coping with election results when your candidate doesn’t win can be challenging, but there are strategies that can help:
- Allow Yourself to Feel: Acknowledge your emotions—disappointment, anger, or sadness are all valid. It’s okay to take time to process these feelings.
- Focus on the Bigger Picture: Remind yourself of the larger issues at stake, the progress that can still be made and opportunities for future change.
- Stay Engaged: Channel your feelings into constructive action. Volunteer, get involved in advocacy, or community service to contribute positively to causes you care about.
- Connect with Others: Talk to friends or family who share your views. This can help you feel supported and understood.
- Limit Media Exposure: If following the news is too distressing, take breaks from social media and news outlets to protect your mental health.
- Practice Self-Care: Engage in activities that bring you joy and relaxation, whether that’s exercising, reading, or spending time in nature or whatever works for you!
- Practice Radical Acceptance: Radical acceptance is not approval of the situation. Instead, it is acknowledging that the situation occurred but cannot be changed. Be willing to engage in life fully, understanding the good and the bad.
- Consider Professional Support: If you’re struggling to cope, speaking with a mental health professional can provide valuable strategies and support.
If you are in a crisis:
Call JFS to set up an appointment with a therapist, Mon – Thurs, and Fridays by appointment.
518-482-8856 ext. 0.
Call 518-549-6500 for Adult Mobile Crisis (Albany County)
Call 518-292-5499 for Child/Adolescent Mobile Crisis (Albany County)
Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
Chat at 988lifeline.org/chat
Text or call 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
Call 518-292-5499 for All ages Mobile Crisis (Local counties outside Albany)
