I’ve been pretty stressed out lately.
I can’t stop thinking about the election, and social media doesn’t help. Not only is it everywhere, but I don’t want to mute it; I want to keep my eyes open. Do my part. Speak up. I don’t want to wish I’d done more.
Watch this.
This is what I’m thinking about, most of the day, every day.
But it’s not healthy.
I’m distracted at dinner. Moody. Distant. I need to snap out of it, or I’m not going to make it 45 more days until the election.
That’s where mindfulness comes in.
It’s more important than ever for me to be aware of the present moment. Not to be constantly distracted by thoughts about Election 2016, waffling between outrage and fear, constantly planning what I will do next to help keep hatred out of the White House.
Mindfulness helps.
Tonight, while we were making dinner, I realized I was living in my head and missing some beautiful moments. I focused on the present. I watched Greg and Andrew cut and carefully organize a bouquet of flowers together. Carefully supervised Will using a sharp knife to slice olives for pizza, a parenting task that requires constant focus. I paid attention to the feel of the pizza dough in my hands, watched the focus on Will’s face as he rolled it out.
When I noticed I was thinking about something other than the present moment, I made note of the distraction without getting discouraged, and looked around the room and anchored myself back to the present moment.
Was I entirely successful?
No.
But I had some solid moments of peace, the feel of which made me realize how tense and not myself I’ve been by allowing this preoccupation with the election to take hold of my thoughts.
I want to think about the election when I’m helping with the campaign. Then I want to stop thinking about it. I’m going to work harder on mindfulness, seriously restrict my social media time, and set aside time for checking election news and volunteering for Hillary’s campaign.
Worrying about it all day doesn’t mean I do more to help, it just means it affects me more.
Maybe it’s not Election 2016 for you… but if you find yourself living in your head, worrying about something, mindfulness and meditation may help.
This is good advice Kelly.
There is a lot to worry about in this election and when I am feeling particularly anxious about it, I go to fivethirtyeight.com and look at the electoral college map. What the polls say and what the media are saying about the closeness of this race is what we have to put aside and look at the numbers. She needs 270 EC votes and the maps seem to indicate that she has more than enough.
Looking at this site has relieved a lot of stress for me, that and turning off the television after I’ve gotten the traffic and weather report. 😉
Thanks, Debi! It is nice to see those poll results in her favor. Now we need to cross our fingers that the voters turn out!