Reducing Election Anxiety: A Stress Management Meditation for HSPs

By the end of this episode, you’ll discover how to reduce anxiety about the divisive nature of politics.

Welcome to Stress Management for Highly Sensitive People, a podcast helping HSPs avoid overwhelm, eliminate stress, and find true inner freedom. I’m your host, Todd Smith. A facilitator of The Work of Byron Katie, a way to question and reduce stressful thoughts. And yes, I’m a highly sensitive person myself.

In this episode, you’ll discover how to prevent yourself from getting carried away by others’ political posturing, the importance of how you view opposing parties and passionately political people, and how to find home base again within yourself, even in turbulent times. This is an edition of Guided Meditation Mondays, where I’ll be guiding you through The Work of Byron Katie as you listen.

Let’s start this meditation by looking for a situation that triggered you—a moment that was stressful for you. We’re focusing on politics today, so in some ways, it shouldn’t be too hard to find a situation that got you stressed. Take a minute here and find a specific moment, if you can.

The thought we’re going to be questioning is, They shouldn’t be so divisive. Think about someone—maybe a politician, a political party, a friend, or a group of friends—someone who said something divisive. This could be a moment where you were judging or feeling a strong reaction to something they said or did that felt divisive.

Take a minute and see what you can find. Look for a real situation.

For example, I’m thinking of a moment when I was watching TV and a political ad came on. They were just talking about how bad the other candidate was, and it felt disgusting. So, what’s your situation where you experienced divisiveness related to politics?

If you need more time, pause the recording and take a moment to find a situation. Then we’ll begin questioning this stressful thought. The thought is, They shouldn’t be so divisive. So look at your situation—is it true? They shouldn’t be so divisive in that situation. Just look for a yes or no answer.

Take a moment to find your answer. Look at your experience—what do you see? Is it true they shouldn’t be so divisive? And be honest with yourself.

In my situation, I’m getting a yes. They shouldn’t be so divisive. That’s how I feel, so I’ll go with that.

Now, for the next question: Can you absolutely know it’s true? Are you sure? Again, it’s just a yes or no answer, but stretch yourself a little to see if there’s anything you might be missing.

For me, I get a no for this one.

Now, let’s go to the third question of The Work, which is: How do you react? What happens when you believe this thought, when you think or feel that they shouldn’t be so divisive in your situation?

In my situation, as I mentioned, there’s a feeling of disgust. Ugh, I can’t believe they’re doing that. It turns my stomach. I want to turn away from the TV. I see a lifelong tendency to turn away from politics for this very reason.

So how do you react when you think they shouldn’t be so divisive in your situation? What happens to you?

For me, I feel powerless—there’s not much I can do about it. My only defense is to avoid it. It feels kind of weak. I also feel righteous because I know they shouldn’t be so divisive. Life would be better if they weren’t, so I look down on them at the same time.

How about you in your situation? How do you see the other person or party when you think they shouldn’t be so divisive, and what emotions come out? Is it anger, disgust, fear?

For me, I see fear—this spiraling out of control, getting worse. How far will it go? I almost see anarchy instead of government, like a dog-eat-dog world. There’s a part of me that longs for a more sane or civilized approach, but here I am, feeling exposed to a system that seems to be going down the tubes.

So I feel hopeless in some way, but I’m really in that thought: They shouldn’t be so divisive. It’s a powerless feeling. I see images from the past—people talking politics with me, ad campaigns, politicians’ lies and promises, the way they talk dirt about each other. The whole thing becomes taboo for me. I just want it to go away.

Part of me feels anxious, unsettled, and unable to be myself when they continue to be divisive. So, how about you? What happens to you when you think they shouldn’t be so divisive in your situation?

What we’re seeing here is a reaction to a thought: They shouldn’t be so divisive, and my reactions play out. That’s what makes it a reaction.

So, who would you be in the same situation, with the same people, without the thought that they shouldn’t be so divisive? Who would you be?

Really look at them. What do you see?

For me, without the thought, I look at this TV ad, and I see it as a strategic plan. It’s been tested over years, decades, and they’re doing what they think works best. It probably does work best based on everything they’ve tested. I’m aware there might be other ways, but I see them doing what they think is best, and it softens it for me.

Without the thought, I see human beings doing what human beings do—trying to get something they want and using the means they think will work best. The intensity comes down a few notches. I even take a deeper breath, like a little weight came off my chest.

So, how about you? Who would you be without the thought? What do you see when you look at them and yourself without that thought?

For me, I see my freedom. I realize this just isn’t my arena. I almost feel grateful for how few political ads I actually see. It puts things in perspective. I see my freedom to choose where I focus, and politics just isn’t it for me.

It’s almost like I’m letting them be divisive. “Okay, go to it, have fun—this is your game.” And I feel a little smile as I think this. It feels gentle.

These two questions—How do you react when you believe the thought? and Who would you be without it?—show the thought’s effect on you. For me, it’s stress with the thought and ease without it.

So, let’s turn the thought around. They shouldn’t be so divisive becomes I shouldn’t be so divisive. How could I be doing the same thing I think they’re doing in that situation?

What I find is I’m divisive because I’m judging political people, especially candidates and their campaign people. I’m separating myself from them, seeing myself as “good” and them as “bad.” That’s divisive, even if I don’t like admitting it.

It’s not to make me feel guilty or ashamed; it’s just a realization. I’m doing the same thing but in a different arena. And seeing this similarity softens my heart.

So, how about you? Where might you also be divisive?

For me, just the way I turn away from politics is divisive. Like, “Don’t speak to me about that.” I judge politically active people as superficial. This is not so different from what political parties do to each other.

Now, another turnaround might be They should be so divisive. It sounds crazy, but let’s explore it. How could their divisiveness be understandable?

For example, debate can be a form of getting at the truth, even if it’s adversarial. So, divisiveness may have its role. I may not like it, but others thrive on debate. Some families enjoy in-your-face debates; it’s natural for them.

Maybe divisiveness is just part of their personality or culture. This doesn’t make it “bad.” There aren’t “good” personalities and “bad” personalities. There may be stress or imbalance, but divisive people are simply more overt about their issues.

So, how about you? How could it be okay or understandable that they are divisive in your situation?

Divisiveness, in politics especially, may simply be necessary. Somebody wins, somebody loses. The alternative would be monarchy or some other system. So maybe this divisiveness, with its problems, holds everyone accountable.

For you, this is an invitation to explore how the opposite of your belief could also have merit. You’re still welcome to hold your preference, but now with greater understanding.

In this episode, we looked at how to prevent yourself from getting carried away by others’ political posturing. Questioning our thoughts helps bring us back to our own world, allowing their world to stay theirs.

We also explored how you view opposing parties and political people. If you see them as “evil,” you may experience that divisiveness within yourself. Seeing them as human beings can bring connection, even amid divisiveness.

Lastly, we explored finding home base within yourself, even in turbulent times. There’s freedom to focus on what truly interests you. Politics is just one arena, among so many others, and seeing this allows more ease.

Thank you for participating in this meditation and for contributing to peace in the world.