The election is now over. Unless there are hanging chads, clanging legal chatter, or a cataclysmic event that affected the voting, the results of the presidential election are now settled and (Insert Name Here) is the President Elect.
(Insert Name Here) gave a memorable acceptance speech last night or early in the morning and called for a new beginning of healing, working together, and changing what is wrong with our country. (Insert Name Here) claimed a clear mandate from the results and will push forward on campaign promises. (Insert Name Here) said they will be the president for all the people for the good of the country.
(Insert the Other Name Here) also gave a speech thanking the supporters and vowing to fight on for all the things that were important during the campaign. (Insert the Other Name Here) also noted the things wrong in America and asked supporters to keep putting the pressure on Washington, DC to make important changes or the country will suffer greatly. (Insert the Other Name Here) vowed to be right there with supporters keeping up the fight but graciously acknowledged defeat and asked that (Insert Name Here) be given a fair chance to govern the country.
(Insert the Other Name Here)’s supporters growled about voter fraud and media bias during the post election news shows.
(Insert Name Here) and (Insert the Other Name Here) went to their respective homes and will be sleeping for the next two days from exhaustion. Both will have bad hair when they wake up.
And America, in one large unified breath, will now sigh in relief. The election is over.
On October 13th the American Psychological Association released a survey of 3,511 adults from August 5 to August 31, 2016. That actually was before many Americans had tuned into the election.
The conclusion of the research was that the election is stressful to Americans. More specifically, fifty-four percent of Democrats and fifty-nine percent of Republicans noted an increase in stress over the election. Those who watched more television coverage and followed social media had a higher amount of stress.
No, really? Who knew?
As a habit, I never ask a patient how they will vote, but instead I ask “What do you think the nation will do on Election Day?”
Without exception, the response I have heard the past two weeks is “I don’t know, but I can’t wait until it’s over.”
The survey noted that the continuous news cycle, social media and the specific worries of the Millennials and “Matures” made this election more stressful. Apparently Baby Boomers and Generation Xer’s weren’t quite as keyed up about it.
Really? It takes a survey to tell us we are stressed? Academically I understand, but the article really didn’t get to the meat of the matter of why.
Why does the election of a president cause such stress?
From documents drafted in debate we have been given by the sacrifice of others on the battlefield the freedom to choose our leaders. Our President will likely choose two or three Supreme Court Justices who will serve for life. Our President will set the agenda for political winds and whims, taxes and treaties, laws and losses, funding and fighting, friends and foes.
Those are extremely important decisions. And it is now out of our hands.
But there is still power that we hold in our hands. It is how we live.
(Insert Name Here) cannot decide whether we sit on our couches or go walking/hiking. Nor can (Insert Name Here) decide whether we decide to stop smoking. Or to turn off the TV and read, write, think or pursue a hobby.
(Insert Name Here) cannot decide whether I eat Funyuns dipped in peanut butter (a personal favorite) or a healthy smoothie (non-exploding).
(Insert Name Here), regardless of whether a person supports them, cannot keep an individual from learning more about their faith, their personal beliefs, pursuing more deep and personal devotion to their prayer life and serving their community.
Some may argue that politicians and judges have wrongly removed prayer and religious symbols from the public arena. I would argue that television, internet and social media have removed more prayer and religious sincerity from the home than any dislodged from the public square.
I have seen internet usage destroy marriages and families. I have seen cigarette smoking cause some agonizing deaths. Those were choices that could have been made differently.
Life is simply about those things we can control and those things we can’t.
We can’t control how (Insert Name Here) will govern, but we can control how we choose to walk physically, spiritually and mentally with our attitude, discipline and devotion to our family, friends, and, yes, even our foes.
We have been blessed in this country. Richly so. In the words of my former pastor, we can move forward either “humbly grateful or grumbly hateful.”
And that attitude can be powerful medicine for a weary country.
Eric J. Littleton, M.D. (@DrEricLittleton) is a musician and Family Physician in Sevierville, TN. Topics covered are general in nature and should not be used to change medical treatments and/or plans without first discussing with your physician. Send questions to askdrlittleton@gmail.com
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