How Are You Coping?

I just wanted to check in and mention that, in spite of the fact that I’m writing cheery posts about holiday cups and cats, I AM still upset about the election.  It’s hard to strike a balance.  On the one hand, I don’t want to rant and rave every single day about how much this sucks.  No one wants to read that!  On the other hand- it feels kind of weird to keep things lighthearted all the time.

Stephany and San have recent posts about their feelings on the subject.  For what it’s worth, here’s where I’m at:

I literally haven’t watched or read ANY NEWS AT ALL since I woke up on November 6th and looked at the results.  After the initial blow, I stopped caring.  I mean, I care what happens to our country.  But in the short term, I don’t care about any more news.  Voldemort appointed WHO to WHAT?  Eh.  That’s exactly what I expected.

In the short term, I’ve lost all hope.  It’s all bad and only going to get worse.  Even in the best case scenario where we vote again in four years, a lot of really bad things are going to happen in the meantime.  I’ve accepted that.

In the long term, I do have hope.  That’s just something that’s hardwired into my psyche- I always veer toward optimism.  I think things might have to hit rock bottom before they get better, but they WILL get better.  My son sent me this video, “It’s not over until 2030.”  We could be in the middle of a cycle, or the final “turning” before hitting the next high.

I could be wrong, of course.  We could have a nuclear holocaust.  OR, maybe the Republicans are right!  Maybe the economy will be SO GREAT that we’ll stop caring about immigrants, women’s rights, or the environment.  Money makes the world go around… apparently.

I’m not saying I’m going to bury my head in the sand until 2030, happily going to football games and buying peppermint soap.  There will be a time again for action.  I’m just not ready yet.

In the meantime, here are some of my coping strategies:

I’ve started swearing more.  The other day, we were watching football and the opposing team scored a touchdown on a close play.  I exclaimed, “GODDAMMIT!”  

My husband looked at me in astonishment.  “I thought you didn’t swear!”  Yes, well, I’ve decided to start.  Did you know that research shows swearing can actually boost your mood in stressful situations?  I have to admit… it feels pretty good.

I’ve started drinking more.  I don’t mean drinking to excess, but I was having less than one drink a week.  I’m going to up that to at least one drink a week.

I’m only listening to lighthearted podcasts.  Like this one:

I’m also listening to The Girl Next Door. The last couple episodes have dealt with heavier issues, but I still listened.  I’m also listening to old episodes, like this one about holiday gift giving strategies.  When Kelsey explains that she gives her garbage collectors a gift card and small edible gift from Trader Joe’s, Erica says “But how do you give it to them?  Can I just leave it on top of my trash can?”  Kelsey replies “The fact that you’re asking that question is concerning.”  Ah, I love them.

How are you coping these days?  Please share!

Top photo by Tracey Hocking on Unsplash