- Have a Plan B. Recognizing that all is not lost if Trump wins, and having a plan to hit the ground running if it comes to that makes the prospect of him winning less panic-inducing.
- Get news from mainstream sources. Yes, this is very square advice, but it is also useful. Cruising the Net for obscure sources bombards your mind with massive amounts of conflicting data, which is itself highly paranoia-inducing. You get numerous obscure tidbits. Some of these turn out to be important and you got a scoop ahead of time. Others are just tidbits and never turn out to be significant. And others turn out to be wild rumors and inaccurate. Let someone else vet these obscure tidbits for you. I learned this the hard way during the war in Ukraine. Reading about what was actually happening was never as terrifying as reading speculation on what might.
- Understanding the phenomenon of catastrophizing is the best way to avoid it. Catastrophizing means imaging the worst and convincing yourself it is inevitable. This means not just a Trump victory, but what would follow.
- Turn off the news after a certain hour. If it is important it will be there in the morning. You lose nothing by waiting a few hours.
- Watch comedies instead. Laughter is very stress-relieving.
- Do not check the news when you are stressed for unrelated reasons. Somehow the prospect of a Trump presidency always seems most catastrophic when I am stressed about something else. And whatever I am stressed about becomes more overwhelming when I consider to prospect of a Trump presidency.
- Stay busy doing something constructive. That may mean working to defeat Trump, working on Plan B, or doing something totally unrelated to politics. Constructive activity concentrates the mind and keeps it off catastrophizing.
- Find a non-political hobby to enjoy.
So, do I follow my own advice? Of course not.
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