“Don’t take it personally” is something we hear often as women. It’s typically said when our justified anger is dismissed as “just a joke.” This frequently comes up during election season, as we’re encouraged to “not talk politics” or “keep politics separate” from personal relationships. But here's the thing . . . the personal is political, especially for women.
For us, politics isn’t an optional category that can be tossed aside. We must engage in these tough conversations and use our voices—even when they shake—because the consequences of not doing so could mean losing control over the most personal parts of our lives.
It seems like each new election season is more intense than the last, bringing out an unprecedented level of divisiveness. In a patriarchal society not built to benefit women, major elections can be particularly stressful. At Her Time Therapy, like many mental health practices, we’re witnessing an uptick in women’s already-high levels of anxiety, relational conflict, financial insecurity, and fears for personal safety.
Election-Related Stress: How It Affects Women Differently
Election season impacts people of all genders, yet women face additional burdens. A 2023 Pew poll found that 65% of U.S. adults often feel exhausted by politics, and 55% feel angry, highlighting the chronic stress that politics adds.
For marginalized gender groups, including women and the LGBTQIA2S+ community, baseline stress is compounded, making election season uniquely and disproportionately impactful. Symptoms often include:
Increased anxiety: Women often report heightened anxiety levels during election seasons, exacerbated by political discourse surrounding issues that directly affect their rights and health, such as reproductive rights and healthcare access.
Depression and sadness: Women may experience more profound feelings of sadness and depression, particularly in response to political climates that threaten their bodily autonomy, relationships, family connection, and access to healthcare.
Emotional exhaustion: Constantly navigating a politically charged environment drains emotional reserves, especially for women who are already shouldering heavy emotional labor.
Feelings of isolation: Women are at risk of social isolation, particularly if they have politically unaligned partners or family members, which can exacerbate feelings of loneliness, hopelessness, and suppression of their voice.
Physical symptoms: Stress-related physical symptoms, such as headaches, fatigue, nausea, dizziness, and changes in appetite or sleep patterns may manifest more intensely in women due to the cumulative effects of gender based societal pressures and political stressors.
Conflict in relationships: Women may face increased conflict or risk for domestic violence with partners or family members over political views, leading to emotional distress and impacting their physical and mental health.
Lower self-esteem and self-worth: The societal narratives that diminish and confine women’s roles can decrease self-worth, particularly in challenging political times.
When issues such as reproductive rights, access to health care, affordable education, and childcare become political platforms (instead of what they are: human rights), women experience a profound impact on their mental health caused by interpersonal conflict, isolation, stress, anxiety, and depression.
The Personal is Political: Political Differences Fuel Stress in Relationships
Political differences in personal relationships—whether among family, friends, or partners—can lead to significant discord, strain, and emotional exhaustion. As elections near, contentious discussions around policies central to women’s wellbeing, like access to unrestricted reproductive rights and bodily autonomy, deepen stress, impacting value alignment and relationship satisfaction.
While bipartisan conversations can be enriching and are encouraged, discussions where one side’s stance aims to restrict the other’s freedom aren’t healthy. For women in politically misaligned relationships, the hostile atmosphere can lead to heightened anxiety and emotional tolls, highlighting the intersection of personal and political realms in shaping well-being.
Increased Risk to Women’s Physical, Mental, and Emotional Safety
One of the most severe election-related risks is the increased tension in volatile relationships. Disagreements about fundamental issues can trigger forms of abuse—physical, verbal, emotional, psychological, and financial. For example, a partner trying to control how their partner votes can be an election-specific form of abuse. Election related domestic abuse also applies to a partner or family member restricting access to the educational information about candidates or ballot measures that a woman needs to make up her own mind and cast her vote.
These forms of suppression, particularly when financial or social support to leave a relationship is lacking, silences and oppresses women, creating conflict and risking their safety.
The Role of Key Election Issues in Women’s Anxiety
As candidates debate healthcare, reproductive rights, and family planning, women’s anxiety about personal impacts grows. Studies suggest about 8% of pregnancies have complications that, if untreated, could harm a woman or the fetus. Anxiety is already spiking for expecting mothers who could fall into that 8% and unexpectedly face life-threatening complications in their pregnancy and are unable to access care needed to save their lives. And for those women who do not want to be mothers or who are choosing college and a career before starting a family, the anxiety over not having access to birth control or medication abortions in the event that birth control methods fail causes ongoing distress.
Several times a day, every day, women are already seeing the devastating effects of Roe v. Wade being overturned and are forced to have a front row seat to women dying from lack of access to healthcare. It's impossible to see the impact of the restriction of reproductive healthcare and not think, “that could be me or someone I love.” Continuous news coverage of health care restriction and similar issues is so prevalent across platforms that it can feel hard to escape. The exposure to widespread oppression heightens women’s stress levels, especially for women in low-income and marginalized communities.
Coping Strategies for Managing Election-Related Stress and Partisan Polarization
Effectively managing election stress requires strategies that foster resilience and empower women by helping them to stay informed while also protecting their mental health. As tempting as it is, avoiding politically charged conversations and opting out of debates or even voting all together is not a solution. A few of the most fundamental tenets of feminist therapy, designed to help women live their happiest, most fulfilled lives, include collaboration, authenticity, inclusion, social justice, and advocacy. In other words, to cope during election season you must find a balance between passionate engagement and periods of disconnection.
Whether you like it or not, your mental health is impacted by the systems you live within
and coping with these effects is not a solo activity. We heal best in the context of healthy, supportive relationships. Routinely processing and finding space to release the wide range of emotions brought forth during election time is vitally important to maintaining good mental health.
Therapy sessions can be a great place to do this. Yes! You ARE ALLOWED (and encouraged) to discuss politics and the impact it has on you in the therapy space—if you want to. And what's more, you should feel safe to do so. A good therapist will not try to influence your vote. What they will do is help you to empower yourself with information and create a safe space to grapple with difficult or conflicting information or feelings.
If you do not already have a great therapist to process this season with, or you want to try coping on your own first, consider processing via journaling.
Try These Reflective Journal Prompts to Process Election Related Stress:
News Consumption
How does reading/watching the news impact your thoughts, emotions, and body?
Which news consumption platforms create the most and least stress?
How much time is too much time interacting with the news? How do you know when you've hit your limit? (body reaction, intense emotion, etc.)
How might you interact with the news for the next week in a way that keeps you informed but doesn't spike your anxiety?
The Polls
How does poll data impact your thoughts, emotions and body?
What stories do you tell yourself after looking at polls?
Is this something you have control over? Is that helping? Hurting?
Social Media
What is your relationship with social media relating to politics?
Leading up to the election, how might you use social media as a platform for advocacy and education that encourages other women to turn out and vote?
How do you know when you've been on social media too much? When this happens, how can you disengage and what else can you spend time doing?
On Election Day
What self care can you engage in to be in the best possible physical and psychological state of mind today?
How do you want to spend election day/night? Is watching the votes be counted anxiety provoking or exciting?
Do you want to watch the vote counts come in live? Or is it better for you to do something else and check in with results periodically?
We may not know the official results on election night. What time will you go to bed? What will help you get to sleep?
Who can you be with, virtually or in person, for support the day of and days after?
Other Coping Strategies to Protect Your Mental Health During Election Season
Practice mindfulness exercises, listen to meditations, or practice grounding exercises like square breathing to reduce anxiety you are feeling in the moment
Stay informed about the issues that matter to you, but limit your news consumption to avoid becoming overwhelmed. Balance in news consumption is key.
Stay connected and in communication with supportive friends, family, or community groups that are in person or online.
Engage in consistent self-care activities that promote physical and emotional release, such as exercise, journaling, or creative hobbies.
Participate in local community events to foster or maintain connection with others.
Advocate for issues you care about through letters, calls, canvassing, or volunteering.
Your Vote Matters Now More Than Ever
Despite the 19th amendment being passed in 1919, it wasn’t until 1965 that all women were afforded the right to vote. And since then, we’ve shown up. Women have registered and voted at higher rates than men in every presidential election since 1980. There are more women than men in the United States, with women making up 50.4% of the population, so women's votes hold enormous power in our elections. Voting is an opportunity we must utilize to wield our influence and vote on the issues that impact us.
Civic engagement, like voting, is also a particularly powerful way to cope with stress and prevent mental health symptoms from growing in severity because it produces a sense of control over personal and community outcomes. By participating in elections and advocating for causes that resonate personally, women can reclaim their agency and find empowerment in challenging times.
Remember, no one knows who you vote for except for you. There will never be a perfect candidate, so educate yourself on where each person stands on important issues and cast your ballot for the one that you believe will get us closer to the world you want to live in.
How Feminist Therapy Can Support Women’s Mental Health
Feminist therapy, emphasizing empowerment, advocacy, and resilience, can support women facing election-related stress. Clients working with a feminist-oriented therapist can expect a therapy approach grounded in social justice, anti-racism, and collaboration. This approach recognizes the importance of intersectionality and addresses how various aspects of identity—such as gender, race, and class—intersect to impact mental health.
Techniques like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and reframing allow women to challenge negative beliefs, regain insight, and build resilience. At Her Time Therapy, our therapists provide an inclusive space to explore political experiences, advocate for personal empowerment, and overcome issues related to stress, trauma, and relationships.
Now Is the Time to Take Action - For Yourself, For Your Community
Voting shapes policies that affect your rights, health, and future. If you’re feeling
overwhelmed by election stress, reach out to Her Time Therapy and schedule a free consultation. We are a team of women passionate about supporting other women and are here to help you feel empowered, manage stress, and find your voice in creating positive change for yourself and your community.
Call/Text (720) 255-1667 | info@hertimetherapy.com | www.hertimetherapy.com
About the Author
Meagan Clark, MA LPC NCC BC-TMH is a Licensed Professional Counselor and the Founder and Clinical Director of Her Time Therapy, PLLC, a group therapy practice specializing in teletherapy for women. She received her Master of Arts degree in School and Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Adams State University and is a Board Certified Telemental Health Provider and Nationally Certified Counselor. As a psychotherapist, Meagan specializes in working with female-identifying teens and adults who suffer from trauma, relationship issues, anxiety, and grief. She is also a Certified Holistic Cancer coach and specializes in supporting cancer patients and caregivers struggling with compassion fatigue. Meagan believes strongly in the empowering nature of integrative and feminist therapy to give women the knowledge and tools they need to navigate gender-based oppression, increase resiliency, and empower themselves to create a life they love.
*Disclaimer: This blog does not provide medical advice and the information contained herein is for informational purposes only. This blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of a licensed health provider before undertaking a new treatment or health care regimen.
*Affiliate Disclosure: This post may contain ads and affiliate links that Her Time Therapy, LLC earns a small commission from when you make a purchase by clicking links on our site at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate and Associate of Bookshop.org, we earn from qualified purchases. Rest assured, we only recommend products we've used ourselves and would feel comfortable recommending to clients to improve their physical, mental, and emotional well-being.
Comments