Opinion: Election anxiety is plaguing Americans. Especially in swing state Wisconsin.

I don’t remember feeling this awful in the lead-up to the 2020 election. Now, that may be due to some revisionist history and my memory failing me or the fact that I didn’t have a waddling 1-year-old wearing me out then. Yet ever since President Joe Biden’s doomed debate in June, the weight of this election and the news cycle that amplifies it, has taken a toll on my mental health — and, apparently, lots of others.

I’ve felt as though I’m moving through the different stages of grief despite nothing being lost, or won, yet. Still, it’s not just stress and anxiety over the prospect of my presidential candidate losing or which party will control the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives after Nov. 5. It’s a deeper sadness and frustration about the whole stinking mess: The state of our media, our division and distrust, all seemingly insurmountable problems that will still be there regardless of who wins.

Data shows politics is the leading cause of stress for Americans

I’m not alone. The American Psychological Association’s annual Stress in America survey found that, as of August, politics was the leading cause of stress for seven out of 10 adults across party lines. That report also found:

• Most adults (54%) say they have little to no trust in the U.S. government

• 41% say the state of the nation has made them consider moving to a different country

• 46% wouldn’t date someone who didn’t share the same political opinions

• 82% are worried that people are basing their values and opinions on false or inaccurate information

• A large majority say the future of the nation is a significant source of stress in their lives; this crosses party lines: 80% of Republicans rated it a top stressor, so did 79% of Democrats and 73% of independents.

The APA did find that election-related stress levels are about the same as they were in 2020 (so maybe my recollection was revisionist history). However, what’s different this year is that about 72% expressed concern about the results of the election, fearing that the outcome could lead to violence, with more than half believing the results could mean “the end of democracy in the U.S.”

In a Wall Street Journal poll released last week, 87% of voters said they believe America will suffer permanent damage if their candidate loses. Among Vice President Kamala Harris’s voters, 57% said they would feel “frightened” if Donald Trump is elected while 47% of Trump voters said they would feel frightened if Harris wins. At least half of voters said they think violence is likely if either Trump or Harris wins, and 53% say our country's divisions will keep growing regardless of the election’s outcome.

In a different poll from a mental-health-care company, 79% of respondents reported that the presidential election made them feel anxious this year, and more than half thought about the election every day. At the national 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, officials have been preparing since September for a surge in calls, based on surges around Election Day during the previous two elections.

Just Google “election anxiety” and you’ll find that seemingly every news outlet has an article either reporting on the stress levels of Americans or instructions on how to cope with election anxiety (a lot of that advice includes putting your phone down. After you read this, of course.)

Why do you feel awful? The system's designed to amplify outrage.

Of course, all the advice out there on how to manage your anxiety levels places the burden on the individual to “focus on aspects of life outside of politics” or “spend less time watching the news”  or “meditate” and very little condemnation for the political ecosystem we are subjected to in the pursuit of being an informed citizen.

It’s like telling any overweight American to focus on diet and exercise without having the conversation about how our lawmakers and corporations keep us fat and unhealthy. There’s wide consensus that stress is terrible for our health and yet, at least every four years, our political environment frays our nerves.

Editorial: You can be confident in Wisconsin election results. We have the proof.

The news cycle is unrelenting. Polls have become an obsession that gamifies our elections and dominates our political discourse. We have social media apps that are designed to be addictive and algorithms that amplify outrage. And if you live in a swing state like Wisconsin, you’re being targeted with literally billions of dollars of advertising that have been manufactured to evoke enough emotion out of you to motivate you to go vote.

This is not to say that concerns and worry over the elected are unwarranted. The stakes are high in this election and elections have consequences. I am not attempting to gaslight anyone into diminishing real fears about the amount of damage a single administration can do. Quite literally, women are dying in states with abortion bans, so I understand that for some people, elections do mean life or death, but the campaign noise is also responsible for spiking everyone’s cortisol.

On the plus side, people are motivated to volunteer and to vote early

This election cycle has made me question more than once whether I am cut out for this line of work. I find myself thinking back to what life was like prior to the 2016 election, when I was much more casual in my news and politics consumption. I have found myself being much more understanding of folks who abstain from following politics because it seems like a much healthier and happier way to live.

But, unfortunately, there isn’t really a way back, at least for me there isn’t. Once you have opened yourself up to caring about how politics and policy shape everything, you can’t really turn it off. You can only use that anxiety and concern to galvanize you into action, which is the only positive takeaway from this stress.

Opinion: Economy would grow under Harris. Under Trump, expect higher prices and debt.

The APA report found that, despite reporting election anxiety, about 77% of people said they were planning to vote, and half said they felt more motivated to volunteer or support causes they believe in — a 32% increase from the 45% of people who reported feeling that way in 2020.

As of Oct. 26, more than 38 million people voted early across the country, according to the University of Florida Election Lab. Early in-person voting in Wisconsin saw a 40% increase last week. Georgia has seen record turnout every day since early voting began on Oct. 15.  The same is true across the country, where there is record early voting turnout in New York City, Texas, North Carolina,  South Carolina.

Now of course, the anxiety-riddled side of my brain wants to agonize over what all those early voters means. But, I’ll practice some self discipline and instead just take the win that more people are engaged and voting.

Kristin Brey is the "My Take" columnist for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Opinion: Trump, Harris stress America out, breed WI election anxiety