3 Secrets to Maintaining Your Political Wellness

3 Secrets to Maintaining Your Political Wellness

By Aid

None of this is intended to be legal, medical, or psychiatric advice. 

When we think of "wellness," we typically think of our physical and mental health; however, what if there is a part of our wellness that we often ignore? This might sound kind of crazy, but hear me out: Going back at least as far as Plato, the human body has been compared to and used as a metaphor for the workings of a political system (i.e. this is the origin of terms such as the “body politic”). Specifically, Plato used to compare a well-ordered or just political system to the inner workings of a healthy human body, where each body part performs its function well and supports the overall health of the person. If something does not work inside a person, they get sick, and if something does not work in a political state, it too suffers from a kind of political sickness (or lack of justice). Like economics then, there is a macro level (what we would call “politics”), and a micro level (which for the ancient Greeks was a mixture of what we would consider today to be Ethics and Psychology). These ideas were all related. If a political state did not have healthy citizens in mind and body, the state would fail. If a state had bad laws, or suffered from systemic injustices, that would influence the citizens, their values, and mental health too. 

Why does any of this matter? There is a strong element of truth to the idea of there being some connection between how a country is run and the well-being of its citizens. We are all aware of how stressful politics can make things. Apart from worrying about our futures, our safety, our financial well-being, and whether our side wins and prevails over those we disagree with, nothing can get under our skin quite like a political disagreement. We all know and wince at the classic trope of having to spend Thanksgiving at the same dinner table as “that crazy uncle” who has very strong opinions. The bottom line is, we ought to think more about the aspects of our mental and physical health that are impacted by politics, and we could all benefit from trying what I’ve taken to calling “political wellness” (aka. the routine practice of methods aimed at mitigating the negative affects of politics on our health). That being said, here are some tips for maintaining your political wellness: 

1) The purpose of stating an opinion: There are plenty of insufferable people out there who state their political beliefs as though they are the absolute truth and, if you disagree, you are either blind or completely stupid. Maybe it’s a drunk at a bar, or a friend, or even a family member. When someone states something we think is wrong, and they do it with such conviction, many feel an intense desire to want to prove them wrong. A strongly opinionated idiot or ass might be one of the most naturally infuriating things on the planet. But why do we feel the desire to contradict or argue with them? Maybe we like to see idiots humiliated. Maybe we like the idea of punishing arrogance. Whatever it is, we rarely stop to consider the likelihood of this individual changing their mind after we argue back. If anything has been proven over the last 4 years or so, it is that when people state their firm beliefs, and are presented with contradictory evidence, they are more likely to double down, and they will rely on bad information, or simply made-up information, to do so. Now, I should say that sometimes it is necessary to fight for what we believe in, especially when we see innocent or vulnerable people being mistreated for no good reason, or no reason whatsoever. However, engaging with the kind of people mentioned above is more likely to place undue stress on ourselves and just make us feel worse rather than result in an appreciative new convert to our own beliefs. The person who states their opinions as absolute fact is doing that for a reason. Instead of just arguing back, we should stop and think: Why does this person feel the need to state their beliefs so bluntly? Usually, they are either looking for affirmation (i.e. someone who agrees with them), or they are trying to provoke something (i.e. they want to gain some control over you, upset you, or even get you to argue with them so they can argue back). Either way, if you really want to beat them, maybe you are better off denying them those things; neither agreeing with them, nor letting them get a rise out of you. Don’t lose your cool. If you’re at a bar, just tell them you don’t discuss politics when you’re drinking and wish them a good night. If it’s that uncle at the dinner table, tell them you already know their opinion on the subject, and it was more interesting the first time you heard it on reddit. However you want to handle it, think of your own well-being first, and don’t play into their hands. 

2) Multiple well-regarded news sources: You can also maintain your political wellness by not becoming that opinionated uncle or drunk at the bar. People who are so opinionated have ceased to ask the question: Have I got this wrong? If you think you have all the answers, why search for more? For those of us who do not have all the answers, we have to make an effort to stay well-informed. That means consuming multiple news sources, with recognizable names and different ideological leanings, to make sure our beliefs are substantiated. This might cause us some discomfort at first, because we usually tend to read the news stories that are in-line with our preconceived views. However, if we take the time to look at different sources, and actually consider if what we are reading is true, instead of just accepting it, we can prevent ourselves from buying into a world of errors that only lead us into making more errors. Think of it this way: If you found out today that a terrible conspiracy was true and on-going, how would that affect your stress levels? By protecting your political wellness, you can better safeguard your well-being more generally. 

3) Use your sense of humor: As mentioned earlier, the politically opinionated person causing you stress may be looking to exert control over you. They might be trying to achieve this by making you lose your temper, or by playing with your emotions. If you’re conservative and you lose your cool, then you’re just another “angry Republican who hates progress.” If you’re a liberal and you lose your temper, you are a “snow flake social justice warrior who is triggered too easily.” By allowing their words to make you angry, or upset, you become the thing they want you to be: something they can easily dismiss. When you let yourself become emotional, raise your voice, tear up, or start name-calling, you have already lost. The same is true for them as well. It means their defenses have failed, and you touched on something they feel vulnerable about. Deny them that. Use your sense of humor to show that you have too much positivity in your life to allow them the chance to dictate how you should feel. You can use humor to make a strong point as well, and making someone else laugh is a way of exerting your own control. Humor, when used carefully and skillfully, is also a great way to deescalate conflict and release tension. If you can make someone laugh, they can connect with you, and connecting with someone is arguably the first step towards overcoming our political differences, and turning politically dysfunctional relationships into politically healthy relationships that support our wellness.