Post Election Recovery Guide

This has been a difficult week for more than half of the nation and a lot of the world. There are many that are in a phase of grief and mourning. Collectively mourning a loss certainly is in fact a very personal experience.

There is high emotion surrounding the hope that was placed on the outcome of this election cycle. That emotion does not disappear, it has now been turned into vast amounts of anxiety for a lot of people. Your feelings are real, your emotions are real. What you are experiencing is real. Take the time to grieve if you must, take time off if you must and most importantly, take care of yourself.

There is a lot of fear for the future, and that fear can be paralyzing for some. Make a plan if you can, then return to the here and now, grounding in the present moment can help alleviate some of the fear and anxiety for the future. Practice this several times a day if necessary.

A lot of you are also feeling a loss of control. Attempt to focus on things you can control. Participate in a group activity. Identify one or two small things you can do for yourself, create a self care routine and do some of those things. Connect with your community, they can be a great source of grounding, strength, care and coping. You are not alone. Know your strengths and resiliency for the future.

Track your media usage, stop completely if you must for a while. Ask yourself how it is making you feel after you use it. Filter usage between positive and current events, there are many positive things also happening in the world- be proactive about reminding yourself of that.

Lastly, we do not choose our circumstances all the time, but we can choose how we best respond to them. We can make a commitment to ourselves and each other regarding how we want to be in this world.

We have provided a few links for stress management and self care below:

A new photo of a kitten, every time you refresh: http://www.emergencykitten.com/

6 GIFs to help you relax: http://www.destressmonday.org/6-gifs-help-relax/

Self Compassion Guided Meditation & Exercises: http://self-compassion.org/category/exercises/

Grounding exercises: http://self-compassion.org/category/exercises/

Put your stressful thought in a star and watch it float away: http://www.pixelthoughts.co/#

Song about meditation and letting go: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rds7V5Sxu-4

Tools for self care and community care: http://alp.org/breaking-isolation-self-care-and-community-care-tools-our-people

50 Ways to Self Care: http://www.thirteenthoughts.com/50-ways-to-practice-self-care/how-to-practice-self-care-3/