Over half of Americans say election will be most stressful day of their lives, poll finds
In a survey of 2,000 Americans, more than half (55%) said Tuesday’s presidential election will be the most stressful day of their lives so far.
The survey, conducted by OnePoll, also found that 67% just want 2020 to end already.
It’s what therapist and author Dr. Steven Stosny calls “election stress disorder,” in which the “emotional toddler brain” can take over the “rational adult brain,” he wrote in Psychology Today in 2016.
The toddler brain is “highly susceptible to emotional contagion” according to Stosny.
The survey also showed that millennials — people born between 1981 and 1996 — and Generation Xers — people born between 1965 and 1980 — were more likely to anticipate Election Day as very stressful. The numbers were 61% and 58%, respectively.
Just 32% of baby boomers, or those between 56 and 74 years old, felt the same way.
But there was one aspect of 2020 that topped the stress charts: the coronavirus pandemic, which 63% cited as the most stressful happening of the year.
Half of respondents said their stress levels are so high that they feel like they don’t have time to try and manage it, according to the survey.
Other stressful aspects of 2020 include police violence/social unrest (46%), financial uncertainty (44%) and climate change (29%).
A separate Harris poll found that more than two-thirds of Americans have said the presidential election is a “significant source of stress in their life, a large increase from the 2016 presidential election when 52% said the same,” McClatchy News reported last week.
Ways to reduce that stress include cutting back on news consumption, reducing time spent on social media and mental preparation before Election Day, experts say.
Americans have already cast 93 million ballots as of Sunday afternoon, NPR reported, which is almost twice as many pre-election votes as were cast in the 2016 election.
This election is on track to surpass historic levels of voter turnout.
The survey was conducted on behalf of Feelmore Labs and Cove.
This story was originally published November 2, 2020 at 3:20 PM.
