You’re not imagining it: Donald Trump, a puss-filled abscess in Harvey Weinstein’s crinkled butthole, is, in fact, one of the greatest sources of stress in our lives. This comes to us from the latest online poll by the American Psychological Association, which found that 63 percent of Americans are more worried about the future of our country than about other common stressors like money and work.
It gets worse: 59 percent of Americans consider our current administration to be the “lowest point in US history that they can remember,” which includes World War II, Vietnam, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Cold War, and Sept. 11. Hmm, it’s strange how, in this case, validation feels a lot like depression?
While Democrats are the most stressed (73 percent), a majority of Republicans and independents are also freaked (56 percent and 59 percent, respectively). “The uncertainty and unpredictability tied to the future of our nation is affecting the health and well-being of many Americans in a way that feels unique to this period in recent history,” said Dr. Arthur C. Evans Jr., APA chief executive officer, in a press release.
From the release:
The most common issues causing stress when thinking about the nation are health care (43 percent), the economy (35 percent), trust in government (32 percent), hate crimes (31 percent) and crime (31 percent), wars/conflicts with other countries (30 percent), and terrorist attacks in the United States (30 percent). About one in five Americans cited unemployment and low wages (22 percent), and climate change and environmental issues (21 percent) as issues causing them stress.
Adults also indicated that they feel conflicted between their desire to stay informed about the news and their view of the media as a source of stress. While most adults (95 percent) say they follow the news regularly, 56 percent say that doing so causes them stress, and 72 percent believe the media blows things out of proportion.
There is one upside to being constantly on edge about what new human right Trump will violate tomorrow: it’s compelling Americans to actually do shit for once. According to the survey, 51 percent of Americans have supported and volunteered for causes they believe in, and 59 percent have taken action, including signing petitions or joining in boycotts.
The least surprising finding of the survey was that, per usual, white men are the least stressed out, while women and people of color are the most worried. But of course, white people will continue to believe they deal with the most discrimination.