Political Polarization and Impacts on Anxiety and Depression

Everyone deserves a voice in the decisions that affect their community. Being informed, voting, and caring about public issues are important parts of a healthy society. 

However, for many people, political stress has grown so intense in recent years that it is starting to harm their mental health.

Although political polarization exists alongside other concerns, such as fear of violence or rising living costs, research shows that political stress is its own form of anxiety. In fact, a study established that political events can create fear and unease even in people who do not usually experience anxiety.¹

In this post, we break down how politics influences mental health and what you can do to protect your mental well-being.

Difference Between Healthy Political Concern and Politics-Induced Anxiety and Depression

Healthy political concern is caring about the public issues in your country without them taking over your mental health. It almost always leads to constructive action in the form of:

• Voting for better people to lead influential positions
• Volunteering
• Community organizing

Such political engagement is purpose-driven. It increases your social connections and is associated with psychological well-being.

However, political events can also lead to sustained, distressing fear that causes impairment in your daily life. It can affect your sleep, cause concentration issues at school/work, and may lead to withdrawal from daily roles and persistent negative thinking.

In fact, research says that repeated exposure to threatening political news can increase acute distress. It can also cause longer-term anxiety and depressive symptoms. Further, intense partisan conflict is a known risk factor for chronic social stress in many people.²

How Politics Affects Mental Health

Political events affect our mental health in many ways. To begin with, research finds that people who report higher levels of political stress also report higher levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms.³

The primary source of politics-induced mental health effects is media exposure. Negative/threatening political events get extensive media coverage because they drive public attention. Our brains are naturally more responsive to threats. It, however, can keep the body’s stress response active and make us feel anxious all the time.

Then there is political polarization, which refers to strong divisions between political groups. When a society is divided into political groups, it weakens social support. You may feel tense in relationships or at work just because your political views are different.

Stress levels particularly peak during times of elections. Stress related to election news and anticipation of results is associated with a high risk for symptoms of anxiety and depression.

Ahead of the 2024 U.S. presidential election, the American Psychological Association’s 2024 Stress in America survey found that 77% of adults were stressed about the country’s future. 51% of people also said that the uncertainty surrounding the election itself was a source of stress for them.⁴

Women are also disproportionately more likely to experience higher anxiety and depressive symptoms when political issues touch on personal rights.⁵

Effects of Polarized Politics on Psychotherapy Patients

Political conversations do not spare any connections, and doctor-patient relationships are no different. The similarity or difference between a patient’s and a therapist’s political views can potentially influence therapeutic outcomes.

In 2018, a study of 604 self-identified Democrat and Republican therapy patients found that most patients talked about politics with their therapists. Many therapists also shared their own political views with patients, either directly or indirectly. Patients who believed their therapist shared their political orientation reported stronger therapeutic relationships.⁶

In another study, 87% of therapists said they discuss politics with patients during sessions, and 63% reported that they shared their own political views to some extent. Plus, therapists were more likely to disclose their own views when they perceived that the patient held similar political beliefs.⁷

What exact ethical, clinical, and structural safeguards do we need for mental health technology regulation? Here are four to think about.

Recognizing the Mental Health Effects of Political Division

Since politics directly affects our laws, rights, safety, future of society, and basically every dimension of life, it is normal to have some extent of concern about it. 

The problems, however, arise when political division causes hostile living environments and induces hopelessness among people.

If, instead of motivating constructive action, political stress is draining your energy, you need to take care of your mental health.

Below are some signs that may indicate your mental health is being affected by political polarization:

• You feel tense, angry, or anxious about political news on most days.
• Political topics tend to stay on your mind all the time.
• Your sleeping and eating patterns are taking a hit because your thoughts keep returning to political worries.
• You feel a growing sense of hopelessness.
• Small political triggers cause intense emotional reactions in you.
• Your mood worsens during election seasons.

How to Ensure Emotional Well-Being in Polarized Environments

If you notice any of the signs of worsening mental health discussed above, consider taking active steps in maintaining your emotional well-being. Here are some activities that could help. 

Stop Doomscrolling Politically Charged Content

“Doomscrolling” means repeatedly consuming distressing content, without a clear purpose, for long periods. It keeps your brain in a constant state of stress.

Now, we are not saying you shouldn’t stay informed. By all means, spend ten minutes checking reliable news sources to understand current political developments once a day. Once you are caught up, turn the news off and move on with your day. 

In other words, do not obsessively check headlines, scroll through commentary, watch debates, and read people’s opinions throughout the day.

Social media makes doomscrolling more likely because the algorithms are made to show you more of what you engage with. So if you frequently engage with political content, your feed will fill with more political posts.

Be selective about what you engage with on social media. If you notice any accounts that show highly charged political content, mute or unfollow them to protect your mental peace. 

Join a Politically Aligned Community Group

Humans need social connections to stay emotionally healthy. And during times of political tension, connection is often the first thing to take a hit. 

Having a group of people around who have similar views to yours can reduce your feelings of isolation.

You can find people with similar political values through:

• Healthy political discussions among your family and friends
• Local advocacy organizations
• Volunteer groups
• Civic or student clubs
• Discussion circles

Such groups work together to channel political concern into collective action, like volunteering or events that support community causes. 

Purposeful action will give you a greater sense of control, and it can also decrease political hopelessness that otherwise causes anxiety and depression. 

De-Stress Through Hobbies and Exercises

Some activities have been studied time and again to show that they calm your nervous system down. For instance, certain hobbies, like reading, cooking, gardening, music, crafts, or creative work, keep your attention in the present moment. 

People who regularly spend some of their time doing these leisurely activities report better mood and lower stress levels.⁸ It makes sense, too, because your hobbies create mental distance from political conflict.

Physical activity is another known intervention for better mental health. Exercise reduces cortisol, your body’s primary stress hormone, and increases brain chemicals that improve your mood. 

Therefore, moderate exercises that anyone can do, such as walking, stretching, light workouts, and so on, can significantly reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression.⁹ Exercise also improves sleep, which is almost always disrupted by political stress.¹⁰

Such self-help activities work best when they are consistent. Therefore, try to dedicate some time in your schedule for short daily walks and for your hobbies to stay emotionally balanced in times of political chaos. 

Reach Out to AMFM for Mental Health Support

If your mental health has been affected by political polarization, you may benefit from therapy to get your sense of control back. The self-help strategies we discussed above also tend to work better – and the effects last longer – when they are combined with professional therapy.

At A Mission for Michael (AMFM), we provide evidence-based mental health support against political stressors. 

Our team consists of licensed therapists who use clinically validated therapeutic methods to protect against anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues. We can also help you connect with supportive, politically aligned group environments when appropriate.

If your schedule makes in-person therapy difficult, we also offer virtual therapy sessions so you can access care from home. Reach out to us today to learn more about what we can offer.

References

1. Weinschenk, A., & Smith, K. (2024). Is Political Anxiety Different than General anxiety? Politics and the Life Sciences, 43(2), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1017/pls.2024.6
2. Kellerman, J. K., Hamilton, J. L., Selby, E. A., & Kleiman, E. M. (2022). The mental health impact of daily news exposure during the COVID-19 pandemic: An ecological momentary assessment study (Preprint). JMIR Mental Health, 9(5). https://doi.org/10.2196/36966
3. Fraser, T., Aldrich, D. P., Panagopoulos, C., Hummel, D., & Kim, D. (2022). The harmful effects of partisan polarization on health. PNAS Nexus, 1(1). https://doi.org/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgac011
4. Stress (2024). Stress, politics, and the holidays. Https://Www.apa.org. https://www.apa.org/pubs/reports/stress-in-america/2024/postelection-survey
5. Martinez, M. F. (2025, February 19). Politics negatively impacts women’s mental health in Georgia: Depression, anxiety, and perceived stress from 2023 to 2024. Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. https://hsph.harvard.edu/news/new-article-politics-negatively-impacts-womens-mental-health-in-georgia-depression-anxiety-and-perceived-stress-from-2023-to-2024/
6. Solomonov, N., & Barber, J. P. (2018). Patients’ perspectives on political self-disclosure, the therapeutic alliance, and the infiltration of politics into the therapy room in the Trump era. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 74(5), 779–787. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.22609
7. Solomonov, N., & Barber, J. P. (2019). Conducting psychotherapy in the Trump era: Therapists’ perspectives on political self‐disclosure, the therapeutic alliance, and politics in the therapy room. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 75(9), 1508–1518. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.22801
8. Pressman, S. D., Matthews, K. A., Cohen, S., Martire, L. M., Scheier, M., Baum, A., & Schulz, R. (2009). Association of Enjoyable Leisure Activities With Psychological and Physical Well-Being. Psychosomatic Medicine, 71(7), 725–732. https://doi.org/10.1097/psy.0b013e3181ad7978
9. Ji, C., Yang, J., Lin, L., & Chen, S. (2022). Physical Exercise Ameliorates Anxiety, Depression and Sleep Quality in College Students: Experimental Evidence from Exercise Intensity and Frequency. Behavioral Sciences, 12(3), 61. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs12030061
10. Alnawwar, M. A., Alraddadi, M. I., Algethmi, R. A., Salem, G. A., Salem, M. A., & Alharbi, A. A. (2023). The effect of physical activity on sleep quality and sleep disorder: A systematic review. Cureus, 15(8). https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.43595