HOW DO I COPE WITH MY ELECTION ANXIETY?!?!

Like so many Americans right now, Wise Women (WW) are feeling anxious about the election tomorrow. We decided to face this anxiety head-on in our women’s groups. Often anxiety is an amorphous feeling coursing through us creating tension in the body and a racing heart and mind. We needed some structure to give our feelings a form so we could get it out of our bodies and onto the page where we could process our experience. You are invited to try this experiential to help you process your election anxiety as well.

EXAI (Expressive Arts Invitation):

  1. Make a 3-5 second movement and sound that represents how you feel about the upcoming election.

  2. Using color, marks, and lines, visually represent your movement and sound. (We used tempera paint sticks, but use anything you have lying around.)

  3. Write a haiku of your experience. (Think back to 5th grade when you clapped out syllables for 5-7-5.)

  4. Reflect on what you created. Feel free to share any part of your experience here or in our A Space for Wise Women Community Space.


Take Care:

Your final step is to identify one thing you can do to care for yourself as you feel anxiety about the election.

Check out the Wise Women’s Wisdom to give you some ideas.

Wise Women’s Wisdom on Election Anxiety Self-Care:

  • VOTE!

  • Knock on doors

  • Plan for a difficult day/week and consider giving yourself some breaks from obligations

  • Set loving limits on media

  • Other WW plan to run head first into obsessively watching political news

  • Set boundaries on people stuck in an apocalyptic vision

  • If stuck in fear, envision a hopeful scenario

  • Curate your social media algorithm to cat videos or to something hopeful

  • Soothe yourself with listening to or making music

  • Move your body with a high intensity workout, walk, or yoga

  • Distract yourself (watch a funny TV show, clean, read, movie marathon, “anti-watch party” with other Wise Women needing distraction)

  • Indulge and comfort yourself

  • Use your hands to create (art, craft, knit, bake, color in your Empowerment Practices Book)

  • Use mindful, grounding skills to be present in the moment

  • Remind yourself that you are safe in this moment

Every WW copes differently. However you need to get through this moment, give yourself permission to do so.

Take exceptional care of yourselves, Wise Women!

Acknowledge, You Are a Bad-ass!

Honestly, I loathe New Years with all the resolutions and pressure that comes with it. Women are just beginning to recover from our busy season of creating magic for all, and instead of listening to our bodies' need for rest in the dead of winter, we are told to reassess what else isn’t good enough about us and strive to immediately fix it. It’s exhausting.

What if what actually needs “fixing” is for us to acknowledge that we are whole and complete as we are? To accept how far we’ve come this past circle around the sun and bathe in the accomplishment of surviving another year on this complicated planet while enjoying moments of thriving and growth? 

Unless we learn to pause to shift our mindset to acknowledge what incredible, beautiful, and brilliant bad-asses we really are, we will always strive and never arrive. Acknowledging yourself is the A in “The WISE-ASS Woman’s Way.” 

I created an experiential for you to play with this idea through a mind map (i.e. brainstorm) how you showed up for yourself this last circle around the sun.

Instructions:

Recommended Spotify playlist: Acknowledge Yourself Practice @A.Space.For.Wise.Women 

Recommended time: 3-4 songs

Supplies needed: Paper and writing instruments

Directions:

Step 1: On a blank paper, brainstorm the small and big ways you have shifted since last year at this time by considering and mapping out:

  • Your personal growth– wisdom gained or new ways you cared for yourself;

  • How you took up space this year by setting new boundaries or asserting your needs;

  • Vulnerability you practiced (intentionally or not) by bravely feeling your feelings or asking for help;

  • Moments of resilience where you endured even when it felt impossible or stood back up when you faltered;

  • Ways you allowed yourself to shine by showing your authentic self or using your skills and talents.

Step 2: Review the Wise Women’s Wisdom to help you process your experience.

Wise Women’s Wisdom:

  1. Many Wise Women found this activity challenging to start, but once they got going, they are surprised at how much growth they showed this year.

  2. Focus on the small moments and baby steps.

  3. Challenge the “but” that comes at the end of each acknowledgement  (e.g. “I learned to practice self compassion, BUT I don’t do it all the time.”) and shift into a “both/and” mindset (e.g. I learned to practice self compassion, and I need to continue that practice.”).

  4. Wise Women can often see how the other Wise Women are amazing bad-asses, but it can be a practice to acknowledge our own “bad-assery.”

Step 3: Share your experience with other Wise Women to acknowledge what a bad-ass you are while simultaneously giving them permission to acknowledge their own bad-assery!

You are enough as you are. You are a bad-ass, Wise Woman!

Take exceptional care of yourself,

Sarah