YORK, Pa. — With the 2024 Election just 10 days away, a new survey is showing voters are feeling more stressed and anxious due to the election cycle.
According to Forbes, 61% of Americans say their mental health was negatively impacted by the election cycle.
“Each election cycle seems to be getting worse," said John Monk from York. "I don’t know what can be done to limit this campaign activity?"
John and Kathrine Monk say they've felt stressed over the course of the campaign season. They add that the constant stream of political ads has made it tough to watch TV.
“We have no question in our mind who we’re voting for, so it’s just sort of background noise," said Katherine Monk.
Joseph Dickerson, meanwhile, said he keeps getting a lot of political text messages. He added that he blocks at least five texts from his phone each day.
“It’s just constant messages ‘hey, vote this way’ or ‘hey, vote that way,'" said Dickerson. “It’s just fatigue; people can only take so much.”
Dr. Melissa Brown, a clinical psychologist with UPMC, said election fatigue has been affecting some of her clients for months. She said many are feeling anxious about voting and the choices they will be making.
“They’re hearing the same rhetoric; they’re hearing the same messages," said Dr. Brown. "One person is insulting someone else, or why this person is not fit.”
As Election Day approaches, Dr. Brown said the best way to handle the stress is simply taking a break from politics.
“When the ads come on TV or on the radio, you can just mute them," said Dr. Brown. "You can scroll past them on social media.”
