How to not be utterly depressed and scared about Trump winning

[ChocolateMagnum]

Is there any way at all to reframe the likely outcome of the US election? I just feel terrible this morning. Scared and angry. It's wasted energy, though. I can't do anything positive with these feelings and I'm guessing I'm not the only person feeling like this. How are other people finding ways to move out of this feeling so they aren't wasting time and energy on something they have no influence over currently?

I felt the same about Brexit, it really got me down to think that this country I love had majority voted to leave the EU. I felt like I didn’t belong here any more, somehow. That feeling of alienation hasn’t gone away and I have become much more selfish and self-interested as a result. I find it harder to sympathise with people who are struggling, wondering if they were one of the people who voted us out of the EU.

Give it time for your heart to harden and then try to ignore the crap that follows. As you point out, you cannot change a single thing.

It’s a worrying time for sure. A sad day. Scary.

I suppose try and avoid media today op and keep busy because there is not much anyone can do now.

If he lost, the civil unrest he would incite would be worse, I suppose. Little comfort, though.

Understand that we have zero influence on what's going on, there's nothing you can do personally to impact the result of an election when votes have already been cast.

If you've got genuine concerns about Trump being a President - put your energy into researching how you can help - e.g can you donate to clinics that help women, can you volunteer virtually any time to help any American organisations that align with your values etc.

Or, just release the emotions - if it's purely an emotional reaction - give yourself a day or two to wallow in it, then make the decision that it can't impact your life so strongly and force yourself to stop. Hard to do, but better than being stuck feeling bad!

The only consolation for me is that it might have been just as bad in other ways if he had lost. The civil unrest that and endless litigation that would be produced by another Big Lie about the election having been stolen.

Also, it may turn out that the best way to disperse support for this disgusting man is to see him flailing egotistically about in office again. It might lance the boil

This man has promised the electorate that he will reclaim The American Dream for them but what exactly is that? Behaving as if every American family is The Waltons and access to unlimited materialism?
I truly fear for the environment - the last time this individual was let loose in the White House he endorsed the energy companies unrestricted exploitation of the earth's natural resources and hang the consequences.

Profit first, second and last in other words.

Just listening to him now. What an absolute imbecile.

Listening to him rambling and spouting nonsense right now is truly depressing.

He certainly loves the sound of his own voice!

Pray for the Ukranians 🙁

He's mad but so is JD Vance and so are so many of his supporters. I know not all people who voted for him are white supremacist misogynists, and many, like with Brexit, will have made their decision based on a ton of other stuff. I wish I was one of the people who think politics doesn't affect them and could just bury my head in the sand about the possible outcomes of this election.

What are the safeguards against him making the US into a dictatorship? How failsafe are those safeguards?

It's hard not to feel depressed by it. I might take comfort in the fact that the fuckwits who voted him in will have to deal with the consequences of their actions, if it wasn't for the fact that the rest of us will have to deal with the impact too. There is no upside that I can think of.

Yes I think a spell in office will help long term, he won't be able to bring inflation down, if anything it'll go up with the tariffs he's proposing.

I couldn't understand Brexit and i can't understand this.

I said to my husband this morning "the only silver lining is at least he won't be able to run again in 4 years as this is his 2nd term"

Unless he manages to change the law

Well, the right to bear arms ..

Unless he goes all Putin and changes the laws.

Another one who was blindsided by Brexit and I still can’t bear to think about it!
All we can do is accept that we’re powerless and not expose ourselves to him so once the result is in, I won’t be allowing myself to follow the news.

I wouldn't bet on that. Wouldn't put it past him to try to change the law. He has the Supreme Court in his pocket already.

Perhaps he won't live that long, though. He's getting old and there's something mentally wrong.

What I'll do is not watch the news. Can't bear the sight and sound of him.

Depressing morning to wake up to.

Even the sky is grey after many beautiful sunny blue sky days.

Elon Musk has succeeded in buying The White House.

I felt worse last time I think I still believed good sense would prevail but 8 years on I am in the middle of perimenopause I have become more and more cynical and fed up with the world. I work with very marginalised people, have done for decades and I see how much worse things have got, how cruel and self interested the world is, so I was expecting the result today. Everything is cyclical things will move on from this again

It probably won't be as apocalyptic as we think. He will change some shit for the worse, the house of representatives will stop him doing anything too major. Last 4 governments have struggled to acheive their political goals. America just goes back amd forth between two right wing parties and real change is held in check by the senate.