This year the unthinkable has happened over and over again. Brexit, unexpected celebrity deaths one after another and now, Donald Trump has been elected to the highest office in America, beating Hillary Clinton with a sizeable margin. Are we embedded in one very very long episode of Black Mirror? When will it end? No. As difficult as this might be to believe, this is not virtual reality, this is not an alternate universe nor is this a bad dream – this is life in 2016.
If you, like me, are a millennialit’s very likely that the present political landscape feels like a very foreign land right now. Campaigns have been fought using race-baiting tactics, deploying overtly xenophobic and racist rhetoric. Far from being reprimanded for this, those behind it were rewarded ten fold. Vote Leave secured Britain’s exit from the European Union and Donald Trump, a man whose candidacy was once only existed a joke in meme form because it’s reality was too grotesque to comprehend, is going to be the next American President. It’s almost certain that you, like me, are looking at these results and wondering how progress – tolerance and acceptance – seem to be being rewound in our adult lives.
Now, as Hillary Clinton herself said in her concession speech now is not the time to give up. It’s the time to fight for what you believe in, to make a stand for the values you hold. Both in the US and in Britain, there is serious work to be done.
However, before that work can be done you need to take a step back from your screen, large and small, and regroup. The news in 2016 has felt, at times, like a tsunami of negativity which knocks you for six just as you had find your feet.
Hillary Clinton has been spotted for the first time since conceding the election to Trump. What was she doing? Was she ugly crying? No. Was she getting hammered? No. Was she refreshing her Twitter feed relentlessly and checking her mentions? No. She was taking a hike with husband Bill through the woods of Westchester County near her New York home.
A woman named Margot Gerster bumped into the ex-Democratic nominee as she too hiked through the woods in an attempt to take her mind off of Donald Trump and feel less ‘heartbroken’ about the state of the world.
Studies have shown that young people are reporting Brexit as a source of anxiety, given the particularly distressing nature of Donald Trump’s campaign it’s likely to have a similar effect.
So, here’s what we can all do to take a leaf (sorry, not sorry) out of Hillary’s book and practice some serious self care. Everyone, even big-name politicians need to take time out. Here’s what you should do this weekend before you attempt to take on the rest of 2016 and contemplate what 2017 could possibly bring us:
Go For A Bloody Walk
Make like Hillary and head for the hills. No, not permanently (don’t get me started on the amount of privilege required to post on social media about how you’re going to effectively make yourself a refugee because of a political result you do not like…), for a few hours. Nature is calming, fresh air is good for you and it’s important to reconnect with it. Those of us who live in cities and sit behind desks all day long don’t do this enough as it is. You will feel refreshed, I promise.
Spend A Few Hours Cooking
We’re all just so busy, running low on time all the time. Time is our most precious commodity. Who has time for anything these days? Not me, and I’ll bet not you either. You need to take some bloody time. Do something you don’t normally ‘have time’ to do. Buy ingredients, follow a recipe and cook something that takes longer than your usual 20 minutes rushing from fridge to fork. A stew perhaps? A cake would work too. Invite some friends over and feed them, not just with food, but with the time and energy you put into preparing something for them.
Take A Day Off And See Your Family
How often do you feel guilty about not seeing your relatives? Parents, siblings or ailing grandparents? You know you should but it’s just so difficult isn’t it? No, it’s really not that hard. Book a day off, not to nurse a hangover or go on a mini break with your mates/current fling but to invest in your family. They might be frustrating at times but they’re part of who you are and they won’t always be around. Ask your grandparents a question you’ve never asked them and listen to the answer.
Turn Your Phone Off
This is really, really important. Just switch it off for a bit, or delete Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and eBay. You don’t need to hear the noise, you don’t need to know what everyone’s arguing about, you don’t need to see how other people are living right now and you really really don’t need to buy that obscure overpriced 90s band t-shirt on eBay to make yourself feel better.
Make a plan with someone you care about, stick to it and enjoy their company without disturbance.
No matter who you are or what you do – whether you’re a teacher, doctor, office worker or yoga teacher - you won’t be ready for anything or any good to anyone if you don’t practice some self care, step back and get a bit of perspective.
Nobody ever found inner peace on Instagram.
Namaste.
You might also be interested in:
Studies Show Millennails Are Full Of Self Loathing, But Why Are We So Hard On Ourselves
Follow Vicky on Twitter @Victoria_Spratt
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.