Stress Expert: Media to Blame for Left’s Post-Trump Freakout

Dr. Pete Sulack, stress expert and founder of StressRX.com, told Breitbart News on Friday that the media bears some of the blame for the deep distress felt by some Hillary Clinton supporters, and the public unrest, after Tuesday’s election results.

“The media is partly to blame for actively fueling fears of some kind of Nazi regime under a Trump presidency,” Sulack said, via e-mail. “In part this is because problems and pain sell advertising space. Mass communications has always struggled with that balance between fair reporting, personal bias, and pressure from executives to keep things ‘hot.'”

He noted that people were responding negatively to anti-Trump images on television and social media.

“When we read, we can rationally discuss the issues or definitions of terms at hand. When we see pictures, however, a different part of our brain is engaged.

“That part is the limbic brain, a part also activated in stressful situations, because it is key to survival. This is the most primitive and unevolved part of us. It acts on emotion, is irrational, childish, and afraid. It can be rude and boorish, and sometimes even cruel,” he said.

Sulack notes that many voters are also upset because they feel “hopeless and powerless.” To deal with the stress, he recommends avoiding alcohol and caffeine, and instead eating dark chocolate, “tree nuts or nut butters,” and “kale and other leafy, green vegetables.”

Teen mental health expert Jamison Monroe, Founder and CEO of Newport Academy, says that while the media are fueling some of the anxiety, much of it comes from information shared by peers through social media.

“Media greatly influences people’s thoughts and opinions. However, teens are very influenced by their peer groups, so reading their peers’ political opinions on social platforms has just as much influence, for this is where a majority of millennials get their news from,” he told Breitbart News, via email.

He explained that feelings of stress were not just triggered by the election result, but the entire campaign. “Feelings of distress are now heighted due to the snowball effect of emotions throughout the entire election,” he said.

For the distressed, Monroe recommended meditating, and avoiding social media altogether.

“Many people post their thoughts about the election on social media, and election posts currently make up most people’s news feeds,” he said.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News. His new book, See No Evil: 19 Hard Truths the Left Can’t Handle, is available from Regnery through Amazon. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.