Concerns about immigration restrictions, health care, past sexual trauma and world peace rose even before Trump was elected and have continued since his inauguration, say mental health caregivers in Connecticut.
The strain is not being felt only by undocumented immigrants or liberal Democrats. According to a nationwide survey by the American Psychological Association, a majority of both Democrats and Republicans are concerned about the future of the country.
In this year’s Stress in America poll, conducted annually since 2007, 57 percent of those surveyed said “the current political climate” is a very or somewhat significant source of stress. Just under half (49 percent) said that about Trump’s election. The survey was taken between Jan. 5 and 19, the day before Trump was inaugurated president.
Nationwide, Democrats were far more likely than Republicans (72 percent to 26 percent) to say Trump’s election caused them stress, 59 percent of Republicans said they were concerned about the nation’s future, compared with 76 percent of Democrats.
Mark Gaynor, a psychotherapist in New Haven, said that in this part of the country, “one has to take the perspective that we’re in a very blue state, a very blue bubble.” But in 40 years of practice, he said, “I’ve never heard so much talk about the nation and the politics.”
Knowing that “this person has his finger on the button” that could start nuclear war, Gaynor said some of his clients have “acute anxiety about their future survival; others are concerned about their future employment.”
