Discussion: Politics, Stress, Sleep

Discussion: Politics, Stress, Sleep

Permalink: https://collepals.com/discussion-politics-stress-sleep/

In your reading assignments for this module, you read about a classic example of politics and health promotion in the episode of Rick Perry and the HPV vaccine. For your original post, cite another example of politics and a health promotion topic. An example could be smoking cessation and politics (whether on the local, state, or national level). Thoroughly explain how politics and the selected health promotion topic are related. Your post should clearly demonstrate a thorough understanding of the example being provided. Remember to include an APA formatted in-text citation and corresponding reference from a recent (within last 5 years) professional journal or website (NIH, CDC, etc.).

An APA formatted in-text citation and corresponding reference from a recent (within last 5 years) professional journal or website (NIH, CDC, etc.) are required in your initial discussion post. Blogs, magazines, and newspapers are NOT considered scholarly, professional sources.

In about a week, it’ll all be over. The winning candidate’s supporters will breathe a collective sigh of relief, the losing candidate’s supporters will decry the unfairness of the outcome and possibly demand a recount, and all of us, we hope, can get a good night’s rest.

Because make no mistake: The election is stressing out a lot of us. So much so that, yes, it’s been causing some sleep problems along with general anxiety. While there doesn’t seem to be any way to quantify it, anecdotally, healthcare professionals across the nation have been seeing an uptick in insomnia and disrupted sleep.

But until then?

“Short of having somebody take a sleeping pill that lasts for the next several days, I think there are two solutions,” said Beth Ann Malow, M.D., director of the Vanderbilt Sleep Center.

Tried-and-true methods of combating sleepless nights are just as relevant during this emotionally charged campaign season, Malow said.

1. Do something worthwhile.

“My feeling is one of the root causes is that people feel disconnected,” Malow said. “There’s a whole disconnect with what’s going on in our society and in our communities. I’ve been encouraging people to get involved in something at the local level.”

Malow took her own advice, getting involved in a local push for later school start times in Williamson County, to be more in sync with teenagers’ natural body clocks. Now, Metro Nashville schools are considering the same issue.

“I found that helped alleviate the stress I was feeling,” Malow said. “I got to feel like I’m making a difference in my world and connecting with other people. That’s very helpful and meaningful.

“You can find something that’s meaningful for you — volunteer at a food bank, help build a house for Habitat for Humanity, or do something where you’re going to feel at end of day, ‘I’m an American and I’m making a difference in my community.’”