Try looking up the term “community anxiety” and you’ll have trouble pinning down a definition. People who see a psychiatrist might get a quizzical look if they ask about it. The term doesn’t appear in the DSM-5, also known as the all-important “The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition.”
But after the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump on Saturday, July 13, and in the midst of one of the most vitriol-filled and impactful elections in memory, a lot of people in the Portland area, in Oregon, and around the nation were feeling a spike in anxiety by Monday, July 15.
A metro-area psychiatrist and an associate professor of psychiatry say community reactions to any big, historic and conflict-laden event differs from person to person.
One Oregonian’s spike in anxiety can be another Oregonian’s yawner.
“We don’t really talk about ‘community anxiety,’” said Dr. Gen Tanaka, associate professor of psychiatry at Oregon Health & Science University’s School of Medicine, and president of the Oregon Psychiatric Physicians Association. “But ‘shared trauma’ is real. And we share a lot right now.”
For some people, Saturday’s shooting at a campaign event in Pennsylvania likely caused anxiety and horrifying remembrances of the 1960s political assassinations. But that event was just one in a long chain of traumatizing events, said Dr. Surya Karlapati, president-elect of the association.
Think COVID-19, plus wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Ukraine, and the Black Lives Matter protests, and smoke from 2020’s wildfires choking the metro area, and the brief downturn in the economy followed by lingering inflation. And the one thing fans and foes of President Joe Biden and former president Trump can agree on is this: angry political rhetoric rose during the pandemic and never seemed to abate.
“It’s not just one thing or another,” Karlapati said. “It’s one thing after another.”
The psychiatrists’ advice for when it all gets to be too much?
“Turn to your community. I think of the people I trust; people I rely on,” he said.
Plus, there’s always the “off” button for your social media of choice. “Giving it a break is not a bad idea,” Karlapati said. “We use this term: ‘Take a holiday.’ A ‘holiday’ could be a brief moment, or days, or a few hours. But it’s so important.”
Tanaka agreed: He advises that people surround themselves with people who are positive; with friends and family; with a social support network.
His advice includes the physical as well as the communal: Practice mindfulness, exercise, eat well, and maybe dial back substances such as alcohol.
“Surrounding yourself with doom and gloom is no good,” Tanaka said.
And if none of that tamps down the anxiety, seek the help of a health care professional. “Seeking help and support is not a weakness,” he said. “That’s very outdated thinking.”
It’s important to remember that not all stress is bad stress. Rooting for your favorite team can be stressful in good ways (your team ekes out a win) or in bad ways (thank you, Blazers). Giving a public speech can be stressful. But if you enjoy public speaking and are good at it, it can be the good kind of stress; the kind that revs your engines, rather than depletes your reserves.
And it differs for everyone. Some readers might have broken out in a cold sweat just reading the words “public speaking” in the previous paragraph.
While anxiety likely is too individualized an experience to be categorized as “community,” both psychiatrists were quick to add that ignoring the anxiety in others around you can be a problem.
“If friends aren’t doing well, if you see warning signs, bring it up. Talk,” Tanaka added. “It’s not a judgment. It’s being a good friend.”
While almost everyone feels some level of anxiety at one time or another, Karlapati said the impact of that anxiety is important. Is your anxiety affecting your ability to function, to take care of yourself, to take care of others, or impacting your work performance?
“If you see red flags: Immediately seek help,” he said. That could mean seeing a mental health professional, or checking in with your primary health care provider.
“The worst thing is not to talk about it,” Karlapati said. “The longer anxiety is not addressed, the worse it gets.”
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