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The Washington Post, providing coverage from America’s political epicentre, had already reported in September that frayed nerves over the Clinton-Trump battle were so bad for some that Steven Stosny, a therapist practising in the US capital, coined a new psych term for his suffering patients - Election Stress Disorder. According to APA psychologists, the extreme emotional tone of the campaign has trumped logical thinking across all demographics and party affiliations. US election day counter "Election stress becomes exacerbated by arguments, stories, images and video on social media that can heighten concern and frustration, particularly with thousands of comments that can range from factual to hostile or even inflammatory," said Lynn Bufka, PhD, APA’s associate executive director for practice research and policy. Nearly four in ten adults (38 percent), according to the survey, say that political and cultural discussions on social media cause them stress. In addition, adults who use social media are more likely than adults who do not to say the election is a very or somewhat significant source of stress (54 percent vs. 45 percent, respectively). Full survey results are to be released in early 2017. Not all Washington, DC residents have fallen prey to Election Stress Disorder. “Stressful, no, but without doubt the most talked about election in my house,” says Nathan, the manager of a downtown bank branch two blocks from the recently opened Trump International Hotel. Trump vs Clinton Presidential debate number 3 quotes Nathan, an African American, says this election has generated more discussion among his family members than the candidacy of Barack Obama. In particular, his thirteen year old son who attends an ethnically diverse high school at Andrews Air Force Base, is troubled by Mr Trump’s comments on building a wall between Mexico and the US. “He has friends who are Mexican,” Nathan notes. The manager of a downtown jewellery store living in the District since 1972 has watched all the debates and believes the election comes down to a scenario of “one candidate doing less harm to the US than the other”. Mexican protesters burn pinata resembling Donald Trump Watch | Mexican protesters burn pinata resembling Donald Trump 00:56 He believes Washington residents may be more hardened to political combat than voters in other parts of the country. But 26-year-old Cory, who works in a sandwich shop and is a native Washingtonian, has maintained a no-news-watching policy during the campaign. He pleads guilty to having high stress “because of the candidates” and is eager for the election to be over. Three thousand miles from Washington in northern California, a local television station reports that heightened election anxiety is so bad that some voters are turning off their computers and phones and turning away from social media. “I just really don’t use it as much. It’s just really inflammatory,” said one California female voter. Donald Trump in quotes Another Golden State voter noted: “There’s definitely a lot of people who are saying things like, ‘If you don’t agree with my political beliefs or you don’t have the same political views that I do, I am going to have to unfriend you.’ And I think that’s because the candidates (Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton) are extreme.” The APA offers the following suggestions for American voters suffering from election stress: * Limit media consumption. Take a break from the newsfeed and go for a walk. * Avoid getting into discussions about the election that you believe may escalate into arguments. * Channel concerns and advocate issue positions through community volunteering and joining local groups. * Avoid catastrophising, knowing that life will go on no matter what happens on November 8, Election Day in the US. * Vote. 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