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Let’s not beat around the bush. Regardless of which side of the political and ideological spectrum you choose, these are stressful times. Despite our common desire to live in a world based on hope, trust, and love, we all struggle to navigate the downward spiral triggered by an overwhelming flood of uncertainty, deception, and fear. Stress is nonpartisan.

Stressors are coming at us like bullets from multiple directions: fear-mongering media, negative campaigning, conspiracy theories, existential threats, fake news, information overload, and divided homes and communities. Finding calm in the middle of the relentless noise, negativity, and distraction becomes more and more difficult, especially with the $10.5M in political ads spent to convince you that your life is in jeopardy and the ‘other’ party is the source of all your stress.

Based on the American Psychological Association’s 2024 report reviewing leading causes of stress in the U.S., seven out of 10 adults claim the future of the nation as a key source of stress for them, regardless of their party line.

When it comes to our personal health, election stress creates a negative ripple effect across core areas of our well-being, including sleep, appetite, motivation, screen time, work, finances, trust, and relationships.

While many mental health advocates and organizations offer valuable tips for coping with these conditions, few provide practical ways to use an invaluable and scientifically validated resource you already know and love—music.

While it may not change the election outcome, music is a great resource for quickly shifting your mental state, lowering cortisol, and amplifying joy and positivity during unusually stressful times. Like stress, music directly impacts the parts of the brain that process emotions, human connection, and movement. The music you love even affects those pesky negative thoughts and old stories that fuel the fires of stress. Moreover, music is always there for you. It is inexpensive, quick-acting, and free of negative side effects.

Following are five simple ways you can reduce stress and amplify joy during post-election mayhem:

1. Rise Like the Sun

Imagine if the sun bolted into the sky each morning like the switching on of a floodlight, or if every day started with a sonic boom. The entire animal kingdom would declare a state of panic.

According to neuroscientist Ted Zanto, lead researcher at the UCSF Neuroscape labs, shocking your brain out of a deep sleep with a jarring alarm clock or a station blaring the latest political news can elicit a neurochemical response similar to that of an animal being woken by a life-threatening predator. That’s a bit counterproductive to the beginning of a stress-free day.

Alternatively, waking to a familiar piece of music can help ease you into the day like a beautiful sunrise and start you off in a better mood. While it might not make you leap out of bed (or your skin, for that matter), and could set you back 15 minutes from being the first to digest the latest political poll, it’s a good way to prevent spiking your nervous system with that neurochemical stress cocktail—cortisol—first thing in the morning.

Once you are up and moving, fill your room with music you love and keep the news, texts, and emails at bay for as long as you can. Extend your morning ritual by making a playlist of music that inspires and puts you in the right state of mind. A positive morning music ritual is a sure way to start your day in a better mood before the onslaught of negative news lights up your inbox. This is your time—that sacred space where you get to define your life before the world defines it for you.

2. Set Your Daily Groove

Psychologist and author of The Joy of Movement, Dr. Kelly McGonigal, tells us that regular movement and exercise is the number one way to reduce stress and ensure greater health and happiness. And music is a scientifically validated way to amplify that positive effect on your mind and body.

Motivation and movement both come from the same Latin root, and music engages both the motor cortex and emotional centers of the brain, providing the perfect neuro-stimulator to get you up and keep you moving.

If you have a daily exercise routine, take music along with you. A morning walk or run, even yoga or stretching, can become easier and more enjoyable if you have music as your personal companion.

Put on your DJ hat and create your personal Power Playlist to rock your run and add some groove to your moves. It might take a little trial and error to create the mix that works for you, so be patient and have fun with the process. Remember that the underlying theme of both music and athletics is to play. By combining the benefits of physical exercise and listening to music, dancing is a fantastic way to reduce stress while having fun.

Can’t seem to find the time for that daily exercise but like to dance? Try a “one-song dancercise,” adding a few cool moves as you dance around your home or office, or two-stepping your way across the parking lot to your car. Stacking music and movement throughout the day is a fundamental recipe for health and happiness.

3. Sing and Play

If you want to enhance the positive effects of music, try singing in the morning (or all day long, if you’re so inclined). As the quote from Peter Pan goes, “If you cannot teach me to fly, teach me to sing.” So, take flight with your soaring voice, either a cappella or to a recording.

If you need a great stressbuster or a joy-booster, singing can help regulate your breathing and heart rate, reduce anxiety, increase oxygenation to your cells, improve your immunity, and increase the release of the feel-good neurochemicals dopamine and oxytocin.

Don’t worry about whether you are a “good” singer—this is not about performing or putting yourself in another stressful situation. Just let your voice express itself in song. Sing in the shower; sing in the car; sing with your kids; or hum a lullaby before you go to sleep.

In the wise words of philosopher and psychologist William James:

“I don’t sing because I’m happy. I’m happy because I sing.”

Still hesitant to sing but know how to play an instrument? If so, you have another stress-reducing power tool at your fingertips.

According to Dr. Daniel Levitin, author of This Is Your Brain on Music, playing music has been shown to increase the body’s production of the antibody immunoglobulin A, as well as natural killer cells—the cells that attack invading viruses and boost the immune system. Playing with others can help reduce levels of the undesirable stress hormone cortisol and increase the brain’s production of that feel-good neurochemical oxytocin.

Whether you are a well-versed musician or just beginning to learn how to play an instrument, spend a few minutes each day playing music. It can be simple scales or rudimentary exercises, a favorite song, or something improvisational. Even Albert Einstein tapped into music’s ability to recharge the brain, unleash creativity, and light up those motor synapses that refuel our engines when we’re feeling stuck.

Singing or playing music are two of the best ways to clear your mind of holiday worries, amplify the joy of the season, and bring a sense of vitality to the trillions of cells in your brain and body.

4. Express Yourself

Okay—I hear you. Sometimes you feel more like screaming than singing, and you need to just let it out. At the most basic neurobiological level, everyone needs to be seen and heard. Aldous Huxley said, “After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music.”

A great way to channel and release those pent-up emotions is to listen to a favorite song, artist, or playlist that expresses your sentiment. It allows for a kind of emotional entrainment that may be needed before you shift to a more positive and relaxing state and soundtrack.

Music is also an incredible bonding tool—both for more deeply connecting to someone you don’t understand and for expressing what you are unable to say when you feel misunderstood.

Peter Gabriel said, “When people can’t find the words or don’t speak the same language, music becomes their common language.”

Try this exercise with your friends or family at dinner or between listening to the news updates:

1. Have each person choose and share one of the following: 
   1. A song that expresses how they feel. 
   2. A song that expresses how they want to feel.
2. Ask them (without judging) what that song means to them and why they chose it.

Be sure to come from a place of curiosity and non-judgment so people feel safe to express themselves and share without criticism.

5. Change Your Bedtime Story

They say our best days start the evening before. One of the biggest contributors to anxiety and the election blues—one that makes us more vulnerable to other stressors—is a bad night’s sleep. Do yourself and your brain a big favor: shut down those blue-light-generating, attention-stealing digital devices, turn down the lights, turn off the news, and put on some relaxing music to prepare yourself for a more restful slumber.

There is ample scientific evidence validating the therapeutic use of music to reduce anxiety, regulate emotional arousal, support the parasympathetic nervous system, reduce cortisol, improve your mood, and even decrease negative thoughts—all of which are factors that can impact the quality of your sleep.

No matter how much stress crept into your day, you can choose to write a more peaceful conclusion to your story. Making that hour before sleep sacred is one of the surest ways to prepare yourself for a more restorative night and help you feel more refreshed and energized the following day.

Although it might not sound like as much fun as dancing across your boss’s desk or throwing eggs at your political opponents, committing to a nightly musical evening wind-down hour might be the most important step you take for your well-being, as well as your overall mood and energy during these stressful times.

Give Yourself the Gift of Music

Let the gift of music help you turn down the stress and amplify the positive in your life, as well as in the lives of those you love. Even if you are one of the few not stressed by the media chaos and ideological divide but want to amplify your energy and create more joy-filled moments for yourself and those you love, music is always there for you.

When you feel better, you do better; and life feels better with music.

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For more suggestions, and to learn more about improving your wellbeing, amplifying your joy, and unleashing your potential, download a gift and check out AmplifiedBook.com. It is packed with scientifically validated insights and practical ways to transform life and mood through the power of music.