How is the current political climate impacting clients in therapy?
It is difficult for a therapist in DC to answer this question considering how the very nature of living in close proximity to the White House and the Capitol shapes the careers and life experience of the clients in my therapy practice. But I do notice that the clients I work with report feeling more engaged with their communities than they were four years ago. Whether through parent teacher associations, volunteer work or political organizing, connection to community is on the rise in my small slice of the therapy universe.
During the last Presidential cycle and especially in the immediate aftermath of the 2016 election, many clients talked about feeling addicted to the news. Now I see clients turning away from the news and towards their communities. So it was an honor to be interviewed by Marc Fisher of The Washington Post who is looking at this question on a broader scale.
As mentioned in the article, the pollster Frank Luntz’s findings seem different than my anecdotal experience. Fisher writes about conversations with voters in various communities who describe sentiments aligned with my therapy clients, so I am curious why we differ from those interviewed through Luntz’s research.
Check out the article and let us know what you think!
