Holding Ourselves Together: Managing Stress, Fear, and Hopelessness in Times of State Violence
TW: state violence, political
A lot of us are scared, angry, confused and exhausted right now. Government goons are roaming the streets attacking and killing innocent people, benefits are being cut left and right, and there does not seem to be any real opposition to this in our political system. We are all struggling with the balance of staying informed, activated and angry with the reality that life is still happening, our families, our kids still need us and we still have to show up to work everyday like we are not experiencing all of this.
We feel unsafe and our bodies know this.
Our bodies are wired to respond to danger. Repeated exposure to images of raids, arrests, or government violence keeps many people stuck in fight-or-flight or drops them into shutdown. You might notice:
Hypervigilance, trouble sleeping, or irritability
Panic, dread, or a sense of waiting for the next bad thing
Numbness, dissociation, or a foggy sense of hopelessness
These are normal responses to real danger.
Individual Coping Helps, But It Isn’t Enough
We can't cope our way out of fascism or oppression. I’m not going to sugar coat it. Or hide behind my professionalism. The danger is real, the fear is justified.
Grounding skills, therapy, medication, movement, and rest all matter. They can help regulate your nervous system in the moment. But telling people to “self-care” without naming the source of harm can feel invalidating. When the stressor is systemic, healing can’t be purely individual.
Mental health doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It’s shaped by policies, power, and whether our communities are safe.
Community Is a Mental Health Intervention
Connection is one of the most protective factors we have. Being with others who understand—who don’t minimize the fear or ask you to explain why this hurts—can reduce isolation and restore a sense of agency.
Community care can look like:
Sharing accurate information and safety plans
Checking in on neighbors after raids or protests
Showing up to court dates, vigils, or mutual aid efforts
Creating spaces to grieve, rage, and rest together
It can also look like going to see a cool band with shared values or listening to angry leftist music in your car on the way to work. We need each other. That's the only thing that will work.
These acts regulate our nervous systems because they remind us: I am not alone.
Mutual Aid: Care Outside the System That Harms Us
Mutual aid isn’t charity. It’s collective survival. It’s people meeting each other’s needs when institutions fail or actively cause harm. Participating in mutual aid can be grounding because it turns helplessness into action.
turns helplessness into action.
You don’t have to do everything. Small, sustainable contributions matter:
Donating to bond funds or rapid-response networks
Offering rides, childcare, meals, or translation
Sharing resources discreetly and safely
Supporting organizers and immigrant-led groups
There are some mutual aide groups out there that are on our resources page.
Boundaries Are Part of Resistance
Staying informed does not mean being online 24/7. Doom-scrolling keeps the threat signal blaring. It’s okay to:
Limit news intake
Mute triggering accounts
Step back from conversations that spiral into panic
Rest is not disengagement. Baring a witness is not the same thing as torturing ourselves. It’s how we stay in this for the long haul.
Therapy Can Help You Hold This, Not Explain It Away
As a therapist I can’t treat oppression, capitalism, or facism. It would be incredibly insulting if I or any other therapist claimed otherwise.
Good therapy doesn’t ask you to accept injustice or “reframe” oppression as a mindset problem. It can help you process fear, trauma, and moral injury while honoring your values and rage. Therapy can be a place to strengthen your capacity to stay connected, resourced, and human in inhumane conditions.
If you’re struggling right now, you’re not weak, you're responding to a world that is asking too much. Lean on the community. Offer care where you can. Receive it when you need to. Our mental health is tied to each other, and surviving this moment will take more than individual resilience. It will take collective care.
You are not overreacting, you are not crazy. You are a human being experiencing trauma caused by institutions that should be protecting you. That is a lot. It's normal to be anxious, angry or even hopeless.
Stay safe, and let’s help each other.
-Norman
