By Cheryl Mattox Berry
After more than a week of the man-child’s antics in the Oval Office, I couldn’t take any more Donald J. Trump news, so I decided to unplug from the media. No newspapers, Facebook, NPR, news feeds on my cellphone, CNN and local TV news. I needed a Trumpless day.
Did I miss not being informed of the latest news? Nope. At lunchtime, I was in a good mood. No stress or anger over something stupid Trump had said or done.
Everything was going great until about 8 p.m. when I talked to my daughter, who lives in Washington, D.C. She brought up the immigration ban and how people were reacting around the world. We talked about it a couple of minutes, and I quickly changed the subject.
I wanted to remain in an unaffected political state of mind until midnight, but that was not to be. A girlfriend, who also lives in D.C., and works for the federal goverment, called me. She had a litany of complaints about the new administration, and I listened patiently, adding a comment here and there.
By the time we finished talking, I was worked up again. I realized it’s impossible to go a day without Trump news. Either I hear it directly or someone is talking about him.
The solution: Try and manage exposure to it.
It’s no doubt Trump is trying to do big things during his first 100 days in office. We can expect more outrageous behavior and speeches, which will be reported and debated ad nauseum by the media.
To keep yourself from going crazy, try not to be obsessed with Trump’s day-to-day minutiae. I’ve decided to watch network news in the evening and tune in to NPR if I’m in the car. That way I can control my anxiety and blood pressure while the man-child flexes his new political muscle.
I just hope he settles down after the first 100 days.