The Canadian election has come and gone. It was a whirlwind event with the election being called a mere 6 weeks before we were supposed to head to the polls.

And now that the Liberals have returned to power in a minority government, people across Canada are experiencing very strong and very mixed emotions.

Those who didn’t want the Liberals to be re-elected are feeling angry and disenfranchised. Those who did want the Liberals back in power are feeling nervous that the government might not stand.

The emotional temperature in Canada is running high and some friends and family members are at odds with one-another. If one person voted Liberal and the other voted Conservative, there can be a lot of tension between them because often in these cases, both people are convinced that they’re right and the other person is wrong.

These days, politics can be a very charged subject. The stakes have never been so high. Whatever side of the political spectrum you’re on, elections can be extremely divisive and extremely anxiety-provoking.

People are powerfully invested in their own agendas, whether it’s those in Alberta and Saskatchewan who chose not to vote in a single Liberal candidate, or those in Ontario who painted the province red in protest against the policies of Doug Ford, the recently-elected premier.

The new minority government in Canada can become a source of stress for many. Conservatives are frustrated, as their party won the popular vote but lost the election. For those who vote NDP, it’s probably quite aggravating, because it appears that strategic voting took place, robbing this party of possibly 10 parliamentary seats.

For Liberals it’s frightening, because they aren’t sure whether the new government will be able to enact the policies that are so important to them. It seems that the only ones who are happy are the people of Quebec who gave the Bloc Quebecois an impressive 34 seats and a strong voice for that province.

These days the issues are more highly charged than ever before. Those who are concerned about climate change were desperate to see a party with a progressive agenda take power, in order to address this critical issue. Those in the west who are concerned about the economy and jobs were desperate to have a party in power that would prioritize these issues.

Right now, other than those who voted for the Bloc, few Canadians can relax and feel confident that the things they want will come to pass. The Liberal government is going to have to join forces with the other parties on each important issue, or they’ll face another election with most likely, a very different outcome.

In the United States, hundreds of thousands of people are experiencing serious mental health problems because of what’s going on in their political system. I’m really hoping that Canadians don’t start suffering from politics-based anxiety.

All us Canadians can do is wait and hope, and take a few deep breaths. The rest is up to the people who we elected. If anyone is inclined to prayer, now might be an appropriate time to put in a good word for our country.

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