Romney Supporters Lament the 'Mourning' After the Election - East Idaho News

Romney Supporters Lament the ‘Mourning’ After the Election

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155689899?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1352341894935Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images(NEW YORK) — Thanks to the barrage of political ads and candidate robo-calls, a lot of Americans woke up Wednesday with a nasty case of campaign fatigue.

And, of course, about 48 percent of the country, whether they live in a blue state or red state or somewhere in between, are also experiencing post-election dejection.

Some, like Carole Lieberman of California, say they feel let down.

“I am extremely depressed that Mitt Romney didn’t win, not only for myself and my daughter but for the future of this country!” she said.

Obama’s win is doubly tough on Lieberman, as she’s still trying to recover from John McCain’s loss in 2008.

Dr. Nicholas DiNubile, a surgeon who lives in central Pennsylvania, is also feeling blue. “I’m mostly disappointed that Mitt Romney was not elected because it’s not often that a candidate comes along with the exact skills, track record and experience for what is most needed at this very critical point in time for our country, which is tinkering on the brink of economic collapse,” DiNubile said.

Research suggests that Romney supporters may have a harder time getting over their candidate’s defeat than Obama supporters would if the president had lost. A 2012 University of Nebraska-Lincoln study found that conservative thinkers dwelled much longer on unpleasant images – such as open wounds, crashed cars and dirty toilets — than did their left-leaning counterparts.

No matter how tough it might be for Romney voters now that the long political party’s over, Jeffrey Brown, an assistant clinical professor in the department of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and author of Chicken Soup for the Soul: Think Positive for Great Health, urged them to move on.

“Focus on things that are familiar and routine and remember what life was like before the maddening race,” he said. “If you’re angry, find a healthy outlet for venting but keep in mind, everything bad you could say about the other guy has probably already been said thousands of times.”

Romney voters might also take solace in the fact that they’re not the only ones who are less than elated over the presidential outcome. Many independent voters said they weren’t going to be happy no matter which way the election went down.

James McKenzie of Tucson, Ariz., hasn’t voted for a mainstream party candidate in years, because, he said, he doesn’t like where either party wants to take us. As he puts it, “I’m neither state. I’m ‘out of state’ as they say.”

As with any disappointment, Brown said it would probably help if the other side doesn’t gloat too much.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

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