Protest is everywhere nowadays, from the revolution in Nepal to Italians shutting down their country for days on end and, of course, people here in the United States protecting their communities in places like Los Angeles, Chicago, and Portland.
We are, worldwide, living in unstable times, and protest has been one of the key mechanisms of change for centuries. But doctors and scientists say they are inherently destabilizing and at times even frightening, even if we’re just watching from afar on social media.
That has very real impacts on our brains — ones that can threaten the efficacy of our efforts if we don’t know how to manage them. With the second No Kings Day protest approaching this weekend, a psychiatrist and doctor are offering guidance on how to not just manage all this energy but harness it in the most effective way possible.
At the core of any protest is what Dr. Hannah Nearney, M.D., a clinical psychiatrist and Medical Director at Flow Neuroscience in the U.K., said is “intense emotional response to perceived unfairness.”
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That has a profound impact on our brains, especially in the amygdala, the “oldest” part of the human brain, where fight-or-flight lives. And that fight-or-flight response is a double-edged sword, including when it comes to protests.
“Our brain detects injustice, emotional processing areas such as the amygdala become activated, we experience anger, adrenaline hits the blood, and dopamine rewards the thought of doing something about it,” Dr. Nearney says. That process becomes contagious and is what underpins collective actions like protest.
The problem, though, is that just as the amygdala motivates us to run from the tiger, whether literal or metaphorical, it also throws our brains’ equilibrium off, and we can get “stuck” in the amygdala. That not only takes a toll on us physically and mentally, but it also impedes us from taking effective action on our goals.
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“Prolonged unrest can quickly erode people’s sense of stability,” Dr. Nearney says, disrupting everything from sleep and appetite to focus and emotional balance. And accordingly, studies have shown that 80% of activists experience moderate to severe anxiety or depression during times of political volatility.
Studies have also shown that rates of depression rise by approximately 7% during times of protests, among not just protestors but also mere observers. It’s particularly pronounced when the protest in question doesn’t result in immediate change.
You can probably see where this is going: “The euphoria of being part of something bigger,” in Dr. Nearney’s terms, quickly gives way to an “emotional rollercoaster” that “wears people down, both mentally and physically.”
Dr. Nearney’s colleague, Dr. Kultar Singh Garcha, M.D., NHS GP and Global Medical Director at Flow Neuroscience, explained it this way: “Every time we come back from the streets, the body has to adjust. Adrenaline falls, dopamine levels drop, and people can feel flat or even purposeless.”
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This whole situation creates a bit of a pickle: Protests are about accomplishing goals and creating change, but it’s next to impossible to stay focused and proactive about that process when your brain and body are this beleaguered by the work of protest.
That’s why Drs. Nearney and Singh Garcha recommend that all protestors make a concerted effort to manage their nervous systems, not just after protests but also during regular day-to-day upheavals, such as reading news headlines.
Part of the amygdala’s job is to literally shut down your “thinking brain” in order to pour as many resources into fight-or-flight survival as possible. With all the constant chaos we’re in these days, our brains struggle to get out of that state, which makes it hard for us to be effective at anything besides being angry.
Focusing on things like a regular sleep schedule, a nourishing diet, and most importantly, moments of quiet and rest that “tell the body it’s safe again” are essential. “Think of it like cooling down after a sprint,” suggested Dr. Nearney. “You’ve used up enormous emotional energy; now the nervous system needs predictability” in order to recover.
Human connection is equally important. “The most protective thing you can do is to lean into your existing connections with family, friends, and community networks,” said Dr. Nearney, who suggests having a designated friend or group to decompress with after demonstrations.
“Leveraging these relationships helps the brain process what’s happened, promotes a sense of security, and turns isolation into shared understanding.” And that, in turn, will help your amygdala calm down and help bring your “thinking brain” back online so you can continue the fight toward change and justice.
As Dr. Singh Garcha puts it, “protests reach their goals when people pace themselves… Looking after your mental health is about resilience and the ability to keep standing when the world feels uncertain.” We could all use a bit of that these days.
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John Sundholm is a writer, editor, and video personality with 20 years of experience in media and entertainment. He covers culture, mental health, and human interest topics.
