Voters Sick and Tired of Election Anxiety

Oct. 28, 2004 — -- Voters are losing sleep, suffering from headaches, pacing the floors -- all in the name of Election 2004.

On the airwaves, online and even on T-shirts, there's virtually no escape from the countdown to the election. And in these last few days before Election Day, Nov. 2, it's not just the candidates who are feeling the heat. It's the voters, too.

The Washington Post even came up with a tongue in cheek name for it -- P.E.A.D., or pre-election anxiety disorder.

"I'm definitely feeling my blood pressure rise too much," one potential voter told ABC News.

"I'm definitely uneasy," said another. "Sometimes I just want to turn off the TV."

"I wish it was all over already," a third said.

A recent Wall Street Journal poll showed why the election is so intense: Seventy-two percent of Americans believe the outcome will make a "big" difference in their lives and those of their families. That's a huge leap from 1996, when only 40 percent of Americans felt that way.

Kerry supporter Erika Christakis knows firsthand it's been an ugly election year.

"I certainly am much angrier than I have ever been," she said. "I've had really steamed arguments with family and friends."

Even her son Sebastian has noticed the frayed nerves.

"I feel a lot more arguing, and I see more kind of stress that the adults have," he said.