You probably have a few opinions on the U.S. presidential election. Regardless of where you live, even across the globe, this year’s election has stirred more than its fair share of discussion. Simultaneously, you’re probably tired of everyone sharing these opinions. At some point, the ideas thrown around seem to all carry the same three or four messages. However, with an opinion in hand and a deadline to fill, here I am anyway. But instead of talking about the election directly, I’d like to talk about something else that still might apply to the past few days and the U.S. election as a whole.

Mental illness can make you hurt people. It’s a painful reality, but it is the reality. I’ve done it more than I’d like to admit. An unnecessarily sharp comment. A moment of frustration taken out on someone undeserving. If you or someone close to you faces mental illness, you probably know how the effects of neurological malfunction can create unhealthy reactions. Similarly, you know the frustration of how uncontrollable these disorders can be at times. The annoyance is one I know firsthand. However, I also know that this “uncontrollability” of my illness doesn’t excuse the action which can stem from it. I can’t hurt people around me and simply slough off the responsibility. I still made choices that hurt someone, and I need to work towards restitution.

At the same time, it’s unwise to ignore what caused my actions or vilify a person without any regard to the underlying reasons behind what they’ve done. Accepting responsibility without working to prevent reoccurrences is classic symptom management over true healing. Sometimes this means taking medication, starting therapy, or learning how to cope in a healthy manner. Whatever the treatment, refusal to excuse harmful choices can only benefit when joined by efforts to eliminate the foundation of those decisions.

This election, I’ve heard a lot about the difficult realities which influenced many voters. These underlying realities which drove the election of a candidate on the basis of fear and frustration cannot be ignored. This election didn’t begin with a “lesser of two evils” dichotomy. It began with an intense dissatisfaction and fear among many in America. These factors continued to drive a presidential campaign until the day of the election. Ignoring these hardships is a dangerous decision. Years of ignoring these struggles manifested in the election of an unqualified candidate who tapped into bitterness and frustration. Continuing to turn a blind eye on this fertile ground just promises an eventual repetition of this year’s election in the future.

At the same time, the election still occurred. A presidential campaign founded on the intersection of hates and fears rose to our nation’s highest office of power. This election was not always “one of two evils.” Throughout this past year, there were many candidates who could have provided better than the disturbing conglomeration of anger, apathy, and ignorance which barreled through the American political landscape. Through the ensuing months, we made our choices, and now thousands of individuals are unsure what the next four years, or even decades, will hold for their families, their rights, and their security. No culmination of reasons can excuse that reality or explain it away. The American people cannot decline responsibility for the persons we have elected, the actions they will take, and the country that may subsequently form. While recognizing the need to improve and alter the causal reality that created our situation, we ought to take responsibility for the hurt that could be dealt from the choices we make, and the hurt that has already been done.

Alleviate the cause, work tirelessly to prevent the situations which breed moments of lashing out. But please do not ignore the outcome of that action or excuse its damage on the basis of understandable causes. “Understandable” is not synonymous with “excusable.”