As a citizen, I feel a duty to engage in national politics.  I stay informed, but I know there’s little I can do and fretting about it depletes me.  As a private person, I have fulfilling work to do, satisfying relationship with friends and family, and activities that bring me pleasure.  It strengthens me.  It would be wrong to neglect my duty as a citizen, so rather than feeling “torn” between the two, which implies severing the public from the private, I seek balance, a point where my contributions as a citizen are made valuable because I’ve maximized my personal power.