Facing climate change with good news
Illustrations by Paula Rodriguez
by Summer Tao
If I had to describe one thing as the perfect manifestation of pure anxiety, I'd pick climate change.
We know it's bad and it will get worse. No, we don't know exactly how it will get worse. It's too large a monstrosity to fully comprehend, but damage is already here. Young people are growing up with this looming over everything – from school decisions to career dreams. Of course it feels personal.
Just like the best sources of anxiety, our individual impact on it is basically negligible. Climate change is becoming an increasing source of stress for many. That's why there's a term for it: climate anxiety.
The emotional impact of playing hot potato with a planet
Climate anxiety is, as explained by Sarah Lowe in Yale Experts Explain Climate Anxiety, ‘‘fundamentally distress about climate change and its impacts on the landscape and human existence. That can manifest as intrusive thoughts or feelings of distress about future disasters or the long-term future of human existence and the world, including one’s own descendants. There is a physiological component that would include heart racing and shortness of breath, and a behavioral component: when climate anxiety gets in the way of one’s social relationships or functioning at work or school.”
Lowe, a clinical psychologist and Associate Professor in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences at Yale School of Public Health, co-authored a research paper that showed how collective action could be a buffer against climate anxiety for young adults.
The experience of climate anxiety is different for everyone, but it bears the hallmarks of other kinds of anxiety. The list of feelings compiled by Rachel Goldberg (LMFT) includes, "hopelessness or existential dread regarding the future, which hinders the ability to navigate daily life effectively." This goes on to, "influence deeply personal decisions, such as whether to have children, as individuals weigh the potential environmental implications of such choices."
The last part there holds completely true for me. When I was a teen, I wanted children. The effects of climate change and dumpster-fire economic conditions have shifted my goals toward cats. These stressors hit young people especially hard because the baton for the future has been passed to us. As a large-scale survey study said, "Climate anxiety indicates the care and empathy that young people have for our world."
If you've ever felt like the future feels too uncertain to plan for, you're not alone. It means we’re paying attention. And caring this much is actually a strength, not a weakness.
Although so many people experience it, “climate anxiety" is not classified as a mental disorder in any mainstream manual. The most convincing rationale is that anxiety represents an exaggerated and unrealistic fear response to normal stimuli. Feeling anxious about the scale and dangers of climate change is quite rational. That's a logically sound argument, sure. It's just not reassuring to hear that my fear of an unknowably catastrophic problem is “proportional.”
So what can I do about it?
Illustration by Paula Rodriguez
Climate anxiety isn't just about Earth. It's mostly about us.
When I began addressing my climate anxiety, I quickly saw a pattern between said anxiety and my news diet. I think there's a point in the argument that climate anxiety is a rational response to the problem. However, I was getting my info about that problem from somewhere, and I could feel it shaping my perspective.
That took me back to the old axiom that if it bleeds, it leads. This principle in news reporting prioritizes showing bad news because negative emotions draw attention. In our social-media-dominated world, this results in emotive claims all vying for 15-second blocks of our attention. The net impact of this is subtle, but insidious. After being bombarded with so much negative reporting, I started believing things really were that bad. Goldberg straight up recommends, "Tuning out excessive news coverage about climate change," to reduce overwhelm.
That's the most insidious quality about climate anxiety. It fosters despair in our minds that impedes our agency or ability to resist. Thankfully, I also found the movement to countermand that despair: climate optimism.
Climate optimism is a perspective that recognizes the destruction of anthropogenic climate change, but also sees the enormous capacity of humankind to respond. It intersects sharply with solutions-based media that reports on positive efforts alongside bad news. It’s about seeing the full picture, including the incredible actions people are taking.
When I added climate innovations and grassroots efforts to my news intake, it was freeing. While there is a risk of veering into toxic positivity, we're far from that point if we're still experiencing dread. Climate optimism isn't a rejection of science. I think there's nothing more scientific than processing different viewpoints to reach an appropriate conclusion. That's why science and optimism can coexist.
For milder worries, University of Colorado Boulder's guidelines on managing climate anxiety treat me well. Their guidelines start with focusing on what you can control: “Climate change is a complex issue. Remind yourself that climate change cannot be solved by any one person, organization or government on their own. While this may feel disheartening, it’s also a good reminder to focus on what is within your control rather than what isn’t.”
This might look like: taking breaks from doomscrolling, going outside, or making art. In the Yale article, Lowe added, “I think having a smart media diet is important. …Stay aware but put limits on your consumption, and just be aware if you are doom scrolling.
Once again, I noted the startling similarities between their recommendations and the ones I use to improve my engagement with social media. Of course, not everyone experiences climate anxiety mildly. For some, it's a major source of distress, an all-devouring worry that impedes daily well-being.
In those situations, therapy still has a place. I learned a new term: climate-informed therapy. The Center for Nature Informed Therapy writes, “The American Psychological Association (APA) has recognized eco-anxiety as a legitimate concern and has published guidelines to help mental health professionals address these issues with their clients. The APA suggests that eco-anxiety can be addressed through building resilience, fostering a sense of community, and encouraging individual actions to mitigate climate change.”
Like its cousins, eco-anxiety deprives us of hope and personal agency. Climate change is all about Earth and her trials, but climate anxiety is about us. We won't have energy left to fight climate change if we're fried with anxiety and despair. So it's rather good that the basic tools to resist eco-anxiety can also improve our well-being elsewhere.
I'd say it even makes me feel a little hopeful.
Summer Tao has a Masters in Psychology and is currently pursuing a PhD focused on LGBTQ+ healthcare in South Africa. Summer’s writing often covers topics including queer relationships, sexual health, tabletop gaming, and humor.
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