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PsycheDo you regularly feel anxious about the future of the planet? You’re not alone. Here’s howto deal effectively with your climate-change concerns without losing your impetus to actWhat keeps you awake at 3am?Work deadlines? An
argument before bed? Mortgage repayments? We all carry
around daily worries, but some of us are sleepless over a much
bigger concern – the state of planet Earth.
‘Eco-anxiety’ is something that mental-health practitioners
report seeing a spike in over recent years, as we collectively
wake up to the urgency of the climate crisis we find ourselves
in today. A recent poll* of our top concerns showed the
environment eclipsing issues such as housing and crime for
the first time ever.
Olivia Howers, 27, who studied sustainability, science and
policy at university, admits to living with such a sense of
anxiety. ‘I had this constant nagging feeling at the back of
my mind, a low level worry that I couldn’t get rid of. When
you think about how much needs to change in such a short
space of time, it’s completely overwhelming,’ she says. ‘Part ofthat anxiety comes from being with family and friends who
don’t see that change is necessary.’
‘The rise in eco-anxiety,’ says Caroline Hickman, a
psychotherapist at the University of Bath, ‘can be traced back
to an unlikely source – Sir David Attenborough.’ His award-
winningBlue Planet IIseries hit our screens in October 2017
and brought the extent of what had, until then, been an
existential threat into sharp relief, as we watched the negative
impact we are having on our oceans and marine life. ‘This was
a shifting point. The impact of the climate crisis truly became
lodged in the public consciousness with this film.’
The momentum was unstoppable, with other respected
figures adding their voice to the cause, alongside news
headlines about the crisis. ‘Then, 16-year-old Greta Thunberg
started a global movement with the school strikes, while
Extinction Rebellion launched its Act Now campaign. EvenARE YOU SUFFERING FROMECO-ANXIETY?