Image credit: Hillary Waters Fayle
The world is super messed up right now. Your mental health doesn’t have to be.
Climate-aware therapy and psychiatry for eco-anxiety.
I’m a psychiatrist supporting folks in MN and CA who are feeling the mental health impacts of climate change and political upheaval.
How are we all just going to work when the world is on fire?
Planning for the future (saving money, choosing a career, starting a family) when everything feels pointless.
Spending time in nature when you can already feel the effects of climate change on your favorite places.
Feeling guilty about contributing to climate change and participating in capitalism.
Talking to the young people in your life about the problems, and worrying about the world they will inherit.
Not sleeping when you’re ruminating about the latest terrifying climate report.
Feeling inadequate in your ability to make a difference.
Maybe you’re struggling with…
I remember sitting on the floor playing with my young daughter, trying to hide my tears after reading some doomer climate article, and looking at her and thinking, “What have I done?” I wanted to talk about how terrified I felt, but I worried I would fall into a dark emotional pit and never crawl out.
Then at a conference, I randomly attended a ritual called the Truth Mandala and learned about Joanna Macy and The Work That Reconnects. Finally, a framework that helped me access my fear, rage, and grief in a way that felt energizing instead of devastating.
We are in it together.
When it comes to climate change anxiety, I feel you.
You don’t have to feel drained like a gas tank.
You can be recharged like a solar panel, renewed like rich soil, rewilded like a landscape.
There is a path to feeling joy while working for change.
The Work That Reconnects provides a transformative framework for eco-anxiety.
Joanna Macy created the Work That Reconnects (WTR), a collection of practices that fortify us to take part in The Great Turning, her name for the transition to a just and sustainable society. Drawing on systems theory, deep ecology, and wisdom traditions, WTR methods match up with established treatments for anxiety, depression, and trauma. Macy understood how to create conditions where painful feelings can be accessed safely; then she witnessed those powerful emotions lead to creative problem-solving. This profound observation is supported by cutting-edge neuro-psychological studies.
How we heal climate anxiety:
Reframe
Apocalypse as adventure. Pain as evidence of interconnection. Facing fear as a sign courage. We still feel the grief, fear, and despair, just within a new context.
Resource
It takes deep wells of nourishment to meet this moment. Luckily, we have our bodies, communities, ancestors, and Earth herself to help sustain us.
Refocus
Instead of doomscrolling and filling our minds with the worst, we can train our talents on envisioning and embodying the world we want to create.
(See what I did there? With the 3 re-’s?)
Imagine a life where…
You can make small purchases without obsessing over your carbon footprint.
You recognize the ways you already make the world a better place.
You feel part of the web of life, as well as a larger movement and community.
The crises feel like a call to adventure that draws out your deepest strengths.
You can envision the world you want and take small, meaningful steps in that direction.
You understand your specific role in the movement and stop feeling like you have to do everything.
Eco-anxiety is a portal to creative action.
Let’s chat about how climate change, politics, and injustice are impacting you and how we can fortify your spirit to thrive.