A few weeks ago, due to an abnormal heat wave in the middle of winter in Argentina, Dafna Nudelmann, known on the network as Loca del Taper – profile where he promotes responsible consumption – I share on Twitter that he has received several messages from his followers saying they are overwhelmed by the current context, that is suffer because environmental anxiety and ask for the contact of a mental health professional who can help.

The post immediately went viral and a lesser-heard term became a trending topic: environmental anxiety. As is often the case on networks, the polarization was palpable and although some users empathized with the request, others mocked and criticized him. However, what can be considered a simple online debate focuses on the psychological impact of the socio-environmental crisis on society.

What is environmental anxiety?

Although echoanxiety is not considered a disease, it has been cataloged by the American Psychology Association, which describes it as one “chronic fear of suffering from environmental catastrophe that occurs when observing the seemingly irreversible impacts of climate change and the associated concern for one’s own future and that of the next generation”.

To Dafna Nudelman, sustainability and circular economy specialist and author of this book How we destroy the world and how we repair it (Editorial Paidos)Feeling sadness and anxiety in the face of events we are experiencing, and what we know will happen, is the most sensible thing to do. “It has to be acknowledged that while the media are covering the climate crisis more today than ever before, and that is a good thing, they often do so with headlines that misinterpret the facts and generate panic and concern. This scenario makes some people who are just starting out if they are faced with these issues, they are logically affected and do not have the tools to relieve the discomfort, “said Nudelman.

“Those of us who have been in this for a long time are familiar with the feeling and have strategies, but that doesn’t mean we stop feeling it. I prove it myself, but also many colleagues and professionals who write. for me right now, even people who work in the field of conservation, in contact with nature, also feel anxiety about the environment,” said Nudelman. “Hate waves on Twitter seek to dispel these emotions because they understand that the discomfort of environmental anxiety is for trees and birds, and that we don’t care about humans. This is a mistake, because one thing cannot cancel the other, in fact, concern for the climate crisis and people’s well-being are inextricably linked,” he added.

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Another argument that has emerged in the debate regarding Nudelman’s tweets is that environmental anxiety is a “white man’s problem”, that is, a problem for privileged people, and that “there are worse problems”. “And in this we have to recognize that there is some truth to this. The satisfaction of certain basic needs on the physical plane is what enables us to seek challenges in areas that are more mental, intellectual, or metaphysical, as you would say. Those who living day to day Today, we don’t have time to think about the climate crisis, but the fact is that those of us who care about the effects of climate change think a lot about this, we understand that in an unfair world, where opportunities are distributed in an unfair way, the most vulnerable groups will suffer even worse times. The rich will endure heatwaves in swimming pools and with air conditioning, they will be able to afford when there is a shortage of water and food. The poor will not be able to afford it. .In the event of a fire or flood, they they will lose what they have. This is climate injustice. And this worries us,” said Nudelman.

Climate change and mental health

“Talk about environmental anxiety involves talking about the anxiety caused by the disclosure of scientific information referred to in this case is climate“, Explain Gustavo Corrasfrom the Department of Psychoanalysis and Society of the Argentine Psychoanalytic Association (APA).

“Psychological reactions to climate change information basically result in three psychological positions: the first is denial, namely systematic rejection of any reference to possible change or warnings about climate as a psychological defense mechanism. The second is taking an alert and militant position, a defense mechanism consisting of taking a highly alarming and voluntary position in the face of information and the other is probably curiosity, perhaps the least subjective and has more to do with trying to understand and approach unknown phenomena. disseminated trying to find reliable sources that refer to the subject”, he explained.

For Corras, environmental anxiety can be understood as the suffering of those who use the first two defense mechanisms, namely denial and militant alertness. “Both those that are subjective and add to pre-existing anxiety on the subject,” he explained, while explaining that mental health science has not been included in international protocol decision-making that refers to international norms or not. whether they have been included in the scientific review commissions which until recently have been tasked with informing political and economic forces about the environmental situation. “The most important contribution of mental health science is the study of why humans put themselves in a position that endangers their environment if they know about this phenomenon,” he explained.

In 2021, the British medical journal The Lancet published first investigation on a large scale about climate change anxiety in children and young people around the world and its relationship to government responses. They surveyed 10,000 children and youth (16 to 25 years of age) from Australia, Brazil, the Philippines, Finland, France, India, Nigeria, Portugal, the United States and the United Kingdom. The results show that 59% are very or very worried about climate change and 84% are at least moderately concerned.

How to deal with environmental anxiety

“As for what to deal with environmental anxietypreferably in the face of the dissemination of scientific information on environmental issues such as climate change, global warming, genetic diversity, conservation, etc., before taking an active or extreme position, one tends to knowledge and seeks reliable sources,” said Corras.

For Nudelman, after the commotion that occurred, his reflections are to organize and take action. “I think the most effective thing we can do is get together with other people, form a group and do it, because it’s good for us. For some, activism on the streets can be the most exciting and most effective thing they find. . For others, leaving the house is not an option, but they are willing to spend hours collecting seeds or planting seedlings. In fact, all of these things, even when done alone, are much more uplifting, motivating, moving and nourishing when we do them with other people, with whom we can share not only catharsis, sorrow, worry and despair, but also accomplishments. , satisfaction and progress”, he concluded.