Eco- What? Did I hear that right?
Recently I was reading an article about a new phenomenon in counseling practices, the emergence of eco- anxiety. Hmm… I thought that sounds like me! Though it is not yet in the DSM5, it is being recognized as growing issue, especially after this past year. So- what exactly is eco-anxiety? Some of the related terms are ‘climate change distress’, eco-trauma, eco-angst, or ecological grief. As we become more aware of the effects and reality of climate change, some of us are exhibiting symptoms very much like traditional anxiety. These symptoms include:
Anger
Frustration
Fatalistic thinking
Existential dread
Guilt or shame about your carbon footprint
PTSD after a climate disaster or event
Feelings of anxiety, depression, or panic
Obsessive thoughts about climate
Trouble sleeping
Appetite changes
Difficulty concentrating
There are a few demographics who are more susceptible to eco -anxiety. People who have gone through forced migration due to climate change extreme events. Think of those displaced migrants from Haiti, or the multiple hurricanes in Central America or after hurricanes Katrina and Rita in the southern US. People who have had their lives upturned are especially sensitive to the anxieties that these events create.
People from lower socio-economic sectors are sensitive to the effects of climate change, and the anxiety that they feel when thinking of how their lives are affected by powers beyond their control. Poverty is the biggest negative factor on mental health.
Children and young people, increasingly, are sensitive to eco- anxiety also because they see it as a problem that adults have created, yet are slow to react in meaningful ways.
The elderly are sensitive because of guilt or perceived lack of time to affect positive change. They worry about the legacy they have left for future generations.
I spent many years in the horticulture and landscaping fields. Environmental issues have always been important to me and as I became aware of the issues around climate change, I became more and more distressed. This farm and my quest to become a regenerative farmer are the results of my coming to grips with a severe case of eco- anxiety. Ask my husband and children what I was like 10 years ago.
As I look back, I realize that some of the factors contributing to my distress were: I was interested and knew some of the issues, I saw what our government was and wasn’t doing about the issues, and I saw the environmental stresses in my field every day. I was getting very anxious. I was working in the landscaping industry, traveling many miles commuting every day, witnessing the extremes of socio-economic disparity up close, and becoming increasingly upset. I switched jobs. I began working closer to home. I took myself to school and learned about regenerative farming and permaculture practices. I continued to be anxious, the more I read and watched and witnessed the more stress felt. I think my adrenal glands were just overloaded. I was exhausted, over-weight and frayed. I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism. I came up against hard choices about where to put my time and energy and how to live a life aligned with my beliefs and concerns.
My farm has saved me from the extreme effects of eco- anxiety. Not everyone can go find a dream farm though. There are however several strategies for dealing with this kind of anxiety, and most are do-able wherever you find yourself.
Like many difficult circumstances the first thing to put you in a path to recovery is simply to name it. Calling it what it is, helps us to recognize our feelings and see them for what they are and what they aren’t. Below are a few steps that can help. Some need all the steps, some just a few. It worth the time and effort to at least consider them if you feel this anxiety.
Step One : Get Educated
Once you have named your feelings go read about them. At first this seems to be the last thing you feel like doing. It may feel like doomscrolling, but when we research and educate ourselves we become armed with the objective information about the problem but also about the solutions. When I realized I felt so strongly about the situation in our environment, my research led me to The Savory Institute, ACRES USA, the Stockman Grass Farmer, The Livestock Conservancy, the Qivira Coalition and countless other authors and thinkers in the regenerative movement. Reading was healing and helped me sleep better and be less anxious. I gathered around me a circle of experts who were working feverishly on the issue and their books were a comfort.
Step Two: Take Action
Research and education can push you towards individuals, groups, and organizations where you can volunteer, be of service or participate. I signed up to mailing lists, went to conferences, donated to organizations, went on pasture walks, workdays, and lectures. I dug up my front yard and planted a garden in place of the grass, I grew my own vegetables, I grew flowers for my church, I sought out raw milk, I gave up on household disposable paper products (except toilet paper).
Three things you can do to take action include:
Talking to others about environmental practices
Volunteering with environmental groups
Making greener choices
Step Three: Focus on Resilience
This is a challenge, but we only need look to Nature herself to see how resilience can be a healing force in our lives. Resiliency is that ability to get back up after you have been knocked down; even though it hurts, even though you are fearful. Resiliency is a muscle that gets stronger with practice. So, you must practice to be better at it. One thing that helps is fostering trusting and caring relationships. Give yourself a break and be with folks who don’t laugh at you when you are down, who will lend a hand when you fall, or a comforting word when you are frightened. Sometimes we need to let go of bad relationships to become resilient.
The next thing is to re-focus on solutions. We must begin to see the problem as solvable. This was super important to me. When I realized there were people out there promoting and doing regenerative farming and using regenerative agricultural practices to mitigate the effects of climate change, I grabbed onto a solution and it became my way forward. We know what the problem is, we need to all work towards solutions. This was a turning point for me. It galvanized me into action and set my course for the rest of my life. Find a solution and make that your mission. It will ease your anxiety, I promise. It will be that thing that makes you get back up and move forward. It will strengthen your resiliency muscles.
Make achievable goals and work diligently towards them. I did not become a regenerative farmer overnight. In fact, I am still working towards that goal. I am making my way slowly, and that’s OK, because it is keeping my anxiety at bay. It is the slow work towards this goal that is healing. It is that process. Each step achieved gives me momentum and the momentum carries me forward when I am experiencing resistance.
Stop every now and then to see the wider context. It is worth acknowledging that your work is aligning with your beliefs and that is an important force in the world.
“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs,
Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have came alive.”
You are now part of a solution and that feeling does a great deal to quell anxiety. We are now in control of our actions and we are doing something about the problem. Everything is important, there is no action too small. It is our offering that has power.
While you are at it, give your self a pat on the back. Practice self- care and pay attention to your self-esteem. Focus on the good work you are doing.
Connect to your personal culture, or sense of place. Become indigenous. Discover what is unique about your specific environment. Appreciate what is has to offer you. Connect to and protect it for others. Share with your friends and acquaintances and delight in what is unique to your surroundings.
Lastly, build a circle of like-minded people around you. Do not isolate, you are not alone. Sometimes if you are down, others will lift you up, especially if they are on your same path. Be a cheerleader for another.
Resiliency is the key to fighting off anxiety. To recognize it is a cycle, of up and down, will give you the strength to recover from debilitating anxiety. Like the tides that come in and out, there is a rhythm to resiliency. Soon you will find out there are more ups than downs and that is a good feeling.
Step Four: Be Optimistic
Being optimistic is easier once you have acquired resiliency. It is easier to be optimistic when you are more up than down and when you realize that falling down is not forever. Search for the positive, you will find it! Share the wins. Look for examples of solutions and spread them.
Step Five: Strengthen Ties with Nature
Get outside. Walk, garden, listen to the sounds. Make it part of your daily routine. Be in Nature- don’t just read about it or watch it on a screen. Breath deep and look with all your senses.
Step Six: Get Active
Physically. Walk, run, hike, sweat, get cold, get hot, be outside. Experience your environment. It is much more enjoyable than we are led to believe. Everything does not have to be ideal. Humans are adaptable. Push yourself and you will see how far extremes can be and still be bearable. Then you will realize that cutting back on the air-conditioning, or walking a little farther to the car, is not so terrible and an easy way to do your part. Notice the birds, the bees, (yes- they don’t all sting), all the creatures in your environment. They also need a hospitable environment. How do you affect them and not the other way ‘round. When we get active we, begin to see and feel the world around us more than our personal thoughts. Activity can be a distraction and an introduction.
Step Seven: Know When to Disengage
There can become a point where you just need to stop thinking about your eco- anxiety. If you are doing all these things and it not abating, stop engaging with the stressful behavior. Give yourself a break. Which can lead to…
Step Eight: Go See a Doctor
Anxiety can be so severe it begins to affect your health to the point of disease. Do not wait until this happens. There are so many professionals who have real answers and solutions to mental health issues. Now after Covid, there are even more resources available and tele-health is readily available. There are some things that have gotten better, and I truly believe the recent focus on mental health is one of them. We are up against some real climate issues and we need all of us to be up for the challenge.
I am not a doctor, but I am a person who has suffered from real anxiety. I know these steps really work. When I was seriously anxious, just reading about or being around people who were working on a solution was comforting. Hearing their stories, reading about their lives, or seeing them at work helped me imagine a solution. I hope my work here on Brown Dog Farm can be that for you. We all can solve this problem together; farmers, ranchers, artists, scientists, engineers, teachers, actors, dancers, counselors, chefs, and librarians, each one in their own way. We must just do the work.