Posted on 03/06/2024 4:34:08 AM PST by Oldeconomybuyer
Mary Rittle says she experiences climate anxiety every single day. It may be a 55-degree January day in Chicago, when she notices that birds that should have migrated are still around. Or it could be after reading about how melting polar ice caps are endangering people around the world. Even her environmental activism can trigger anxiety because it reminds her of the urgent need for such work.
"This overwhelming sense of worry and fear and helplessness is very easy to get caught up in," says Rittle, who is a freshman at Loyola University Chicago. "I sometimes feel like, what could I possibly do? Why is no one taking this seriously? Why are lawmakers and corporations not taking this seriously?"
But Rittle's activism also helps relieve her anxiety, as does spending time in nature. Another anxiety-buster is having a community of like-minded students at Loyola University Chicago, where she is active in the Restoration Club and a new group, called "Eco-Warriors."
Climate anxiety — sometimes referred to as "eco-anxiety" or "ecological distress" — goes beyond concern for the environmental peril facing the planet because of global warming. It manifests itself much like other anxieties, with intrusive thoughts, sleeplessness, a racing heart or shortness of breath, and interference with relationships, work or school. It can include a range of feelings, from helplessness and sadness, to hopelessness and despair.
Experts say that distress is a normal human response to a crisis. But for young people, climate anxiety can be compounded by social media and other stressors.
(Excerpt) Read more at ncronline.org ...
It was different ... Yes, the "Masters of the Universe" tried to scare us with that stuff, but most folks ignored it or laughed at it.
Russia's nuclear weapons were of greater concern, and we didn't let that paralyze us either.
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