By Emma Weibel (she/her) Youth v. Oil Intern
There is no denying that the past couple of weeks have been unmeasurably stressful and heartbreaking. At times like these, it can feel like we are screaming our worst fears into the void while those in power shrug off our pain.
I know that feeling all too well. As someone who is extremely anxious, I have had my share of politics-driven despair; yet, in the aftermath of the election, I am not falling apart. It’s not because I care any less about the climate crisis or the state of human rights, but because I made a conscious decision to disentangle my hope from the outside forces that threaten to crush it.
I want to share a bit about my journey of overcoming climate anxiety to hopefully help others with similar struggles.
So here it is: The Anxious Teen’s Guide to Life in the Climate Crisis.
Step 1: Find Your Proof of Hope
When you are in a state of despair, no amount of wistful words about “changing your mindset” will get you through the worst of it. The first step is to reconnect with something that makes you love life or humanity, or the world itself. For me, intrinsic in my climate despair was a loss of faith in humanity. It is easy to feel like there is no good left, that the world is falling apart because of selflessness and apathy. You might even think that all of humanity sucks!!
Our brains love to create these absolutes that seem giant and unsurmountable. There is no good left? All of humanity is terrible? The beautiful thing about absolutes, as mathematics teaches us, is that they can be disproven by a single counter-example. So the first thing to do when you catch yourself creating these absolutes is to get up and go find your counter-examples. For example, I love to read; so when I am in a bad place, I pick up one of my favorite books and revel in the brilliance of human writers. Maybe you love music, art, or nature, whatever it is, take the time to reconnect with it. If you are not in a current state of despair, keep that list handy. If you are, put aside this post and go do something on that list; once you feel grounded, come back and keep reading.
Step 2: Detach Your Sense of Self from the Political Landscape
Now let’s get into some of the mindset shifts that can help you stay out of the pit of despair, especially when things inevitably go wrong in the world. The first thing to understand is that your life does not have to be defined by the political climate. Yes, you can be angry when people in power make terrible choices, but it is important to disentangle their actions from your sense of self-worth. This doesn’t mean we stop caring, it just means we care for a different reason. One of my favorite quotes of all time comes from the former president of Czechoslovakia Vaclav Havel and was introduced to me in the book of climate optimism “Not Too Late,”: “Hope is not the conviction that something will turn out well, but the certainty that something is worth doing no matter what.” If we place our hope solely on the uncertain future of climate, we will be in a constant state of fear and despair. But if we derive our hope from the fight itself, knowing that so many of us devote our lives to protecting our communities and the world we love, then we will always find reasons to keep fighting. This shift in perspective changed my life. It is easy to let the fear of failure stop you before you even try, but a movement cannot thrive on immobilizing panic, it flourishes on the fierce will to protect what we love; that same frustration can be a source of power if we channel it into action. Feeling your feelings is productive, but getting stuck in despair is not.
Step 3: Remind Yourself of Your Own Agency
Internalizing this change in perspective may seem impossible, but I promise you it can be done. The fact that I, a person who couldn’t get out of bed for days after the Willow Project passed, am writing this post is a testament to that. Every time you feel your mind drifting towards absolutes or spiraling about the future, remind yourself of these things:
I cannot control everything and I am doing the most I can for this fight
There are people and things around me that make life joyful
I will not let outside forces define my hope
Step 4: Focus on the Here and Now
Sometimes, with an issue as large as the climate crisis, it is ok to narrow your focus. The future will unfold regardless of whether we obsess over it or not; a future free from fossil fuels will only materialize if we take care of each other and maintain the strength to keep fighting. The climate movement is defined by the love of those people brave enough to undertake this journey with no clear destination in sight: that uncertainty can be quite scary sometimes, but it’s also freeing. We know what we love, and that’s what really matters.
In conclusion, this fight is not about hoping we find the one perfect solution. It’s about the daily choice to act and care, that is the only way we can protect everything we cherish so deeply.
And when you feel overwhelmed, when despair threatens you, remember: you are not alone!!
There is so much beauty and hope in the world, and there is a path forward: one step at the time!
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