According to Jochem Bukman, climate psychologist and alumnus of VU Amsterdam, feeling stressed about climate change is a sign of a healthy emotional life. In his practice, he treats young people with climate-related concerns.
Climate stress doesn't sound particularly positive. However, you believe that it shouldn't be avoided. Can you elaborate on that?
‘When you experience climate stress, it is important that you acknowledge it instead of avoiding those feelings. It's not strange to feel climate stress. We are facing the biggest problem humanity has ever seen. Your system is preparing you for something incredibly difficult. So, the goal is not to avoid these feelings but to recognize that these negative emotions are an important part of change. I find that grief is the most comparable emotion. What happens internally is that you are grieving for a planet that isn't gone yet. The grief doesn't go away, and so we must focus on how to better cope with the symptoms.’
How does climate stress manifest in your patients?
‘Climate stress mainly manifests itself as anxiety and depression symptoms. The most severe problems I see are in young people, especially Gen-Z, who are completely paralysed by their feelings of doom. The end of the planet seems inevitable, so why bother getting off the couch? Or young people who argue with their friends because they disagree on how to address the climate and thus become estranged from them. And I think it plays a role in even more people's symptoms, which often go unnoticed because they don't yet have the terminology for climate stress.’
Do the overwhelming emotions associated with climate stress perhaps also offer a possible explanation for climate deniers?
‘I think that's exactly what's happening. The climate problem touches on various difficult emotions to bear: guilt, and even shame. Psychologically, we have many coping mechanisms to avoid confronting these emotions. It could be blamed on other people, the government, or other organisations. That may all be true, but we still need to acknowledge that we are also responsible. The deeper fear underneath is: see, I'm not doing well, and I'm not good enough. Part of our psyche will always try to protect us from that.’
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