Climate change and mental health

If you’re struggling with difficult feelings about climate change, you’re not alone. We’re here to help you understand the links between climate change and mental health. And offer tips on how to find a way forward in uncertain times.

Climate change makes me feel quite anxious. I feel like there’s not enough being done to prevent it from happening and that scares me for the future…

How can climate change affect mental health?

Climate change can contribute to:

• Difficult thoughts and feelings
• Mental health problems
• Physical health problems
• Social inequalities

You might feel like this affects you all the time. Or perhaps just at specific times. Like when you:

• Learn about climate change, for example on the news or social media
• See the impact of climate change – like seeing wildfires forcing people to leave their homes
• Are directly affected – like if your own home gets flooded or a heatwave harms you

How climate change can make us feel 

• Anxious and worried. For example, about how your actions affect the environment. You may feel very aware and unable to stop thinking about your impact.
• Afraid, uncertain or dreading the future. You may fear how future climate events may affect you, or future generations.
• Hopeless, helpless or powerless. You may feel like it’s too late to save the Earth and humanity. Or that there’s nothing you can do about it. You may feel it’s pointless to plan for the future.
• Grief, loss, sadness or depression. Perhaps when you see the environment being destroyed. Or when you see less diversity in nature than you used to. This feeling of grief is sometimes called ‘solastalgia.’
• Angry about businesses’ and governments’ impact on the environment. And their lack of action against climate change.
• Guilty about humans’ impact on the environment, other people, animals and wildlife.
• Uncertain about whether to have children. If you want to and can have children, you may worry about their impact on the environment. And the world they will inherit.
• Stressed about your impact on the environment. Or about everyday impacts like rising food prices.
• Concerned about misinformation. You may feel unsure what to believe if you see conflicting information. Or frustrated that others debate whether climate change is real, despite the evidence.
• Frustrated and isolated. For example, if events like heatwaves stop you from doing your usual activities. Or from using services you need. You may also feel isolated emotionally if other people don’t feel the way same as you.

It can make me feel quite guilty and down at times because I never feel like I’m doing enough.

Links between mental health problems and climate change

Climate change and mental health problems are linked in the following ways:

Creates new problems, or makes existing problems worse

Difficult feelings about climate change can contribute to developing mental health problems. Or these worries can become a feature of an existing problem. Like anxiety, depression or OCD.

For example, obsessions and compulsions might relate to worries about your environmental impact.

Experts also think distress about climate change may contribute to suicidal thoughts. Although there isn’t much research into this yet. But hotter temperatures are linked with more mental health hospital admissions, and suicides.

Learn more about suicidal thoughts and suicide prevention.

Traumatic experiences

Living through a climate change-related disaster can be distressing and traumatic. For example, if you’ve been injured or lost your home.

This in turn can lead to anxiety, depression or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Our pages about trauma have more information.

I’m a big researcher… While this can be helpful in easing my anxiety, it is also a compulsion of my OCD. And this ultimately only increases my anxiety and sense of doom. Especially if what I am reading is very end-of-the-world focused.

Links between physical health and climate change

Climate change can also affect our physical health. For example:

• Some medications can make heatwaves more difficult to cope with. This includes some antipsychotics and St John’s Wort, which can make us more sensitive to sunlight. And some antidepressants can make us sweat more.
• Hotter temperatures can cause sleep problems.
• Heat can make symptoms of some conditions worse, including diabetes.

Being physically unwell can be hard to cope with. This can impact our mental health.

Links between climate change and social inequalities

Those of us who face social disadvantage are more likely to develop mental health problems. For example, if we experience poverty, racism or disability.

And those of us living with social disadvantage are also more likely to be worse affected by climate change. For example, we’re more likely to live in places at risk from heatwaves, flooding or erosion. So we’re more likely to get health problems and damage to our homes.

This is stressful and expensive, which creates yet more problems. Plus when we’re disadvantaged in several ways at once, it’s even harder.

This is how social inequality, climate change and health problems all overlap and reinforce each other.

It’s a vicious cycle.

Climate change can also make global inequality worse. Communities in the world who have done the least to cause climate change may be worst affected by it. At the same time, they're often less included in climate activism and research.

Having been through a few climate disasters (floods and droughts), I carry some trauma. I am still trying to process.

Is ‘climate anxiety’ a mental health problem?

Some of us are starting to use terms like ‘climate anxiety’ or ‘eco anxiety’ to describe our experiences. But these aren’t formal diagnoses you could get from your doctor.

Currently there's no clinical diagnosis for how climate change impacts mental health.

This might change in future. But experts don’t agree on whether there should be a mental health diagnosis to do with climate change.

Arguments for a diagnosis

Some say a diagnosis would recognise the uniquely distressing impacts of climate change. This could justify more research into these impacts. And lead to more possible support options.

Arguments against a diagnosis

Others highlight that these difficult feelings are understandable reactions to a threat. They worry that a diagnosis would suggest that our feelings need ‘fixing’. When in fact what needs to be fixed is climate change.

These debates can feel confusing. But the important thing to remember is that your feelings are valid. Climate change is real. This may make you very distressed and can contribute to mental health problems.

It’s always OK to ask for help with difficult feelings about climate change. Even if you’re not sure whether it’s a mental health problem.

I find the news really overwhelming when it comes to climate change. It makes me feel a mixture of anxiety and confusion.

How to cope with climate change

Finding ways to cope doesn't mean ignoring the issues. It means being aware of your wellbeing while staying aware that climate change is a real problem.

For us to feel truly better, governments, businesses and society all need to take action to protect the environment. But at the same time, it’s OK to think about how to ease your distress.

Research on what helps is still growing, but these ideas may be useful. Different things work at different times for different people. If you've tried something and it hasn't helped, try to be gentle and patient with yourself.

Acknowledge and allow your emotions about climate change

You may find it helpful to remind yourself:

• Your feelings are a valid response to real events
• Your concerns come from a place of care
• Your feelings reflect your empathy for the environment

Being kind to yourself in this way may help you feel able to think about the possibility of a positive future.

This idea comes from an approach called Active Hope. It explores how we can focus on the future we’re hoping for and take small steps to make it a reality. It’s about what we can do even if we don’t feel hopeful.

You can find out more about Active Hope on Norfolk and Waveney Mind’s website.

Remembering that there are several organisations and millions of people who want to protect the Earth makes me feel better.

Learn about climate change in manageable ways

Learning about climate change can help us stay informed and find ways to help. But it can also make us feel overwhelmed and anxious.

To try and find a balance, you could:

• Set yourself limits and try to stick to them. For example, you could decide to only look at content about climate change for a set amount of time.
• Focus on evidence-based information about climate change. For example, information from the World Health Organisation or the United Nations.
• Seek out positive or uplifting stories about climate activism. For example, the websites Postive.News and Local Storytelling Exchange share happier stories about the environment.
• Be kind to yourself if you need to take a break from climate change content to look after your mental health.

Our page on coping with distressing events in the news has more tips.

Take action to support the environment

It’s not your individual responsibility to ‘fix’ climate change. But if you feel able to, finding some manageable ways to take part in climate activism could boost your mood.

Whenever you feel ready, you could look at:

• Earthwatch Europe for ideas to protect nature. It offers a list of UK citizen science projects. These include things like wildlife monitoring, to help people contribute to environmental research.
• Friends of the Earth for ways to support their campaigns or join a local action group
• Greenpeace for ways to volunteer or sign petitions
• Keep Britain Tidy for details of litter picking projects in your area
• Marine Conservation Society for beach cleaning projects you could join
• The Conservation Volunteers for volunteering opportunities with conservation projects
• The Wildlife Trusts for ways to look after wildlife, like community gardening
• WWF for ways to live more sustainably or join a demonstration

Remember, if climate activism is making you feel overwhelmed or exhausted, it’s OK to take a break. Looking after yourself is important too.

You might want to try some of our other tips first, before taking action. This could help you to help you express how you’re feeling and feel less alone.

I try to avoid the doom and gloom around it by trying to do my own bit. Like recycling, reusing things and buying items from charity shops so they get a second life.

Connect with like-minded people

Sharing how you feel with people facing similar struggles can help you feel heard and less alone.

You could speak to someone you trust. If people close to you don’t understand, you could show them this information to help explain things.

You could also join a group where people share their feelings about climate change. You can search for climate cafés and similar groups online.

For example:

• Climate Psychology Alliance runs online climate café listening circles
• Climate Café® Network Hub links to climate cafés globally
• The Resilience Project runs events to support young people up to the age of 28, depending on the event

Or if you have a mental health problem, you might want to join a group of people who share this experience.

You could join an online forum like our Side by Side community. Or there might be a local group near you. Our page on how to find a support group gives lots of options.

Staying connected to my community, helping out by volunteering, and talking about what I’d been through helped me the most.

Spend time in nature

Things like spending time in green spaces, growing food or bringing plants into your home can help improve your mood. They can help you connect with and appreciate nature. Allowing yourself to enjoy nature can be an important way of looking after yourself.

Our page of wellbeing ideas to try in nature is a good starting point.

If you find that these activities are also a sad reminder of what we’re losing due to climate change, try to be gentle with yourself. You might find it helpful share how you’re feeling with others.

Some services offer therapeutic activities that support mental health through nature. This may include ecotherapy programmes, which involve doing outdoor activities in nature.

This year I started to keep a nature journal. I love the process more than just taking pictures. I have improved my observational drawing skills, and have something positive to share with others.

Take care of your overall wellbeing

Taking care of ourselves is sometimes called practising self-care.

Self-care means different things to different people. It can describe anything you do to look after your own physical and mental wellbeing. It's a way to build up your energy and strength.

When you're feeling very worried, you may find it harder to sleep, exercise or take care of your diet. But taking small steps to look after yourself can be helpful, even when lots of things feel out of control.

Take a look at our suggestions for:

• Improving your wellbeing
• Coping with sleep problems
• Physical activity and exercise
• Food and mental health
• Relaxation

Get professional help for your mental health

If worrying about climate change is affecting your day-to-day life, you might want to speak to a professional.

It’s common to feel unsure about reaching out for support. You might worry about whether they'll take you seriously. Or whether it's worth trying.

But it’s always OK to seek support. You deserve to be listened to, and there are services that might help.

Therapy or counselling for climate change

There's no specific recommended therapy for the mental health effects of climate change. But you can still speak to a therapist about your feelings.

This can give you space to explore difficult feelings and experiences. And some therapists are starting to adapt their work to support people affected by climate change.

To find out more:

• Explore our guides to therapy and counselling – these explain what it's all about
• Talk to your GP to see if they could refer you for therapy to help with difficult emotions like anxiety or grief
• Contact your local Mind to see if they have talking therapies services in your area
• Explore Climate Psychology Alliance’s therapy directory. It lists therapists who have an interest in climate change and mental health. Some may offer some free sessions, but you usually need to pay.

Before you decide whether to work with a therapist, you can ask them if they’re confident talking about climate change. Their answers could help you decide whether they’re right for you.

And it’s a good idea to check that any therapist is registered with a professional body before you work with them. Like the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP).

Find out more about how to get the most from therapy, and how to cope on a waiting list for therapy.