It’s the “new thing” in the world of anxiety, and it’s hitting hard; it’s called “eco-anxiety” or “enviro-angst.” According to Medill Reports at Northwestern University, a growing number of people are turning their lives around to become more environmentally conscious because they are experiencing extreme anxiety about the condition of our planet.

These people sometimes worry about the environment to the point where they have a hard time throwing anything out; they worry about the toxins around them; the world’s water supplies or the emissions from their car. Some worry so much that they go to extreme measures to try to avoid hurting the environment.

Caring about the environment is not a bad thing, and there are a lot of different measures that we all need to implement in order to do our part in keeping the planet in good shape. Excessive worrying and anxiety related to the environment however, is not the same as caring. “Eco-anxiety,” like most other kinds of anxiety is not really about what you might be afraid of. Eco-anxiety is about control, or more specifically lack thereof.

Worrying about something that is outside of your control and thinking that your life is in danger are both classic anxiety symptoms. Just as a lot of people are afraid of someone breaking into their house to hurt them because they hear about this kind of stuff on the news all the time, people are now afraid because they keep hearing more and more about the severe state the environment is in.

I’m not saying the planet is not going through a rough time at the moment, but as more people wake up to what is going on, the trend is gradually turning. There are a lot of things we can all do to help the environment, and we have a responsibility to do them. It is important to keep yourself informed on what you can do to make a difference, but worrying is not one of them.

Rather than watching the new and focusing on what is wrong about the situation, focus on all the little things you can do in your everyday life to help. I you suffer from “eco-anxiety”, chances are it’s not the first time you have experienced anxiety but rather that you just transferred your anxiety from something else you used to worry about. Remember that at the end of the day, you are not helping the environment by feeling anxious. Being informed helps; being scared doesn’t.

JM
www.easycalm.com

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