Climate Corner of the Middle Ohio Valley (Photo Illustration/MetroCreative)
The mass extinction of coral reefs, the abrupt thawing of permafrost, the collapse of the Greenland ice sheet, the loss of the Amazon rainforest, the drying up of Atlantic ocean currents. These headlines can be disheartening and disturbing. Even more disturbing to our personal psyche can be direct experiences of wildfires, hurricanes, heat waves, droughts and floods linked to human-caused climate change.
As a psychologist, I have long been interested in the impact of external events on mental health. I began by dispelling the myth about the impact of astronomical events such as lunar phases (there is no evidence that lunar events affect mental stability), weather such as seasonal changes (seasonal affective disorder during winter months with little sunlight), and economic indicators on mental health. Several years ago, I received funding for a research project on the relationship between economic factors and mental health in Appalachia, where we found a lagged influence of economic indicators on admissions to community mental health centers in the region.
The pervasive, relentless, and increasingly dangerous phenomena associated with climate change pose new challenges to all people on Earth and to the mental health professionals who must deal with those affected by these events. Negative reactions to climate change include anxiety, helplessness, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and suicidal thoughts. The risk of such mental health problems is greatest for those directly affected by climate-related disasters such as floods, heat waves, and wildfires (67% of those affected by the 2018 Camp Fire in California showed PTSD symptoms – The Commonwealth Fund, 2023). Not surprisingly, those whose livelihoods have been destroyed by climate change-related disasters such as floods or hurricanes experience mental health problems. But even those not directly affected by disasters can experience mental health problems when confronted with information about the unstoppable impacts of human-caused climate change. In a 2021 Commonwealth Fund survey of 10,000 young people (ages 16 to 25), more than 45% of respondents said that worries about climate change negatively impacted their eating, work, sleep, or other aspects of their daily lives. The American Psychiatric Association has issued a statement on climate change and mental health: “Climate change poses a significant and growing threat to public health in general and to mental health in particular…”
Psychologists are developing new approaches to treating people with mental health issues related to climate change. Traditional psychotherapy models have proven ineffective for people suffering from anxiety or, worse, depression related to climate change. In response to this challenge, there is a new class of psychologists called climate therapists. A directory of these professionals is available online.
Rebecca Weston, therapist and co-president of the Climate Psychology Alliance of North America, explained: “Unfortunately, the field of mental health tends to be so individualistic and focused on the inner experience that the outside world is excluded and out of touch with it.” (Yale Climate Connections, 2024).
What can one do in the face of these mental health challenges brought about by climate change, other than seeking the help of an enlightened mental health professional? The best antidote to the helplessness and fatalism brought about by these stress-inducing climate change events is to harness one’s own agency. Evangelical climate scientist Dr. Katherine Hayhoe recommends five ways to develop personal agency in the face of human-caused climate change: 1) start a conversation about climate change; 2) join a climate action group; 3) consider where you keep your money (e.g., credit cards, retirement funds); 4) bring up ideas for change at work, school, or church; 5) hold politicians (city, county, state, federal) accountable for legislation that affects climate (Linkedin, 2024).
In addition, a family or individual could reduce their carbon footprint by turning the home thermostat up in the summer and down in the winter, or by purchasing a hybrid or electric vehicle and eliminating single-use plastics. There are local opportunities here in the Mid-Ohio Valley to implement Dr. Hayhoe’s second recommendation for creating personal agency, namely, to join the Mid-Ohio Valley Climate Action Group, the local branch of Citizens Climate Lobby, and the many other statewide groups in West Virginia and Ohio that are taking effective action to combat climate change and avert the looming disasters described in the headlines we see every day.
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George Banziger, Ph.D., has served as a faculty member at Marietta College and as academic dean at three other colleges. He is chapter leader of the Marietta Chapter of Citizens Climate Lobby, a member of the Green Sanctuary Committee of the First Unitarian Universalist Society of Marietta, and the Mid-Ohio Valley Climate Action Team.
