There's actually a word for the climate change-induced despair you've been feeling
Perhaps it describes some of the destabilizing sorrow you’ve experienced as the ash rains down and fire burns in every direction. We Californians have long defined ourselves against an unforgiving landscape of grand beauty and destruction. But it’s never been quite like this before.
“We have relationships to places,” explains Dr. Susan Clayton, a professor of psychology and environmental studies at the College of Wooster in Ohio. “They’re very significant to our history and our sense of who we are.” But Clayton says some of the more incremental impacts of climate change could damage our psychological well-being.
The overhanging existential threat of climate change can also create a background level of worry, often referred to as “eco-anxiety” or “climate anxiety.” As Clayton explains, some level of anxiety can be a motivating force, spurring action and change — but too much can be debilitating, paralyzing us.Humans are creatures capable of incredible levels of cognitive dissonance.
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