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Greta Thunberg releases her new book next Thursday. Now 19, the young Swedish activist has long been the face of a whole youth community worried about the environment. This anxiety has a name, eco-anxiety, and today it affects 1 out of 2 young people.
More and more people suffer from eco-anxiety. This new form of anxiety would moreover be considered as the new “evil of the century”. How do we define eco-anxiety? Are there solutions to better manage this ecological stress? Answers.
At present, specialists agree that it would be a new form of psychic distress whose cause would be the environmental upheavals in progress on Earth. According to the American psychiatrist Lise Van Susteren, eco-anxiety is not a pathology or a mental illness but a kind of “pre-traumatic stress” which would be completely normal for a human being in full adaptation to an environment which evolved. Today, we can even talk about eco-emotions since in the face of climate change, it is possible to experience fear, stress or even anger.
Everyone can feel eco-anxiety, but it is especially young people who are most affected by this form of anxiety. According to a study published in 2021, 45% of 16‑25 year olds in France suffer from eco-anxiety. A figure that can be found in the number of psychological consultations for this reason, which has risen sharply since the heat waves of this summer.
According to Charline Schmerber, therapist and author of ” A short guide to (sur)life for eco-anxious people (Éditions Philippe Rey), it is possible to fight against eco-anxiety and better manage your emotions on a daily basis:
– In putting words to your emotions and talking about what you feel with other people (relatives, friends, colleagues, health specialist). This is an essential step because you can’t find a solution to a problem if you don’t first become aware of the problem.
– By becoming indulgent with oneself and by exchanging guilt for responsibility: everyone has a role to play in the fight against global warming but not everything rests on the shoulders of a single person.
– By deciding to act on a daily basis and on its own scale by choosing a cause that makes sense (ocean pollution, animal cause, digital pollution, etc.)
NOWU is the positive media to get informed and get moving for the planet! Its mission: to enable young Europeans to become actors in the face of environmental challenges through content that relieves guilt and focuses on solutions.