Helping the eco-anxious | The Press

The climate crisis is causing upheavals that are destined to grow. How will we adapt to the world that awaits us? If the question worries you, you are probably one of the eco-anxious (yé!). Luckily, there are groupings to help you sleep a little better…

“Eco-anxiety is not a disease, even if it can lead to suffering… The real pathology would be denial! »

Justin Sirois-Marcil is a social worker and ecotherapist. That is to say, he offers group meetings and individual sessions to people who, like him, are concerned about ecological issues. And we should all be, he explains to me straight away…

While waiting for this new evil to hit men and women in power with full force, Justin Sirois-Marcil is interested in citizens who are trying to come to terms with it. He is one of the administrators of the Facebook group Ecological transition and eco-anxiety: support group, which brings together more than 1,800 members.

The participants wonder in particular how to find a job in line with their values, build a greener house, prepare for the future or even live with the bereavement and loss of bearings to come…

Such places of exchange are precious, according to Christina Popescu.

“There is no miracle recipe against eco-anxiety, explained to me the doctoral student in social psychology at UQAM, during an interview. One of the things that feels good is to surround yourself with people who think like you do. Entering spaces with people who want to take action allows us to use anger in a positive way to demand change. »

Because helplessness often haunts the eco-anxious. In a group, it tends to crumble… We realize that it is possible to hope and claim better.

Christina Popescu started working on the anxiety generated by the fear of climate change in 2017. Mainly because she suffered from it herself! Since then, the term “eco-anxiety” has taken off and many people admit to dealing with this state which, sometimes, becomes invasive.

It can lead to anger, frustration, loss of motivation towards daily tasks, nightmares and insomnia, the doctoral student explains to me. Then, no one is immune… Although, according to the literature, it is above all young adults – whose future is particularly mortgaged – and women who live with eco-anxiety.

The support groups allow them at the very least to exchange some possible solutions.

“The climate crisis is a collective problem. We need to know that we are not the only ones to carry it on our shoulders,” very aptly sums up Isabelle Béliveau, Executive Director of Éco-motion.

The young woman developed eco-anxiety during her studies in ecology and the environment. More precisely: by discovering the systemic problems that we face and the limits of the proposed solutions…

“I found that we talked a lot about climate change with facts and statistics, but not enough in terms of the emotions they generated in us! »

In 2019, she therefore created a discussion group for environmental students at the Université de Sherbrooke. Soon, young people from other faculties joined the workshops.

Anxiety was more widespread than Isabelle thought…

A year later, she founded the organization Éco-motion, which brings together several environmental, psychology and social work professionals concerned with finding solutions to eco-anxiety. Since then, members of the collective have traveled the province to lead group discussions in CEGEPs, universities, businesses and events where they are invited.

Surprisingly, we see more and more retirees, people who gravitate far from community or ecological circles and young people who have never really had an ecological conscience, but who are now wondering whether or not they should have children. …

“So, at the start of the workshop, we unload! she says. We recognize the overflow that has been accumulating in us for years. Then, naturally, the participants begin to find ways together to get out of this paralysis. How can we realign our actions? Are there any emerging solutions? Things we might do just because they make sense to us? We always end up in hope. »

Justin Sirois-Marcil notes for his part that the people he sees in ecotherapy – including many young adults and new mothers – are often in “struggle” mode. They do daily actions in the hope of an immediate result. In doing so, they risk exhaustion… Because unfortunately we do not see the concrete effects of our meatless diet or our waste-free purchases.

“As a practitioner, I want to work over the long term,” he explains to me. I first ask people: what world do they not want and what do they do to avoid it? Then, what kind of world do they want? And what can they do to make it happen? Making something happen is different from fighting something. We create a long-term project. »

To find some peace of mind, Christina Popescu recommends eco-anxious people take a break from social media and the news, if necessary. She also suggests practicing activities that allow self-management of negative emotions, such as dance, art, walking in nature, sports or meditation.

“And one important thing that we too often forget: you have to try to find meaning in what is happening,” she adds.

Oh, I want! But how ?

“We can try to identify our role in all of this,” she continues. We will not go back. We will never find the Earth before. We must therefore rely on adaptation and resilience. About the collaboration we can deploy to create a new world and… try to find hope. »