Welcome to Naked Sustainability Podcast. This bold podcast helps busy millennials navigate real-life sustainability with practical tips, no-nonsense advice, and a zero-fucks-given attitude, all through a transparent and authentic lens of living in the real world. Join Ginny for lively conversations, expert interviews, and hilarious anecdotes. From eco-fashion to zero-waste living, we’ll empower you to be an eco-warrior without compromising your badass lifestyle. Get ready to kick some eco-ass.
Feeling the weight of the world on your eco-conscious shoulders? Dive into our latest episode where we unpack the ins and outs of eco-anxiety: what it is, why it matters, and most importantly, how to deal with it like a boss. From actionable tips to sassy insights, join us as we navigate the rollercoaster of emotions that come with being an environmental warrior. Tune in for a dose of empowerment and a sprinkle of badassery, because saving the planet shouldn’t mean sacrificing your life or your sanity.
Hey, friends! Look at that. I kept my promise and I’m back with you again this week. Feels like a major win in my book. Welcome back to the Naked Sustainability Podcast, where we discuss living our busy lives as sustainably as possible. It’s Ginny, and let’s get into it.
This week, I thought it might be good to touch on eco anxiety. What is it? How do we navigate it?
I’m not a mental health professional. Just a random millennial, navigating her own brain, and I’m definitely not qualified to give you advice on a professional level. But, this is a conversation between us as friends, where maybe I can let you know what’s worked best for me, and give you some tips on what might work for you.
I am a full advocate for therapy, both paid, and of the medical variety, and unpaid, and of the self care and hanging out with friends variety. And if you need help, Or to talk to someone, please do. Eco anxiety, climate anxiety, it goes by many names and it’s a term that’s been cropping up more and more. I guess it’s a good thing, means it’s more prevalent and we’re more aware of it, right?
But what does it really mean? At its core, Eco anxiety is often defined as the chronic fear of environmental doom. A feeling that can be overwhelming in the face of climate change and the constant barrage of negative news about our planet’s health. It’s no longer just a buzzword, it’s a reality for many of us who care deeply about the Earth.
Some data even suggests that eco anxiety is prevalent in almost 40 percent of adults. They worry or care about the environment to the extent where it’s on their brain. And this can include things like Natural disasters or weather worries, climate change, the environment, global warming, air pollution, and your health related to it, just sustainability in general and how to reduce your waste, or even recycling and all of the issues that have to go with that.
If you’ve been around long enough, you’ll start to see that I keep the doomsday statistics to a minimum on the podcast, on my blog, when I’m talking with anyone. I just, Don’t believe in putting that negativity out into the world. It’s been a balancing act when trying to explain the benefits of things that are good for the planet, like composting, or transitioning away from your plastic consumption, or starting to recycle.
But I know when I started trying to live a little bit more sustainably with the planet in mind, I was quickly consumed by this overarching and overwhelming feeling. I wasn’t doing enough. I have so much plastic in my home. How was I going to continue to be the most amazing Aunt Ginny to my nieces and nephews?
I mean, kids toys are notoriously always made of plastic, right? Could I bike to the grocery store? Was that even helpful? The ocean is rising. The earth is heating up. Natural disasters are occurring practically every day. The garden isn’t getting any rain. You get the drift, right? I was so stressed out about all of these things that aren’t in my direct control.
And I was trying to do everything I could to fix every issue. And then I think we saw Hasan Minhaj like special or something and he was like, control what you can control. Pick one charity, pick one issue, pick one climate thing that you want to focus on and work on that. Build those habits. Do your good where you can and stop worrying about everything else.
And you know what? I kind of like that. In general, everything I was worrying about was way too much. And I don’t even watch the news, which is like a major contributing factor to anxiety as a whole, including eco anxiety. That’s just all of the information I was aware of from the people in my circle talking about things they were noticing or they had heard on the news.
So I was getting like a telephone game of news and it wasn’t even everything or, you know, the most doomsday or dramatic. It was just what they were talking about in normal conversation, in normal lives. And part of what changed my anxiety and the way of thinking was the boyfriend’s influence and starting my blog and this business.
I had to realize, along with that Hasan Minhaj special, that I could only change what I can control. And that there had to be a way to live my life sustainably. Without giving up all of my normal life and the normal activities that I want to do. Like flying to travel the world and see other cultures. Or flying to see my nieces and nephews for their birthdays or their, dance recitals or anything like that.
Long story short, that’s kind of how Naked Sustainability was born, and the backbone of our mission. We want to be sustainable. But we want to be able to live our lives without giving anything up. Researchers are beginning to pay attention to this eco anxiety phenomenon, noting the impact that this kind of stress can have on our overall mental health.
It’s a natural response to a real and pressing issue in our world. But it’s also something we need to address for our own well being and to stay effective in our environmental efforts to help the world. Now, while it’s important to acknowledge these feelings in our bodies, it’s equally as important to find ways to cope with them and to push forward.
The good news is, we’re not powerless. There are strategies we can adopt to help manage our stresses and our eco anxiety to help keep our heads above water, so to speak. So let’s walk through some of them. First up, stay informed, but set boundaries. I don’t watch or consume the news for anything. World problems, local news, politics, anything.
When I receive news, it’s in the form of someone telling me about it, a meme that someone sent me, or something that the boyfriend thinks I need to know about, for our life in general. It’s crucial to be super knowledgeable about the environmental issues so that we can continue to move forward and build those habits and help the planet, but there is a fine line between being informed and getting overwhelmed, and you need to know that for you.
Try limiting your news intake to only certain times of the day, and choose reputable sources that touch on the issues maybe that you want to talk about, or discuss, or know about. This can help prevent that feeling of being swamped by a wave of endless negative news. If you choose ocean conservation, and you only get news from reputable sources that are touching on plastic in the ocean, or helping the animals in the ocean, and anything like that, then you have your issues that you want to focus on, you have the new and upcoming knowledge about them, and you can make a plan to help.
And with that plan, you can take The next step, which is action. Action is the antidote to all anxiety. At least it is in my life, right? If I’m anxious about not getting things done, going to do them fixes that anxiety. Whether it’s reducing your waste, supporting renewable energy, making conscious food choices, every single individual positive action that you make can make a difference.
And these actions don’t just contribute to the planet’s overall well being. They can give us a sense of control and purpose. We are controlling what we can control in our lives. By starting with small, manageable steps like buying a reusable water bottle and not having to buy any more disposable single use plastic water bottles.
Or maybe biking to work. Or going vegetarian one night a week. These are small, manageable, implementable steps. that we can build habits upon so that it’s not as overwhelming and as anxiety ridden. Another super powerful way to cope is to find your tribe. Connect with like minded individuals who share your concern and your passion for the environment.
Whether it’s joining a local conservation group, participating in online forums, following people like Naked Sustainability or Me, online who provide that positive environmental energy you’re looking for, attending sustainability events, anything. Being a part of a community helps provide you support, and it amplifies your efforts.
Each of you are doing individual things that you can control, and each of you, all added together, make a more massive difference. Now let’s talk a little bit about self care and how I like to manage my own personal stresses and eco anxiety. Practicing mindfulness can help us stay rooted when anxiety comes rushing into our lives.
Some simple techniques like deep breathing, meditation, or yoga for me, or spending time even in nature can help calm your mind. Remember, self care isn’t selfish, and it’s absolutely essential for maintaining the energy and resilience we need to continue moving forward in our environmental efforts. I like to be active in my meditations.
I like to do yoga. I like to go walk through nature. The Earth is more resilient than we give it credit for. We still have to do our part. It can’t survive what we’re throwing at it on its own. But it is more resilient than we think it is. And so, that walk through nature, just hearing the birds or the insects or the trees rustle in the wind can really be super grounding for me and let me know that the world is acknowledging my efforts and that I’m doing good and that I’m controlling what I can control.
One more way. To survive this onslaught of eco anxiety or stresses in your life could be to turn to education or advocacy. By educating ourselves and others, we can turn our anxiety, our stresses, our worries into action. Share what you’ve learned with your friends and family. Advocate for policies that protect the environment.
Your voice is super powerful. I don’t want to get political, but it can help enact change. And finally, we need to celebrate all of the wins, no matter how small. or large. Every piece of litter picked up, every aluminum can recycled, every tree planted, every single used plastic avoided, every person in your life who is listening.
Celebrating all of these victories can boost our morale and remind us that change is possible and happening. Thanks to people like you who care. I’ll be honest, eco anxiety or stress about the environment, um, climate change worries, whatever you want to call it, has been a companion of mine for a while now, over a decade.
But over time, I’ve learned to channel that anxiety into action, and I feel best when I’m making moves. I’ve set boundaries on my news consumption, I’ve connected with amazing people who lift me up, like this community, and I’ve made self care a priority because I feel best when I’m being active and I’m enjoying the world around us.
And when I look back at the changes that I’ve made and the community that we’ve all built together, I feel hopeful. I’d love to hear how you’re dealing with your eco anxiety, your climate stressors, your worries about what the planet is doing, what’s happening, what’s going on. What works for you? What doesn’t?
Let’s start a conversation and support each other. You can share your stories and tips with me through our social media channels, feel free to email me, and I might feature some of your insights in future episodes. Because together, we’re not just a drop in the ocean. We’re not just one individual making changes that no one else knows about.
We’re the motherfrickin ocean itself. Kind of, right? Figuratively. And we are capable of super fucking powerful change. Before we wrap up, remember that it is okay to feel worried about the planet. It shows you care, and some people don’t even have that. But it’s also important to find balance. To ensure that we can keep fighting the good fight without burning out, we can’t do everything in the most environmentally friendly way possible.
We can’t, in this world where capitalism and consumption run rampant, do everything we can for the planet. We can make small changes, build small habits, and make them a lifestyle Where we can live our lives and do what’s expected of us and everything else that we need to do as sustainably as possible.
So, take a deep breath, take care of yourself, and take action in whatever way you can. Small steps, medium steps, large steps, all of it. Every small step is a leap for our planet. As always, thanks for listening. If you enjoyed this episode and found it helpful, please share it with a friend who might be feeling the weight of eco anxiety.
Feel free to reach out at NakedSustainability.com. Don’t forget to subscribe, leave a review, and join us next week as we explore more badass ways to care for the planet while living our busy millennial life. Until next time.
