Is Going Green Good for Your Mental Health, or Just Making Your Crazy?
May 13, 2008 by Gabrielle
Filed under Green Living
Last week, I shared with you one writer’s ecophobia, a condition where he sees environmentalists as not only reveling in, but as the cause behind natural disasters. Now Fox News is highlighting a new term: Eco-Anxiety.
Fox recently interviewed Sarah Edwards, a woman dealing from Eco-Anxiety, which is
the growing angst experienced by those who can’t handle the thought that they — or anyone — are in some way contributing to global warming, species extinction and dwindling natural resources.
Now, I know what you’re thinking. Dude, it’s Fox News. Right. So, go to Sarah’s own blog to see her take on the story and the condition. She asserts that eco-anxiety is not a mental illness, but at the same time,
many people are troubled on one or more levels about what is happening with the environment.
Sarah suggests what she calls Eco-Therapy. More than getting folks to recycle or change their light bulbs,
Ecopsychology, eco-therapy, and the natural systems thinking process (NSTP) are educational and psychotherapeutic approaches for learning to live more harmoniously with oneself and one’s environment, both natural and manmade. Though they involve interacting with nature, they can be practiced virtually anywhere and do not require individuals go to a distant, remote, or wild setting, unless they choose to.
Back to Fox News:
The American Psychological Association has no official position on the merits of what it calls an emerging field.
While the validity of Eco-Therapy is being discussed, I am interested in knowing whether or not gradually shifting to a greener lifestyle has been known to have a positive impact on one’s mental well-being. I think the answer is yes. Jennifer Forbes explores this question on her blog Mental Health Minutes and judging by her reader’s comments, several feel that participating in more eco-friendly activities helps to give them peace of mind and one commenter notes: for me, cycling is an act of exercise, environmentalism AND mental salvation.
At the same time, I know that many people are turned off by the green movement because they associate it with feelings of guilt (Oh great, yet another reason for me to feel bad when I buy a bottle of water) or inadequacy (you think you’re green, well wait to you see my new eco-contraption…) or even worse, feel as if they are on the receiving end of finger pointing and blame (SUV driver! De damned!)
I don’t think it has to be that way.
I hope that you see the “new” Daily Tomorrow as a resource for green information, particularly as it relates to your own physical and mental wellness. No judging or finger pointing here. Just the facts, ma’am. And a little bit of fun infused on the way.
Tell me what you think. Is going green good for your mental health, or making you crazy?
This post has really stayed on my mind, but I just couldn’t put my finger on why. Then it dawned on me. I’ve been there, but I don’t think it really has anything to do with the environment … but with being a perfectionist.
For whatever reason, I was blessed with an all or nothing personality. It’s very hard for me to accept that something that isn’t all right isn’t a complete failure. That’s why I try to emphasize how easy it can be to take baby steps, because I know some people will say, “I can’t walk to work! I might as well buy a Ford 350 extended crew cab.”
Hmm … I think I’m going to post on this. Thanks for the conversation starter.
I teach environmental science. There is good reason to be concerned! Our society has been on a collision course with disaster and scientists have been anticipating this for decades but many people ignore or do not believe scientists because they think there must be some hidden agenda.
Study anything on which we depend for survival … fertile soil, clean air, potable water, biodiversity, fossil fuels … and you will understand that human activity and human overpopulation are spelling out a dismal future. Look at nations, especially in Africa and Asia, where the numbers of people have already outstripped the resources and you will get a sense of what our future will be like. Its not a matter of if, but when, and how gradually these shortages result.
Doing something, ANYTHING, gives us more time to fix things. Conversely, paving over farmland to make another shopping mall is heading us in the wrong direction. Our own short-sided behavior, there are so many examples, is poisoning our future. But a great segment of our society is blind to anything but promoting their own status by the attainment of things.
Yes, there has to be a balance but there is GOOD REASON TO BE CONCERNED and more people need to pitch in!