How parents can deal with climate anxiety

It’s probably a good time to realize that parents really are too really crowded. They are often insomniacs, emotionally stressed, hormonally unbalanced, and completely over-stimulated. As Bechard points out, “Climate change is a huge existential threat. It can’t be easily put on your to-do list, no matter what is already full.” It’s no surprise that most parents deal with constant anxiety, like the kind Bechard experiences, or with a cognitive denial like their nervous system and brain. la la la probably not that bad, I will read it when my child is in college.

None of these are the answers we need, both in terms of what our bodies can withstand and in terms of what will lead to significant changes in the fight against climate emergency.

But there is good news: when we begin to identify our struggle or escape response (rather than see it), we can help our minds and bodies learn to process our emotions; thus, we can use the full cognitive abilities of our brain. to process our emotions and calmly reflect on climate change and what this may affect our families. This way, you can read articles like this without feeling sick in the stomach or completely zoned.

How to manage climate anxiety when you feel it

First: you need to regulate your nervous system. There are many techniques that can help stimulate the body after a stress response: deep abdominal breathing, reflecting, display, yoga, or whatever practice mindfulness sorry best for you.

If you feel too much anxiety in your body to slow down enough to practice mindfulness, that means your system is there likely to be overflowing with adrenaline and cortisol. To deal with this, try holding the position of the board, jumping rope or splashing your face with cold water. Then try your favorite mindfulness technique again.

All of this seems pretty basic or even trivial: who does it mean to take a deep breath when they fear the climate apocalypse? But only when our bodies are calm can we do the hardest thing: deal with the painful emotions of climate change.

There are many ways to process our emotional reaction to the climate crisis, among others finding a community of people on a similar journey, see a therapist who specializes in eco-severity, or take a course like the one offered by the course. Good Grief Network.

In his book, Bechard uses expressive writing to guide parents in processing their climate anxiety. It was a technique learned from a University of Texas researcher created by James Pennebaker Pennebaker paradigm as a way to help people process trauma through specific writing offerings. “Expressing all the things we wouldn’t otherwise express and holding on to ourselves,” Bechard says. He acknowledged that this process has helped build resilience and take significant action against climate change. “It’s not always practical to take your magazine out at a time of anxiety or distress, but there is a change of perspective that can be made. You can go from living anxiety to seeing this as an opportunity for your child to appear.”

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