Two Sundays ago (10/21/23), the New York Times magazine had a series of articles on climate change. One of these discussed the increasing number of people plagued by climate anxiety. (“Climate Change Is Keeping Therapists Up at Night” by Brooke Jarvis).

Research shows that thoughts of climate change can lead to a gloom and doom, all is lost scenario leading to a do nothing attitude, or conversely, individual and group actions to mitigate climate change. Yesterday’s news reported that Illinois is developing a factory to build charging stations for the increasing number of electric car owners. Many cities are creating composting systems to reduce garbage in landfills, a big methane reducer.

Preventive medicine for climate anxiety can take many forms. Appreciating these actions of change and reading inspiring observations of nature as listed last week can be positive antidotes for climate change anxiety. For me, the uplift of taking a walk to see the fall colors, or the red-purple glow of sunrise, in my case, often seen in its reflection on a skyscraper, these have healing powers. I hope you will share your thoughts on climate change anxiety.