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Learn more about climate anxiety
Climate anxiety, sometimes called eco-anxiety, refers to persistent worry, fear, or distress related to climate change and its consequences for people, ecosystems, and the future. It is not currently a standalone diagnosis in the DSM-5 or ICD-11, but it is a widely recognised psychological response that mental health professionals are increasingly working with. Climate anxiety differs from general anxiety in one important respect: the concern is grounded in reality. The emotional response is not irrational, but it can still become overwhelming, paralysing, or intrusive in ways that significantly affect daily life and wellbeing.
Climate anxiety exists on a spectrum. For some people it is a background unease; for others it becomes a source of real disruption.
- You find yourself frequently preoccupied with news about climate change, even when you try to step back
- Worry about the future, for yourself, for future generations, or for other species, intrudes on daily life
- You feel grief, rage, or despair about environmental loss that is difficult to process or talk about
- Concern about your own carbon footprint or the actions of others causes persistent guilt or shame
- You feel paralysed between wanting to act and feeling that individual action is meaningless
- Climate-related content causes physical anxiety responses: a racing heart, difficulty sleeping, or trouble concentrating
- Your relationships are affected by disagreements about how seriously others take climate change
Several therapeutic approaches are well suited to climate anxiety, particularly those that can work with a real rather than imagined threat.
- ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) ACT helps you engage fully with a difficult reality without being dominated by it, clarifying values and building a sense of agency alongside genuine uncertainty.
- CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) CBT can help when anxiety has become ruminative or intrusive, building more flexible responses to climate-related thoughts and reducing the paralysing quality of worry.
- Nature therapy Nature therapy uses intentional time in natural environments as part of the therapeutic process, which can be particularly meaningful for people whose distress is rooted in connection with the natural world.
- Mindfulness Mindfulness-based approaches help build tolerance for uncertainty and an ability to remain present without being pulled into catastrophic thinking about the future.
- Existential analysis Existential analysis works with questions of meaning, responsibility, and mortality that climate anxiety often brings to the surface, exploring how to live with purpose in the face of uncertainty.
It's Complicated is a therapist-founded mental health platform connecting clients with verified practitioners across Europe and globally, in over 60 languages. We work with over 2,500 vetted therapists, with in-person availability in Berlin, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Lisbon, Vienna, and other major cities, alongside online sessions worldwide. It's Complicated is free to use, and you pay your chosen therapist directly at rates they set.
Finding a therapist who takes climate distress seriously, rather than reframing it as generalised anxiety to be managed away, matters for this kind of work. Our matching service is built to remove that friction. You complete a short survey, our psychologists combine data-driven insights with human judgement to identify the right therapists for your situation, and you choose from a shortlist of strong candidates. You can also browse our directory directly if you'd prefer to choose yourself.
Get matched with a therapist who specialises in climate anxiety, or browse the directory.
