First climate change, now COVID-19: Tips for managing the stress
Eleven-year-old Tilly holds her mother's arm on Sept. 20, 2019 at a climate change protest at the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul.
Christine T. Nguyen | MPR News 2019
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In the past few years, many psychologists report seeing patients with physical and emotional symptoms related to climate change. Now add coronavirus, and it’s easy for some of us to feel overwhelmed, even hopeless.
But mental health professionals say hope can be an effective antidote to climate and COVID-19 stress. Hennepin Healthcare clinical psychologist Kristi White, wrote about this in the nonprofit climate news site Ensia.
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“If the only true possession we have in this life is how we choose to spend our time, we must refuse to give in to despair and choose to remain engaged,” she said. “Psychologists can offer insights and tools about how to do this.”
White discussed some of those insights on Climate Cast. Hear her conversation with MPR chief meteorologist and Climate Cast host Paul Huttner by hitting play on the audio player above.
This reporting is part of Call To Mind, MPR’s initiative to foster new conversations about mental health.