Berkeley – Oakland Lifers

Climate Crisis and Mental Health: The Invisible Toll of a Warming World

Climate change is not only an environmental crisis: it is a mental health emergency. Rising temperatures, ecological degradation, and climate disasters are increasingly linked to psychological harm and psychiatric illness. Vulnerable populations – especially children, young adults, Indigenous Peoples, and those of lower socioeconomic status – are at the greatest risk of climate change-related mental health impacts.

What is eco-anxiety?

Also referred to as “climate anxiety,” eco-anxiety is defined by the American Psychological Association as “a chronic fear of environmental doom.” In other words, it is the distress associated with the existential threat of ecological crises.1 While not considered a diagnosis, the phenomenon is increasingly acknowledged by scholars, mental health practitioners, and the general population.2

Some causes include feelings of a lack of agency or clear action pathways and proximity to visible environmental damage.2 The phenomenon is characterized by obsessive thoughts about the climate, fatalistic thinking, existential dread, guilt, anger, resentment, grief, sadness, suicidal ideation, and panic.1 These symptoms can even result in decreased sense of self and identity.3 Furthermore, Parnes et al. note that the presence of climate anxiety puts individuals at greater risk for the following disorders:

  • Anxiety disorders
  • Mood disorders
  • Acute stress
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Drug and alcohol abuse

Climate Change and Mental Health Outcomes

Even those who do not experience eco-anxiety are not immune to the toll climate change and environmental degradation can have on mental well-being. Climate-related disasters such as floods, hurricanes, and bushfires are often associated with stress-related psychiatric disorders, including PTSD, acute stress reactions, and adjustment disorders. Environmental factors that lead to loss of home, support networks, and loved ones may lead to grief, depression, and significant impairment in quality of life.4 Furthermore, events such as oil spills, drinking-water contamination, droughts, and wildfires have been shown to increase risks for PTSD, depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders.5

Interestingly, heatwaves have been associated with increased hospital admissions for mood and anxiety disorders, dementia, and psychological exhaustion. Occupational heat stress, particularly in vulnerable labor sectors, is correlated with elevated psychological distress.4 Rising temperatures are linked to higher rates of suicide and aggression.4

Unsurprisingly, the degree of climate-related distress a person experiences is strongly influenced by how directly their environment is threatened.2 Chronic stress arises from knowing a threat is coming without having the tools or agency to respond, which exacerbates feelings of helplessness and anxiety.2 These stressors can result in acute and chronic psychological effects, including depression.6

Environmental Pollutants and Psychiatric Risk
Neurotoxic pollutants such as lead, perfluoroalkyl substances, pesticides, and particulate matter are linked to a wide range of psychiatric disorders, including schizophrenia, ADHD, anxiety, and depression.5 Long-term exposure to air pollution during childhood is linked to increased risk of ADHD and depression.7 Children exposed to lead are especially vulnerable, exhibiting hyperactivity, antisocial behavior, and long-term psychiatric impacts.5 Adults occupationally exposed to pollutants such as metals may also demonstrate mood changes, irritability, and energy disturbances .5

Impact on Children and Youth
Children who experience greater social and environmental vulnerabilities suffer disproportionate mental health consequences from climate change.3 They also have less agency in decision-making around policies that will shape their futures, compounding distress. Empowering youth voices and increasing their sense of agency is essential for their mental health and effective climate action.3 

Dissociation, Identity Loss, and Cultural Trauma
Both acute climate disasters and slow-moving environmental degradation can lead to dissociative symptoms and cultural trauma, particularly among populations closely tied to land and tradition, such as Indigenous peoples. These experiences include loss of identity, displacement, and grief.6 The psychological toll is particularly profound when land-based livelihoods and cultural identities are disrupted, such as in cases of melting permafrost and extended drought.5 Dissociative symptoms – a disconnection between one’s thoughts, feelings, sensations, memories, and/or identity – resulting from these phenomena may require special clinical attention in the aftermath of disasters.8 

Towards Climate-Conscious Mental Health Policy
Climate-aware policy must recognize that humans are only as healthy as the environments they inhabit.3 Many of the most affected populations lack access to information, resources, and care to buffer environmental stress or recover from related trauma.5 Mental health policies must provide culturally relevant, community-based interventions and foster a sense of hope and agency, especially among youth and frontline communities.3 

Not only does the climate crisis demand urgent ecological responses, but psychological intervention as well. Approaches must be intergenerational, interdisciplinary, and inclusive. Mental health professionals, policymakers, and climate advocates must collaborate to address the invisible toll of a warming planet.

Bibliography

  1. Understanding and coping with eco-anxiety. Mental Health Commission of Canada. March 5, 2025. 
  2. Ingle HE, Mikulewicz M. Mental health and climate change: Tackling invisible injustice. The Lancet Planetary Health. 2020;4(4). doi:10.1016/s2542-5196(20)30081-4.
  3. Parnes MF, Bennett MB, Rao M, et al. The Kids Are Not Alright: The Mental Health Toll of Environmental Injustice. The American Journal of Bioethics. 2024;24(3):40-44. doi:10.1080/15265161.2024.2303161.
  4. Padhy S, Sarkar S, Panigrahi M, Paul S. Mental health effects of climate change. Indian Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. 2015;19(1):3. doi:10.4103/0019-5278.156997.
  5. Reuben A, Manczak EM, Cabrera LY, et al. The interplay of environmental exposures and Mental Health: Setting an agenda. Environmental Health Perspectives. 2022;130(2). doi:10.1289/ehp9889.
  6. Bourque F, Cunsolo Willox A. Climate change: The next challenge for public mental health? International Review of Psychiatry. 2014;26(4):415-422. doi:10.3109/09540261.2014.925851.
  7. Mathiarasan S, Hüls A. Impact of environmental injustice on children’s health—interaction between air pollution and socioeconomic status. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021;18(2):795. doi:10.3390/ijerph18020795.
  8. Koopman C, Classen C, Spiegel D. Dissociative responses in the immediate aftermath of the Oakland/Berkeley Firestorm. Journal of Traumatic Stress. 1996;9(3):521-540. doi:10.1007/bf02103662.