I am terrified of climate change

Hey OP. Kudos on acknowledging your feelings and expressing them ;)

TL;DR: your reaction makes a lot of sense, don't stay alone with this, lots of empathy

Where I speak from : I'm a white and socially cisgendered male, 35 yo, living in France. I had the chance to go to university and to have several educations.

I have been a climate change and biodiversity collapse educator and activist for 3 years, and I'm currently struggling with crippling adhd, depression and anxiety after a rough burn out.

I try to base my opinion on the IPCC reports which I regard as the best science consensus provider on climate-related matters (more on the IPCC at the end of the post).

In my opinion, being terrified by climate change is a very appropriate emotionnal response.

What scientists say about the amount of suffering climate change already inflicts to hundreds of thousand is hard to fathom, and imagination fails to grasp how much worse it's going to get in the coming decades.

To my understanding, humanity as a species is not under threat, and we will not all die in 50 years. But a huge amount of people already suffer and die from climate change and it's going to get much much worse. As usual, the less privileged you are (and the less you contribute to climate change), the worse you have it.

CO2 emissions keep going up when scientist agree that they should be cut in half by 2030 and divided by 3 or 4 by 2050.

The IPBES (same as IPCC but for biodiversity) current analysis reinforces the "we're in deep shit and we're diving faster and faster" feeling.

And while individual action is absolutely necessary, it is by large insufficient without structural collective change.

I also feel terrorized. And so angry. And more sad than I'll ever by able to express. And so fucking frustrated.

I found that sense of community is what keeps me going. I met some great people in environmental ngos, and getting together to do something about it is a great feeling. Having a drink together and ranting about how hard it is to witness our collective failure makes is really not as bad as doing it bu myself. And crying among friends feels a lot better than crying alone, for me.

So I wish for you to find people around you who understand the world in the same way you do, who care as much as you do. I wish for you to find safe spaces in which you can stop pretending it's ok, in which you don't need to explain yourself, to have a debate about whether or not climate change is a big deal, in which you can let your emotions flow. I wish for you to find meaning, belonging and even happiness in action.

Take good care of yourself, the wolrd needs you in good shape !

Btw, compiling and summarizing together papers about the mechanism and impact of climate change is exactly the job of the IPCC. They take in account thousands of papers from all the fields related to climate change, write a draft an publish it, wait for questions/criticism/corrections to be sent by all the scientists who want to contribute (for several months) and then they correct their draft and publish the final version. I recommand reading at least the key points of the "Summary for policymakers" of the 6th assessment report..

Not sure if this helps at all, but you’re not alone: I feel a sense of dread every time I find myself holding an empty plastic container.

It might feel like you’re sticking your head in the sand, but what I do – and what I suggest for people suffering from climate anxiety – is actively avoid reading reports like that. Sure, they’re informative (and it’s important to stay informed), but at the end of the day it’s not worth your mental health.

If there’s one thing we know about the problem of climate change at this point (despite what massive corporate contributors have tried to tell us) it’s that you as an individual cannot fix it and you did not contribute very much to it. Plus: you already know it’s bad. Those statistics are meant for people whose minds and behavior will be changed by them.

Instead of reading reports that are informative (but unhelpful), spend time researching who to vote for, how to get involved with organizations who are making change, and which companies are truly focused on sustainability so you can vote with your money.

Climate change is an unfortunate reality and you’ll never feel good about it, but you can feel better if you’re focusing on what you can change.

Friendly reminder: If you aren't fighting conservatism, you aren't fighting climate change.

We can still mitigate the effects of manmade global warming if we act right away. Unfortunately, conservatives (including neo-liberals) are hell-bent on preventing effective action from being taken. They are paid by corporations to protect corporate interests, even when it will result in billions of deaths.

If we can somehow marginalize and defeat conservatives in the U.S., we might be able to influence other nations to follow along in making large-scale changes. Fighting conservatism is how you can fight climate change.

How is a rant about billionaires and greed ever a thing to shy away from? The class war and it's associated wealth inequality/endless growth mentality are essential drivers to the climate change problem that's keeping you up at night. You can't disconnect the two if you actually want the problem addressed.

I'll do the opposite and make this long and bitter.

There is hope, look at restorative agriculture which sequesteres CO2 into the ground. It's a bit more work than modern farming but the tradeoffs may outweigh the effort and it's starting to get more popular.

I don't have much faith in carbon capture technologies that are not placed at the concentrated outputs of emitting sources, but i want to be wrong. The worst part about them is oil companies will say 'see, nothing to worry about'.

I think that RNG is going to be a huge factor.
First: because commercially it has a way to make money so anti environmentalists may bite off on it. B: gas stove snobs can keep their damn gas which should reduce political resistance.
III: even though you're burning methane, at the end of the cycle you've pulled CO2 out of the air, created fuel, and have carbonaceous remains that can be put in the ground as fertilizer, overall carbon negative.
4 - As long as there are humans that eat food then there will be farms that grow crops, most crops have parts that we don't eat like stalks and leaves n such, those remains can get dumped into an RNG reactor instead of decomposing into the atmosphere as methane, so even more reduction in GGs because methane is a greenhouse gas.

I really think RNG can have a huge effect as long as the reactors aren't fueled by biomass that is made by chopping down trees and milling them up. I need to find out how much biomass farm waste has...

SMR nuclear is happening, if you ignore the big oil funded green peace clowns you'll see that nuclear is an essential base load source that is reliable and safe.

Electrification is happening, more makers are making electric vehicles, more municipalities are electrifying mass transportation, even shipping is making slow progress. Heatpumps are getting viable even in cold climates.

The grids can take it. There's multiple parts to this story but 4 main parts and the gist is that the growth in demand is not giant leaps but in small steps for now. It is likely that some of these technologies will take on S curve uptake but even then there is plenty of room for growth. If you want i can talk your ear off about this one (I'm an electrical engineer at an electric utility).

You can make a difference, join the citizens climate lobby, they are working on legislation to tax carbon production which shoul help slow the bleeding. This will be hard to pass in the US, but squeaky wheel and all that. Help them get loud. Force politicians to either say out loud that they are against it or are for it and vote out the clowns.

There's also the idea of spraying reflective chemicals in the upper atmosphere to reduce the amount of heat that gets in. I hope we don't do this unless we have to because it just kicks the can down the road and corpos will say 'see, we can stop worrying now'. BUT, it absolutely can buy us more time to save ourselves, and we have the technology to do this right now.

It may seem hopeless with all of the headlines of crossing the point of no return and spiraling out of control and what not. The 'point of no return' is pretty vague and each headline is talking about a different problem. Most of them are talking about the 1.5 or 2 degree temp rise. Some even talk about run away effects like thawing permafrost and undersea stuff that gets released. While that is all fucking terrible I implore you to look at the absolute worst case of run away effect. It's bad, but it's not Venus 2.0 bad and we can buy more time if we have to.

Last, i want to talk about defeatism. It's not too late to stop the absolute worst. Yes, there is permanent damage and we are losing species and people are fucking dieing BUT it's not fucking over. Republicans want you to feel defeated, they want you to think there's nothing you can do and there is no point in trying and at the same time say climate change isn't real. Don't be a part of the republican message. We absolutely can make a difference, we have to make a difference, and we fucking will make a difference.

If the bad things are going to happen, there's little we can do to stop it, once it has been set into motion (no one person led to climate change). What we can do is control our response. We can do our best to mitigate what risks we can, and ultimately we can do our best to make the most of the situation we are in. That's the one thing we can do as individuals to make things better for our future selves and our descendants, we can be compassionate to those around us and work to inspire our communities to do that too.

All in all, nothing tonight that you can think up will change the climate or the world's response to it. We can worry about the future, but we only will know what the future holds as it occurs, so it doesn't do much good to assume that the worst is necessarily going to happen. Catastrophizing sucks, and I know what you're struggling with right now. Perhaps a counselor/therapist could help you understand and manage your anxious thoughts. You're definitely not the first or only one to have these fears, so don't feel bad about it. I hope some of the comments put you at ease and help you get some rest.

Many things are outside of your control. You were given life outside of your control, and you will die outside your control. Whether you die of cancer at 50 or climate change at 50, you die all the same.

We still have a moral duty to make the best choices that we can with the information that we know. A lot of the existential crisis though, I think, stems from a fear of mortality. Coming to grips with the fact that you must die sets you free to act rightly within the world.

Thank you for verbalising this, I've been feeling similarly. Like you I try to go back to the sources and read them often finding that the danger is being sensationalised by the media. Recently though I've seen a few papers where the findings have been much worse than is being reported and that worries me very much. I'm mostly able to only worry about things I have control over as others have suggested but the oncoming climate crisis is so encompassing and existential that I'm finding it hard to temper my worries.

A lot of people want you to be fearful. Fearful people make for very avid readers and sharers of media. Fearful people spend a lot of their precious time convincing other people to be fearful. Fearful people often don't make the most rational decisions.

I'm not downplaying the problem or saying climate change is some sort of fairy story, but I am saying that it is almost impossible to have a 100% impartial birds-eye-view of what is a tremendously complex problem, especially if you just ingest whatever random media crosses your door.

There is no point beyond which the entire game is lost and we should just lie down and rot. Things can always get better, and things can always get worse. So act, get involved in local action and put pressure on government to make the right calls. Act with the hope of a better future in your heart, and save the despair for when the end is known beyond all doubt. It's just another day at the office.

I don't have a lot of words because I'm in the same boat, but I'm really sorry that you're having to go through this. :-(

If you’ve never considered therapy, here is a sign to talk to somebody professionally. In my experience, existential dread is best discussed with building up a foundation of good mental health practices. A couple of more specific thoughts:

Every generation of humans have thought they’d be the last. We are a resourceful species.

What does the future hold? How will climate change impact our lives? It’s really unknown at this point. All the articles and science in the world is educated speculation.

There are new technologies being created but in a lot of ways the pandemic showed us that people really cannot seem to get it together. If you are passionate about the environment, there is many areas of activism and volunteering to get involved with.

Ultimately, you cannot control what happens with the climate or the future. A lot of times anxiety can come from situations we can’t control but so much of life is out of our hands. Learning to live in the moment and go with the flow is an art.

Someone linked this to me a while ago cause I expressed climate despair: https://thecarbonalmanac.org/

I then found it to download for free from the zlibrary (I can‘t afford it ok), and so far it‘s good, it gives a more action focused perspective and is more optimistic than I would be.

So far it made me rethink my liberal use of cow products, while I struggle with even approaching a vegan diet, the "stop feeding into demand for cows" is a bit easier for me, I already didn‘t buy the meat for a long time and now I finally switched to an almond milk too and it‘s alright.

I also did switch my search engine to Ecosia to plant trees, it‘s not much, but maybe it helps. Works alright so far.

I'd say don't let fear control you.

When fear gets too out of hand it becomes a problem; However there's a side of fear that can also prompt us to improve a situation, where we can recognize the threat which then allows us to educate, inform, act, and build a better world.

There will be a lot of challenges to face, especially considering the limits to change based on how rampant wealth inequality is, but I don't think it's a good idea to feel frozen and shocked at not being able to instigate positive change.

Yeah. There isn't any good news on the topic. It does look grim. But, the sun's out at the moment. Focus on now.

I try to enjoy every day with nice weather like it's the last. Even back in high school 15 years ago I would feel terrible if I knew it was nice out and I wasn't able to be outside. Feels like we only have so many left. My last job was in a cubicle in a box inside a factory with no natural light. I nearly lost my mind. And when I talk to people about my feelings, I get talk about antidepressants and antianxiety medication. I look at people my age raising kids and I think they are so fucking selfish to bring new people into this. I feel like we should consciously choose to be the last generation and go down with the ship.

Uh. That got dark for a second, sorry about that. I recommend going for walks anytime it's nice out, every chance you get.

we're all going to die within half a century.

If it helps, this is 100% grade-A bullshit. Science does not say this. Scientists do not say this. It is absolutely a lie.

You're welcome.

Stoicism teaches us to only concern ourselves with things we can control. Everything else is external, and you can't affect it.

Read Marcus Aurelius and feel better.

I used to get very anxious and stressed out about this. I started reading a book that reframed my mindset on the issue. Now I don't get nearly as stressed or anxious as I used to.

Being stressed and anxious about the issue is coming from a mindset that we could still prevent it, and wanting to do something to "stop" it from happening.

So maybe try thinking about it like this instead:

1. Humanity will not end with Climate Change. It will become different, and worse. But it will not end society.
2. Animals and nature will not end with Climate Change. They will become different, and worse. But it will not end all other forms of life.
3. Climate change is not something to stop. It is already here. The world you used to know is already gone. Accept that you live in a different world, and that's ok.
4. Mitigation is still a good thing, we should still be actively trying to mitigate what we can. But it won't make things the way they used to be.
5. Start preparing and planning your life around these changes. It will help you feel more empowered, and help you accept our new reality.

My recommendation is to read "How to Prepare for Climate Change: A Practical Guide to Surviving the Chaos". Reading that book in some ways felt like going through the five stages of grief. But in the end I felt like I came out feeling healthier, and more capable of helping mitigation efforts because I didn't feel paralyzed by fear anymore.

I'm in the same place without having read that piece you mentioned. And I'm not going to be looking it up.

As I see it, climate change is the greatest threat the human race has ever faced. It makes World War II look like a squabble in a kindergarten playground. We should all be INCREDIBLY impacted by this, and yet everyone keeps going on as if nothing is happening.

But I think 50 years is a little bit of a narrow time frame. More likely we'll all die within 100 to 150 years. I mean, our species will go extinct.

Lately I've been thinking about what a sane society would do to try to mitigate the worst effect of climate change, while preparing society for the world that's coming. A world without fossil fuels or basic infrastructure.

If it makes you feel better, it won’t all be bad for everyone. It’s going to largely depend on where you live. Some places will become…better.
Some places won’t change at all.
Many places will change for the worse.
The key is that things will change, but it doesn’t mean it’s a death sentence. It won’t be an overnight thing. You’ll have plenty of time to adjust.
If anything, humans are the most adaptable animal when it comes to climate.
Just throwing it out there. Im not trying to belittle the issue, it’s real and should be addressed. Just focus on today and take it as it comes.

Welcome to the club. The more people who wake up to reality, the better. Food insecurity and socioeconomic collapse are honestly the scariest parts to me. I try not to think about it, since I can't change it.

I'm right there with you. It may as well be a meteor on track to dead-center the planet, for all we can do about it.

There's a miniscule chance it'll miss us, or that we'll come up with some way to deflect it at the last minute, and if that does happen, you don't want to be the guy who sold all his stuff and went out into the cornfield to wait for Jesus to show up, if you know what I mean. No matter how certain we are, we have to hedge it as if we're not about to be smashed flat. And the only sure way we can help the meteor not hit us is by voting in literally every election, from president to dog catcher, for the people who believe meteors are real and dangerous. No amount of metal straws and reusable bags will cancel out letting meteor-skeptics keep their decision-making positions.

I've just given up to preserve the little remaining bits of my mental health. I continue to do my personal part, but I have lost any sort of hope that humanity will get the curve. Right now things seem to go more in the opposite direction, the far right is booming and the worse it gets, the more people will flock to them because they promise continuous denial. The required climate neutrality by 2035 is nothing but a pipe dream, especially when governments aim more towards 2045 - 2060. We've had decades to act, we did nothing. And now when things start to get dire, we still just half ass our way through it, hoping it will at least not lower our living standards for the current older generations (the majority of voters in a lot of places).

Honestly, for me who already had a lot of issues, this decision was freeing. I've tried so hard, for decades, to somehow make it right by society & the government, but I can't. This was nothing but a constant downwards spiral. Now I'm just here for myself. I don't care about it anymore, because I can't change it anyway. When the time comes I'll just eff myself and be done with all the bullshit. Let them reap what they sowed and learn it the hard way. If that's what the majority wants, then that's what's going to happen.

We as a species fucked ourselves, and we refuse to step away from the edge of the cliff. Get used to it.

Can you please provide the link to where you read that?

Billionaires and greed part is actually right, and we as people should prepare accordingly. Those with more resources (money) will be able to afford travel, appliances, insurance, and better locations. Those who are struggling will have high mortality rate.

Just like what happened in titanic - if you were a third class passenger you were likely to die compared to first class passenger.

There are advertisements telling people to do their part, but that is misleading propaganda. Because a badly managed industry will actually spend more in a day than a person can produce in their lifetime. Only real reason would be to reduce consumerism to increase wealth, but very few places tell this real message or work for it.

We should try our best to increase this resource of money(to increase our survival) and also use our knowledge and wisdom to secure the resources people are not putting real value on.

Climate change would be unsettling during initial period as that would be the period of change. Suddenly, the weather will become really harsh as climates are moving and reorganizing. After that, a harsher equilibrium will be reached. We should accept that reality and work to help our loved ones weather it through.

Can you please provide the link to where you read that stuff?

Rogue Black Hole says "hold by beer"

The concerning part is that a lot of the data is the most conservative available, so as to not seem alarmist. When even that looks grim, it's hard to hold onto any hope that our planet is on track to becoming anything other than a hellscape. A lot of climate change is the result of positive feedback loops -- self-aggrivating conditions. E.g., warmer arctic climate causes the release of methane previously trapped by ice (methane is a ridiculously potent greenhouse gas... something like 30x more potent than CO₂), so its release causes the climate to warm even more, which melts more arctic ice, which releases more methane, which makes the climate warmer, which melts more arctic ice, etc...

Even if every human just suddenly got thanos-snapped out of existence right now -- no more cars, no more shipping, no more deforestation, no more industry of any kind... full stop on pollution and active environmental destruction... even then, the positive feedback loops we've set into motion aren't just going to stop on their own. The process would be slower, sure, but Earth is (rather, the things on earth that make it more than just a dead rock floating in space, are) fucked.

On the plus side, we'll only be alive long enough to see the start of the 'find out' era. It's the generation after you that's really fucked; and the generation after them that's really, REALLY fucked, rinse and repeat until humanity is an eco-dome filled with oligarchs, or just straight up extinct.

At this point we're dependent on a (series of) miracle-tier scientific breakthrough(s), or literal divine/extraterrestrial intervention. I don't see the latter two happening. Vote for candidates who give a shit about science if you think there's any hope in that route.

This is easier to digest and accept if you don’t live in one of the areas already impacted by climate change. When you are actually experiencing the effects the reality of it is in your face and hard to tune out.

OP, just do what you can on an individual level and try to relieve your anxiety. It will take major, massive change to offset the Holocene extinction we’re currently in, enjoy the life you have and are living currently.

We're so thoroughly screwed, that it's the best I can do to get through the day without having a massive panic attack about it.

I try not to talk about it in real life because everyone is so in denial or like me, can't deal with the fact that we're still pretending "this is fine" while the house is on fire.

It's rough feeling that way. I don't blame you, OP. Climate science and the political situation around it look pretty grim right now. But I don't think humans are going to go extinct—rather it's just going to suck major ass after the 2.0°C threshold is breached.

Writing in the Times of London in 1894, one writer estimated that in 50 years every street in London would be buried under nine feet of manure. Moreover, all these horses had to be stabled, which used up ever-larger areas of increasingly valuable land. And as the number of horses grew, ever-more land had to be devoted to producing hay to feed them (rather than producing food for people), and this had to be brought into cities and distributed—by horse-drawn vehicles. It seemed that urban civilization was doomed.

While the situation is dire, some solutions we don't see yet may come forward still.

It’s tough. You’re having a rational response to a difficult future. But there are things you can do to at least help your peace of mind. Take news breaks. Meditate. Reflect on the things you are grateful for.

Wouldn't that be the most human thing to do. We truly are our worst enemy, even on the grandest of scales

We're not going to all die in half a century.

We haven't even reached the tipping point yet so if you want to believe humans can still be saved, that is still technically a possibility - at least short term.

Ultimately humanity will go extinct one day, there's no way around that. If you want to believe the worst news (I'm not saying you shouldn't) then sure, it looks like humanity is in its way out sooner than later. But it's not within your lifetime, not even your kids if you have one, This is a slow burn, it's gonna take hundreds of years at least.

And ultimately there's nothing you can do about it. Even if you go vegan and stop driving, it's not going to change billionaire superyachts and private planes. It's not going to stop Nestle ruining our rainforests. Or BP destroying our coasts with oil spills. It's not going to stop our politicians being unable to enact policies to save ourselves.

The extinction of humanity is not in your lifetime and not your fault. Stop worrying and go watch TV

Take the bus, an electric bike, or an electric scooter. Yeah it doesn't do much in the grand scheme of things - but it does get you outside and exercising, which leads to better health - and it's also helpful to connect with your community when you're outside of a car.
Yes, people will mock me for saying this - but that's part of the problem. I lived in LA for years without a car, and it was totally workable and a fraction of the cost of having a car.

I want you to at least consider stepping away from the news if you can. Focus on what make you happy, what make you enjoy life. Do you have a hobby? Is it something we can play with sometime?

"You will find that if you look for the light, you can often find it. But if you look for the dark, that will be all you will ever see." - Uncle Iroh in Legend of Korra

I am not going to deny that those topics you brought up are serious topics indeed, but it requires balanced mind to be able to confront such challenges and to ward off those who prey upon your vulnerability, so don't neglect yourself.

I'm glad I don't have any children. I can just imagine the guilt I'd feel if I did…

I wouldn’t call myself terrified, but I’m pessimistic. I’ve had this attitude for years, so the fear has faded into a constant, dull, background gloom.

It would take major, expensive, immediate action to combat climate change in a meaningful way, and I don’t think my government (US) has the willingness to do it. It’s too corrupt, and there are too many climate deniers in positions of power.

Now multiply that problem a few dozen times. Imagine how difficult it would be to get countries that hate each other to work together. Even if we narrow it down to the top polluters, it’s not gonna happen.

Next, consider individuals. A lot of people are greedy, selfish, and think climate change is a hoax. Plus, people are wired for denial. That’s not a condemnation of any group. It’s just a psychological fact.

Lastly, think about the nature of the problem itself. To avoid the worst of the consequences, we need to act before undeniable proof exists. Too many people don’t trust science, and will refuse to act until their personal standards for proof are met. Unfortunately, by the time there’s “sufficient” proof, it will be too late. Even if we could flip a switch and stop burning all fossil fuels immediately, it would take years for the environment to recover.

Of course, I could be wrong. I’m not one of those depressing clods who uses pessimism as an excuse to do nothing. I still try to do things that don’t harm the environment, even though I think it’s useless and trivial. I live as though my actions could matter. We’ll see… sooner rather than later, I think.

i don't know if this will help, but technology is advancing at a faster rate every single day. perhaps a potential solution will appear out of these advancements