What Is Climate Activist Burnout?
Burnout, in general, is the exhaustion and emotional challenges that result from chronic stress and overwork, and climate activist burnout occurs when your commitment to climate justice work results in this chronic stress. You may be a volunteer, have a career in an environmental or climate nonprofit, or be a part of a social justice or political organization – any of these roles can lead to burnout if there is enough stress and overwhelm involved.
Climate activist burnout includes the following responses that you may experience as a result of your engagement with environmental causes:
- Emotional and physical exhaustion
- Feelings of overwhelm or dread
- Cynicism or detachment
- Numbness
- Hopelessness
- Physical symptoms like digestive issues, headaches, and muscle tension
Why People Working for Change Are So Vulnerable to Burnout
As a climate activist, you may be more prone to burnout simply because of how much care and concern you have for this cause. That care, combined with the overwhelming task of combatting climate change and facing up large systemic barriers, can lead to chronic stress and burnout.
You also may be impacted by how activist organizations are sometimes managed and run, which can have cultures of urgency, overwork, and pressure to take on more and more roles and responsibilities. As a climate or environmental activist, you are also exposed to repeated distressing information as you stay aware of the issues facing the climate. Facing such distressing news over time may lead you to develop a belief that no amount of action will be enough to enact meaningful change.
The Weight of Caring Deeply
Burnout is most common in situations where some type of care is involved, such as therapists, doctors, and activists. These roles are more prone to burnout because of a combined factor of caring deeply for your role while facing systemic barriers that leave you without the full amount of resources to do your job effectively.
You’re a climate activist because you see the immense harm that has happened and will continue to happen as a result of climate change, and you feel called to speak up and push for change to mitigate this harm. Burnout is not an experience that happens because someone has an individual weakness, instead it is the result of facing systemic barriers and a lack of resources to enact change.
Signs You May Be Experiencing Climate Activist Burnout
Burnout often slowly emerges over time, so it’s important to monitor yourself for signs of it before it becomes more entrenched and harder to manage.
Some signs of burnout include:
- Persistent exhaustion, even when you try to rest and recover
- Dreading roles and responsibilities you previously enjoyed
- Feeling detached, lacking in motivation, or numb
- Irritability, anxiety, and overwhelm related to your activist commitments
- Feeling cynical about your climate activism efforts
- Questioning whether your efforts matter
How Burnout Can Affect Your Mental Health and Relationships
Burnout often begins with emotional and physical exhaustion, but if left unaddressed, it can lead to mental health concerns and relationship difficulties. People experiencing activist burnout may notice anxiety, depression, insomnia, anger issues, and PTSD symptoms.
In relationships, you may notice feeling disconnected from loved ones, lacking in energy to spend time with people you care about, and a feeling that others can’t possibly understand what you’re going through. You may start to resent people who don’t seem to care as much as you, and have difficulty relating to people outside of your activist circles.
Why Rest Does Not Mean You Care Less
Many climate activists find it hard to take time away from their work to rest. Climate change is such a huge issue that there is always something to work on or fight – and stepping away can lead to guilt and feeling like you are abandoning your fellow activists.
However, the immense nature of this work is actually a reason you need to rest – climate activism is seen as lifelong work for many people – fighting not only to improve our current world but that of future generations. In order to continue that ongoing work, you need to find a sustainable pace that includes rest and recovery.
Letting Go of the Idea That You Must Do Everything
As a person who cares deeply about the world, you may take on quite a bit of responsibility. In the extreme, overextending yourself can lead to a belief that only you can fix things or only you can fulfill what needs to be done. You may fall into a “savior” mentality, thinking that you are uniquely positioned to resolve everything you see that needs attention.
If you notice these qualities, it’s important to take a step back and remind yourself that climate change will never be resolved by one person, so it’s beneficial to recognize when you’ve lost sight of that. You might also find it helpful to remember that sharing the load benefits other people – you can share skills, help newer activists feel needed and included, and learn from seeing how others tackle the problems you are working on.
How to Cope With Climate Activist Burnout Without Checking Out
While rest is important, if you care about the climate, you probably want to find ways to manage your burnout without completely checking out. Some coping skills that can refresh you while allowing you to stay tuned into the work are:
- Setting boundaries and saying no when you’re at your capacity
- Connecting with community if you’ve felt alone in managing your burnout
- Pacing your involvement – such as taking on one role at a time rather than trying to participate in everything that’s possible
- Reminding yourself of your values in order to clarify why you’re involved in climate work and what makes it worth it to you
- Recognizing that climate work involves acknowledging the current and ongoing harm to our planet, and taking time to grieve when noticing this
- Making time for rest, joy, and areas of your life outside of climate work.
Finding a More Sustainable Way to Stay Involved
If you’re recognizing climate burnout, you’ll want to assess how to build a more sustainable level of involvement. We all have unique levels of energy, capacity, money, and time, which means that you need to honestly assess your personal ability to contribute, without comparing yourself to others.
Finding ways to mindfully check in with yourself can help. You might try meditating, journaling, or talking with a loved one to get into the habit of slowing down and assessing how your level of involvement is working with you. This will help you to act out of a place of self-reflection rather than urgency.
How Therapy Can Help With Climate Activist Burnout
Burnout develops slowly over time and can also take time and intention to recover from. If you’ve recognized yourself in this article, you may benefit from working with a therapist on recovering from climate activist burnout.
Therapy for climate burnout can offer you a place to work through your climate-related grief, examine and understand moral distress, and identify ways you might benefit from setting boundaries in your climate work. Therapy can also help address any anxiety, depression, emotional regulation difficulties, or other mental health concerns that have arisen as a result of chronic burnout.
Your therapist will work with you while keeping your climate and environmental values in mind – helping you to find ways to recommit to what matters to you, while caring for yourself along the way.
Support for People Burned Out by Climate Work
If you’re feeling burned out and overextended in your climate activism work, working with a climate-aware counselor is a helpful avenue to feel fully seen, validated, and supported in both your climate goals and personal needs.
I’m a licensed professional counselor with a focus on climate-aware therapy. My approach focuses on helping you to grow your self-compassion, connect to your values, and build climate resilience for the fight ahead. If you’re in Texas, book a call at the link below to explore working with me in therapy.