Not so long ago I wrote a post regarding “eco-anxiety,” the distress related to worries about the effect of climate change.  It felt good to have a name for the worry I was becoming more aware of in relation to the changes in the Earth’s temperatures.  But since then, I have increasingly questioned the notion of eco-anxiety as not quite right for expressing what I feel.  In watching the news I see images of intense drought, the spread of wildfires and flooding, and the setting of record temperatures all over the world and I’m sad, angry, and overwhelmed.  I also feel more than just anxiety when I go to Lake Sonoma, the lake my family has boated on for years, and see the drop to levels that were unthinkable in previous years, limiting our ability to access many parts of the landscape.  And when I look out our window to the view that is scarred by wildfire and the panorama of dead and dying trees, I feel a heartache, knowing the landscape will most likely never be the same, at least in my lifetime.  The term “anxiety” implies a worry beyond what is actual and likely.  But what I am seeing and experiencing all around me are indeed real consequences, not just worries, classifying them as actual threats and lived trauma.  So in doing some research about what others think, I came across a term and a resource that I wanted to share, as it represents an evolution in our understanding and coping with the physical and psychological effects of global warming.

In 2019, the Australian environmental researcher and philosopher Glenn A. Albrecht coined the term solastalgia, which was based on the words solace (that which gives comfort) and algos (Greek for pain).  He explained that if we seek solace in a much loved place that is being devastated, we suffer distress.  The pain is a form of devastation, deprivation, or abandonment.  He noted that invasive changes to our home or land are felt as an attack on one’s sense of place and belonging.  Nostalgia refers to a homesickness we feel for our own home, while solastalgia refers to a homesickness we feel in our own home.  While solastalgia has been felt for centuries by many cultures, the increasingly chaotic climate has intensified the conditions for solastalgia with the loss to cultures of their traditional ways and the irreversible loss and changes to home environments.  Solastalgia incorporates the concern as well as distress caused by environmental change and natural disasters that can lead to a disruption in a person’s sense of security, sense of belonging, and identity.  While the experience of solastalgia varies by individual circumstances, it often includes a sense of helplessness, loss, chronic emptiness, anger, and hopelessness.  In addition, these feelings are usually there for the long haul, ebbing and flowing, but consistently present.  The chronic stress and despair of experiencing adverse environmental disruption causes the emotional trauma characterized by solastalgia, which can feel especially daunting, relentless, or hopeless for many people.

Solastalgia is particularly hard to find relief from, as typically the causes are all around us and what might serve as a source of comfort or refuge (your home or community) is disrupted or damaged.  But putting a name to our struggles and understanding what we are experiencing is an important start in coping and healing.  It is also very helpful in addressing the effects of solastalgia to connect with a community.  Often, hearing how others are experiencing what we are feeling eases a sense of disconnection and isolation.  In addition, it helps engage one another in empowering ideas and actions that can help the paralysis we can experience from the overwhelm.

One inspiring resource I found in my research regarding solastalgia is a relatively new organization inspired by a desire to come together to cope with the feelings of distress brought about by climate change.  Good Grief Network is a non-profit organization that “brings people together to metabolize collective grief, eco-distress and other heavy emotions that arise in response to daunting planetary crises.”  Their mission is to gather in community, process the painful feelings and realities of our time, and commit to meaningful action.  They accomplish this through online and in person 10 week groups designed and facilitated in a 10 step process.  According to their website, 95% pf GGN participants report feeling less isolated and helped them feel empowered to take action in their community.  GGN is a global organization with virtual meetings accommodating time zones and languages.  The link to the website is: https://www.goodgriefnetwork.org/.

We are beyond prevention when it comes to climate change and this can lead to despair and frustration.  But reconnecting to our love of the Earth is important as we still can make changes and advocate for political and corporate policies that will matter for us and for our children.  Our relationship to our land and environment is critical in the present for our quality of life and sense of connection and well being.  In the long run, Mother Earth will endure, but what is at stake is our own relationship with her.  I love this quote as a closing, by the wise Thich Nhat Hanh:  Once we accept the impermanence of our civilization with peace, we will be liberated from our fear.  Only then will we have the strength, awakening, and love we need to bring us together. Cherishing our precious Earth – falling in love with the Earth – is not an obligation.  It is a matter of personal and collective happiness and survival.