on hand. Write down and practice an
emergency plan with your family.
Find out if you live in a flood zone
and how your local government
plans to inform you of a potential
disaster. The idea is to eliminate as
much uncertainty as possible in an
already uncertain scenario.
Research has also found that people
with strong social connections and
networks during, and in the wake, of
a natural disaster tend to have lower
rates of psychological distress and a
higher capacity to withstand
traumatic experiences. “For
everyone, strengthening social
connections can be a powerful
source of resilience,” says Clayton.
Lean on your family, friends, and
neighbors, but don’t forget to offer
them a helping hand, too. Getting
involved in community activities is
also beneficial. “Even book groups
or exercise groups can be helpful,”
Clayton adds. “The social bonds and
the opportunity to have informal,
unplanned conversation with people
about issues you care about will
contribute to mental, and even
physical, health.”
Even if you think you can do little to
change our environmental outcome,
small changes in your carbon
footprint can also create a huge
difference in your mental state.
Studies show that walking or biking
to work (or taking public
transportation, if those aren’t doable)
can reduce overall stress levels and
have a positive effect on a person’s
emotional and physical well-being.
As for those who are tempted to
ignore all the bad news in an effort
to stay sane, it’s important to
confront the issue of climate change
directly. “The best way to fight
feelings of helplessness is to
increase feelings of empowerment
by getting informed and getting
involved,” explains Clayton.
“Joining together with others to
address the issue not only enables
people to enhance their impact, but
also provides social support that can
help with the negative emotions.”
You can get involved by joining a
grassroots initiative focused on
battling climate change or by
donating to politicians who support
action against climate change.
(GiveGreen provides an easy way to
do this.)
The point is, there is plenty to do
instead of hiding out under the
covers. In the case of my family, our
plan in the eventuality of
another hurricane is already in
place. (Let’s just say, we won’t
hesitate on buying plane tickets next
time around.) And for now, we’ve
scrapped the idea of buying a house
anytime soon.
Getting a mortgage on a home in a
city vulnerable to sea-level rise and
that will more than likely be hit by
several superstorms seemed like too
much of a risk. “Fear feeds on itself.
When we refuse to confront the
thing we’re afraid of, it seems even
more scary and powerful—like the
monster under the bed,” adds
Clayton. At least we’ve started
looking under the bed.
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