Eco-anxiety in the face of climate change challenges

Eco-anxiety continues to spread in the face of intensifying natural phenomena. Symptomatic of global warming, temperatures have risen again in the Alpes-Maritimes. The ecological context has repercussions on mental health, which continue to grow.

Every year, the record for the hottest year ever recorded is broken. Between heatwaves, devastating fires and droughts, climate change affects the entire planet. Remaining indifferent to the degradation of environmental conditions proves perilous. In the Southeast, 82% of those surveyed announced they were worried about the consequences of climate change (survey conducted by HuffPost in August 2026).

Increasingly widespread, eco-anxiety is a psychological state “of mental and emotional distress that an individual may feel in response to the threat of climate change and global environmental problems”, according to Teaghan Hogg, an Australian researcher (journal Global Environmental Change).

However, this condition is not recognized as a psychiatric disorder. “A certain worry about climate change can be considered a coherent emotional reaction and appropriate to a real threat. The boundary between healthy functioning and a disorder depends on the level of impact on life“, explained neuropsychologist Svetlana Dimitrova.

Growing concern

The multiplication of natural phenomena, particularly in the Alpes-Maritimes department, has intensified the worry of some Nice residents. “The heatwave never ends, fires are becoming increasingly frequent, the threat of a tsunami in Nice is real, all these things worry me“, lamented young Nice resident, Alex.

The causes are multifactorial, with the frequency of environmental disasters, climate inaction by political decision-makers and limited treatment of the climate emergency. This anxiety is rational given the reality of the threat. On the other hand, Svetlana Dimitrova advised to remain vigilant in cases where “the patient begins to abandon his life projects, anticipate catastrophic scenarios or focus on negative environmental information.”

People can find themselves overwhelmed by anxiety, sadness, anger or even guilt. With social media and continuous news, the relationship to information can lead to awareness, likely to challenge a worldview. This perception can also influence representations of the future, particularly for younger generations.

How people manage information varies. “Information is very present in my daily life and this contributes to my worry, but I choose to stay informed so I can act accordingly“, said Romain. Conversely, others try to step back. “It’s impossible to watch everything without feeling this helplessness and anger, so I watch in small doses, without letting my anxiety rise“, confided Marie.

Prolonged exposure to news can involuntarily maintain a state of alert. “Even if each piece of information is real, their accumulation in a very short time can psychologically give the impression of a permanent and omnipresent threat“, explained the neuropsychologist.

Solutions for better management

This fear is therefore not classified as a psychiatric disorder. “Eco-anxiety is not necessarily the main reason for consultation, but it can appear among the concerns that feed more general anxiety, for example“, clarified Svetlana Dimitrova.

“The approach using cognitive and behavioral therapies is recommended for this type of anxiety as it allows work on the mechanisms that maintain suffering, without seeking to convince the person that their climate concern is irrational“, she added. As an example, the neuropsychologist suggested gradually decreasing checks on world news to learn to better tolerate uncertainty. “The goal is to manage to maintain a lucid environmental concern and concrete commitment, without it invading the person’s daily life“, she explained.

Commitment, through an association or by changing habits, can help overcome these anxieties. However, the neuropsychologist warned about the potentially anxiety-inducing nature of commitment: “the patient can feel guilty at the slightest slip, spend a lot of time calculating their environmental impact or feel strong anger toward those around them.”

Svetlana Dimitrova stressed the need to achieve realistic commitment, without asking the patient to personally bear responsibility for a collective problem.