From Anxiety to Action: Protecting Mental Health in a Changing Climate

Healthy Climate America

In this episode of Healthy Climate America, host Lisa Patel speaks with Dr. Elizabeth Pinsky, a child and adolescent psychiatrist and pediatrician at Massachusetts General Hospital. They discuss the significant mental health toll climate change is having on children, including increased anxiety, post-traumatic stress, and depression. Dr. Pinsky shares her personal journey into climate work, strategies for managing climate distress in clinical practice, and ways to build resilience for sustained climate advocacy. The conversation also emphasizes collective action, community support, and broader climate activism as essential elements for both personal and professional well-being.

Referenced this episode

You can read Lisa and Elizabeth’s piece on school reopening below:

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-05-20/the-school-reopening-debate-was-a-test-we-failed

North Carolina Town Sues Duke Energy Over Climate Change: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/04/business/energy-environment/duke-energy-climate-change-lawsuit.html

Impact of Climate Change on Vaccine Responses and Inequity: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-024-02192-y

Climate Change, Floods, and Human Health:

https://www.nejm.org/doi/abs/10.1056/NEJMsr2402457

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Healthy Climate America is produced by Lucy Walker. Our podcast interns are Isaias Segui and Mathilda Tataw. Savannah Martincic is our manager of communication, and Riya Gohtra is our communication intern. Adam Carl supported the editing process. Original music by James Harp