Climate therapist offers advice for overcoming burnout and paralysis
In a new advice column, licensed therapist Leslie Davenport responds to two readers struggling with climate-related burnout and paralysis. She suggests that individuals need not match the scale of the crisis alone and that collective efforts are key. She encourages focusing on group action rather than individual impact.
The column features two readers at different stages of climate engagement: a sustainability professional with 24 years of experience who feels beaten down, and a 31-year-old who twice drove to canvassing events but couldn't leave the car. Both describe feeling that their individual efforts cannot match the scale of the planetary crisis.
Davenport identifies a shared assumption behind both struggles — that individuals must be equal to the crisis's magnitude. She recommends shifting toward collective frameworks and introduces a practice called "Even As," where readers pair a difficult truth with a countervailing one, such as acknowledging exhaustion while still feeling needed in the work.
This column could resonate with a growing segment of the population experiencing climate anxiety, particularly those already engaged in environmental work. By reframing burnout as a collective challenge rather than individual failure, it may help normalize these emotional responses and encourage sustained participation in climate efforts. The advice could influence how activists and professionals approach long-term engagement, potentially affecting retention in climate-related fields and community organizing.