Addressing Climate Worry Head-On at the Forefront
In the heart of Southeast Asia, the Philippines faces a daunting reality. Heat waves, rising sea levels, more intense droughts, declining rice yields, and the increase of mosquito-borne illnesses like dengue are just some of the climate impacts that have or will hit the country. As the most storm-exposed country on Earth, hit by about 20 cyclones and 10 typhoons a year, climate change is making these natural disasters more intense.
This escalating climate crisis has taken a toll on the mental health of Filipinos, particularly those who are disproportionately impacted by these disasters. Access to mental health care in the Philippines is expensive and a privilege not afforded to the majority of Filipinos. Stigmas and misperceptions remain around mental health, with family members often suggesting prayer as a solution to depression or anxiety.
Jon, a nine-year-old living in Cainta, experienced severe anxiety after Typhoon Ondoy in 2009, which was the most destructive typhoon to ever make landfall over Manila. For Michelle, an organizer with Youth Advocates for Climate Action Philippines (YACAP), climate change has led to a constant state of worry that impacts her daily functioning. She spends 20% of her income on psychiatric care, with her parents covering the cost of medication.
The problem of climate anxiety in the Philippines isn't on individual Filipinos or therapists to solve. Renzo Guinto, who is spearheading further research on the mental health impacts of climate change on Filipinos, emphasizes the need for mental health professionals to advocate for upstream changes to the global systems that have created the climate crisis.
Gabes Torres, a licensed psychotherapist, identifies her experience of fear during a typhoon as indicative of climate anxiety or trauma. She is offering pro bono services to climate activists traumatized by arrests, recruiting other mental health professionals to help. Properly addressing climate feelings in the Philippines might necessitate new terminology and a decolonial approach to mental health care.
Sunglao envisions community or group-based interventions for climate anxiety care in the Philippines, similar to the Friendship Bench program in Zimbabwe. Channeling feelings into action through activism can help address climate anxiety, believes Michelle of YACAP. Climate activists in the Philippines may face safety concerns due to potential reporting to the government.
Esperanza Cayanan of PAGASA, the Philippines' national meteorological agency, stated that the stronger typhoons can be attributed to the warming of the sea surface temperature and the warming of the atmosphere. A 2021 paper about climate anxiety published in The Lancet found that young people in the Philippines were the most worried of any country surveyed, and that worry impacted daily functioning for 74% of survey respondents.
The organization led by Renzo Guinto that runs the planetary and global health program at St. Luke's Medical Center in Manila is the Planetary and Global Health program itself. Guinto emphasizes the importance of addressing the mental health impacts of climate change in the Philippines, a country considered the most climate-vulnerable nation in the world.
Read also:
- Understanding Hemorrhagic Gastroenteritis: Key Facts
- Stopping Osteoporosis Treatment: Timeline Considerations
- Tobacco industry's suggested changes on a legislative modification are disregarded by health journalists
- Expanded Community Health Involvement by CK Birla Hospitals, Jaipur, Maintained Through Consistent Outreach Programs Across Rajasthan
