Weathering the Heat: Climate Anxiety and Summer Mental Health

Summer brings long days, sunshine—and increasingly, rising temperatures that strain both the body and the mind. With climate change intensifying heatwaves and environmental uncertainty, many clients are experiencing climate-related distress, mood disturbances, and physiological stress from heat exposure.

Here’s how therapists can help clients build emotional resilience this summer.

1. Heat and Mental Health Risks

Multiple studies have shown that elevated temperatures are associated with increased emergency department visits for mental health concerns—including mood disorders, psychotic disorders, and childhood onset behavioral disorders.

A recent study published in JAMA Psychiatry found that heat correlates with higher rates of psychiatric hospital visits, especially for conditions such as schizophrenia, mood disorders, and substance-related disorders. These are due to the direct effects of experiencing heat as well as extreme heat events (e.g., wildfires, failed crops) 

Additional research links even minor elevations in heat along with extreme heat events to:

• Increased irritability, agitation, and aggressive behavior
  
• Disrupted sleep, which can exacerbate depression and anxiety
  
• Higher rates of suicide and self-harm, particularly among vulnerable populations

2. Climate Anxiety

Eco-anxiety – defined by the American Psychological Association as “a chronic fear of environmental doom” – is increasingly common, particularly among youth.

A 2021 global study published in The Lancet Planetary Health found:

• 59% of youth (ages 16–25) felt “very or extremely worried” about climate change
  
• 45% said it negatively affected their daily functioning
• 75% reported they think the future is frightening because of climate change

Young people report not only anxiety, but also grief, helplessness, anger, and betrayal – feelings often referred to as ecological grief or solastalgia (distress caused by environmental change in one’s home environment).

3. Therapeutic Support Strategies

Adapt Self-Care in response to Heat 

Promote physical regulation through:

• Hydration and cooling routines (cold packs, showers, shade time)
  
• Minimizing outdoor activity during peak heat
  
• Improving sleep hygiene with fans, breathable bedding, and evening wind-down rituals

These behavioral adjustments reduce the somatic impact of heat, which in turn supports mood stability and emotional regulation.

Validate Climate Anxiety

Rather than pathologizing eco-anxiety, validate it as a logical and emotionally attuned response.

Normalize expressions of grief and anger. These emotional signals reflect deep care for the planet and a desire for agency.

Help clients identify which feelings are most prominent (e.g., anger, powerlessness, betrayal), connect these feeling to terms like “climate anxiety”, and adopt interventions appropriately (e.g., emotion regulation, advocacy, peer support). 

Empower Through Action

Problem-focused coping strategies like environmental advocacy and behavior change can be effective in reducing helplessness and increasing wellbeing.

Help clients explore:

• Reducing their personal carbon footprints (e.g., transportation, waste)
  
• Participating in community cleanups
  
• Connecting with local representatives
  
• Engaging in climate-focused volunteer work

These actions reinforce a sense of control and purpose.

Boost Resilience via Connection

Isolation worsens climate distress. Encourage peer or group therapy to provide validation and communal support.

Expressive arts therapy 

Use artistic expression therapeutically to process ecological grief through writing, music, dance, or visual art.

Narrative therapy 

Help clients reshape their climate stories from fear to empowerment

Build Distress Tolerance

Equip clients with tools to manage emotional overwhelm, including:

• Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)
  
• CBT strategies to address catastrophic thinking
  
• Nature-based therapy, which can lower cortisol and improve mood

4. Sample Interventions for Therapists

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5. Final Thoughts

Rising heat and extreme heat events affect emotional well-being. By integrating heat-aware behavioral strategies, validating climate distress, and offering tools for action and resilience, therapists can help clients navigate environmental and emotional turbulence.

This season, support clients not just in weathering the heat, but in weathering the future with grounded hope, action, and connection.

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