Mantras to Overcome Climate Anxiety
- Rachel Bailleau
- Jun 16
- 5 min read
If you're feeling overwhelmed, hopeless, angry, or just plain exhausted about the state of the world, you're not alone. Climate anxiety is a completely natural response to a very real crisis. It means you care. It means you're paying attention. And that’s something to honour, not pathologise.
But being stuck in a state of fear or despair can make it hard to act, connect, or even breathe some days. You deserve to live a happy and healthy life. And from this stable place, it's easier to make a meaningful contribution to a greener and more peaceful world.
This is where mantras for climate anxiety can be helpful.
Wait, what even is a mantra?
A mantra is a short phrase or sentence you repeat to yourself, out loud or silently. It can interrupt anxious thoughts, offer comfort, and gently shift your focus. Mantras are a tool to help you stay grounded, compassionate, and hopeful even when things feel uncertain or overwhelming.
Mantras aren’t about pretending everything is fine. They’re about retraining the part of your brain which is spiralling into a dark place. You know, many of our thoughts repeat on autopilot, and a lot of them skew negative. Mantras help interrupt that doom loop. They create space for something more helpful, more hopeful, and more productive.
You can write mantras down and stick them on your fridge, your mirror, save them as your phone background, or put them anywhere else you’ll see them several times a day. The idea is that you repeat these short phrases in your head or out loud multiple times a day. It's like you're watering seeds of hope and compassion, so that your inner garden can become a tiny bit more like paradise on Earth and a tiny bit less like Mad Max.
So, can mantras really work?
Well, they did for me.
There was a time when I felt so overwhelmed by climate change that I became completely paralysed. I couldn’t see a way forward. I felt crushed by the scale of it all, and guilty that I wasn't doing more. But I worked hard to find a place of balance, where I can stay aware without drowning, and actually make a positive difference.
I live in a rural mountain village, a beautiful place that has become very popular since COVID. People want to leave cities, and I get it. But for a while, every time I saw another wildflower meadow paved over for a huge, over-the-top villa, it felt like a punch in the gut.
At first, the only mantras I could manage were protective: "I observe, I don't absorb", and "It's nothing personal" would go around and around in my head alongside the horror at the loss of more native habitat.
They helped me take a step back from the twisting in my stomach.
As I began to feel stronger, those mantras evolved. Now, every time I see a new house being built, I think something like: "Welcome to our community. I hope your home is filled with love, and that you use this place as a base to make a positive difference to the world."And I send love to the people living there. It changes everything.
Retraining my inner dialogue with mantras makes me feel more loving and welcoming to people, and in turn, I'm making deeper connections with people in my community, both old and new. Thanks to this shift in perspective, I can tell newcomers about great local initiatives like the coop shop, where we volunteer our time, or the community garden. This can get them involved with our traditions and make them want to protect our community spaces.
Getting started with climate anxiety mantras
Does this sound like something you might be interested in? Great! There are no rules about how to do this, so you can write some mantras that feel most authentic to you. (Actually, I would say there is one rule. Make it positive, because that's the point). For example, instead of saying "I know there is a small minority that aren't destroying the world like the other idiots", you might say "countless people are fighting for a better world".
If you'd like to get some help getting started, here are 25 mantras I wrote for climate-anxious hearts, grouped by feeling. Choose a few that resonate with you, and put them somewhere that you'll see them every day.
When you feel afraid:
I believe in a better world.
I am a warrior. I fight for what is right.
The Earth is mighty, and so am I.
I smile at my fear. Together, we will change the world.
Fear is a signal that I'm ready to change.
When you feel sad:
My grief is a sign of my loving heart.
This storm will pass. I hold on tight until the calm returns.
I hold space for my sadness. I hold space for my grief.
Caring is tough, but so am I.
The world needs more sensitive people like me.
When you feel like you’re not doing enough"
I aim for progress, not perfection.
I belong on the Earth, and I do my best.
Just like the Earth in winter, I need rest. Come springtime, I will rise again.
I am learning every day.
I’m worthy of rest.
When you feel overwhelmed by the big picture
I didn’t choose to be born at this time. But I choose to live with love.
The Earth has seen worse. She will rise again.
I take care of myself, I take care of the Earth.
Better a small step taken than a big one never made.
We are all in this together. I don't need to save the Earth alone.
When you feel angry or judgmental:
The Earth has enough angry people. I will lead with love.
I can learn something from every single person.
Anger is a signal that I need to take care of myself.
I soften my gaze to see the good in other people.
Compassion makes me strong.
Mantras aren’t magic. They won’t fix the climate crisis. But they can be a thread to hold onto when things feel like they’re unravelling. They can help you come back to yourself, to the Earth, and to the hope you need to dust yourself down and keep moving forward.
They also help you be more open-hearted and resilient. And I think we can all agree that the world needs more open-hearted and resilient people right now.
Write one (or a few) on a sticky note. Tuck one in your wallet. Make a screensaver. Do whatever you have to do to get some of these more positive thinking patterns into your daily life. You are strong enough to make a real and lasting difference to the Earth. But not if you give up hope.
I hope you found this blog post helpful! You can sign up for my monthly newsletter on my home page to receive the latest blog posts, free resources to help with eco anxiety, and information about events. If you'd like to book individual coaching with me, you'll find the links below.
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