Battling Climate Worry Head-On in the Trenches

The Philippines, a nation known for its beautiful landscapes and vibrant culture, faces a growing challenge in the intersection of climate change and mental health. In 2018, the Mental Health Law was enacted, positioning mental health as a national priority. However, stigmas and misperceptions persist, and access to mental health care remains expensive and scarce.

With only three mental health professionals for every 100,000 Filipinos, obtaining mental health support, let alone climate-specific support, is a significant challenge. This scarcity makes mental health care a privilege not accessible to the majority of the population.

The Philippines, considered the most climate-vulnerable nation in the world, is no stranger to the impacts of global warming. Esperanza Cayanan, of PAGASA, the Philippines' national meteorological agency, attributed the increase in typhoon intensity to the warming of the sea surface temperature and the warming of the atmosphere. This, coupled with other climate impacts such as heat waves, rising sea levels, more intense droughts, declining rice yields, and the increase of mosquito-borne illnesses like dengue, poses a significant threat to the mental health of the Filipino people.

The global conversation about climate change's influence on mental health is still in its infancy, with much of the early research focusing on Europe and North America. However, AJ Sunglao, a mental health advocate, refutes the speculation that climate anxiety is an "overwhelmingly white phenomenon." Sunglao suggests that while people in the Philippines may not have the exact language for it, they will recognize the feeling.

Renzo Guinto, director of the planetary and global health program at St. Luke's Medical Center in Manila, emphasizes the need for a well-functioning mental healthcare system in the Philippines. Guinto believes that mental health professionals should advocate for upstream changes to the global systems that have created the climate crisis, rather than relying on individual solutions.

Gabes Torres, a licensed psychotherapist, identifies her anxiety during storms as indicative of climate anxiety or trauma-psychological distress attributed to the climate crisis or its impacts. Torres offers pro bono services to climate activists who have been traumatized by events such as arrests, and recruits other mental health professionals to help with this effort.

However, the safety of these activists is a concern. Reporting from Human Rights Watch indicates that red-tagging, or labeling climate activists as communist rebels or terrorists, can have serious safety implications and is often a precursor to violent attacks or human rights violations.

A 2021 paper 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. Jon, a nine-year-old living in Cainta when Typhoon Ondoy hit in 2009, described the event as the spark that ignited the "ticking time bomb" of his mental health issues.

Sunglao's long-term dream is to establish networks of community care that function a bit like group therapy. This vision aligns with Guinto's belief that finding a way to stop climate change is the key to preventing all the negative mental health effects. Sunglao envisions community or group-based interventions as a solution to address climate feelings in the Philippines, following the model of the Friendship Bench program pioneered in Zimbabwe.

In conclusion, the intersection of climate change and mental health in the Philippines is a pressing issue that requires immediate attention. With the right resources, strategies, and advocacy, it is possible to build a mental health system that can support the Filipino people in the face of climate adversity.