When Living Green Gets Exhausting
When Living Green Gets Exhausting
I’ll just go ahead and say it: eco-friendly lifestyles can leave us feeling weary, and that’s because living green requires extra time, patience, energy, and—sometimes—financial means.
But the heaviness associated with choosing sustainable choices day in and day out stems from experiencing a trifecta of difficult emotions, too, including confusion, hopelessness, and anger.
Today I bring you a conversation with Cheryl Leutjen. Cheryl is the author of Love Earth Now, a collection of essays that delve into the experience she coins eco-madness. Cheryl divulges her personal struggles with eco-madness as she attempts to navigate daily life as someone who cares too much in a society that cares too little; she offers honesty, too, and chronicles how she copes.
In our conversation today we focus less on concrete tips and more about finding ways to survive and thrive despite experiencing difficult emotions and understanding difficult environmental truths.
Here’s a preview of today’s episode:
[5:24] A definition of eco-madness and how the concept differs from eco anxiety
[9:45] Practical ways to cope day to day despite feelings of frustration, hopelessness, and anger
[19:45] The importance of setting intentions as an environmental steward
Resources mentioned in the episode:
* This week’s episode is sponsored by Kind Laundry. (Use code MINIMAL at checkout for 10% off your order!)
* Sustainable Minimalism (the book!) is available for pre-order now!
* Want more episodes like this one? Check out #087: How to Cope with Eco-Anxiety in 4 Steps.
* Love the show? Help it grow by leaving a quick review! On the Apple Podcasts app, hit the Library tab, scroll allll the way to the bottom past all prior episodes, then click on the stars to leave a review. (Thank you!)
* Join our (free!) community here.
* Find your tribe. Sustainable Minimalists are on Facebook, Instagram + Pinterest.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
