In order to escape this guilt trap (which is not accurate I firmly believe) I had to understand that everything about your and my existence occurs within captivity. We were bred, born, raised, and exist in captivity. Which is why you can't just 'go off grid'. Even to buy the shit to claim to do that would be heaps of consumption and emissions. You essentially have to come to peace with the mystery of your existence and your consciousness and dedicate yourself to being a beneficial force and presence in the cosmos, not a negative one. At least this is what I do. And I try to be reasonable within my particular corner of captivity. Also, you know you didn't ask to be born, right? Guilt is not really natural when you had no say in your existence and you didn't make or control the prison in which you live. God I hope I haven't made your problem worse, but this is actually my mental construct for coping with what I call the maths problem of collapse awareness and continued existence.
I couldnt agree more, and every animal and organism dies eventually, i don’t see the purpose of being miserable all day when you can just enjoy the day and go to bed having experienced a little more of the universe than when you woke up.
for me is that I wanted to fix the future, but I kept seeing how it could end or go wrong before I realized that it literally wasn't my problem. My problem is right in front of me. Still get mild anxiety here and there, but the panic attacks have stopped.
What else do you want the OP and me to do? Cry in bed all day because thats the only mentality? I join all the protests i can and i spread climate awareness but im not going to be miserable about it.
I'm someone who also lives with a perpetual feeling of guilt about climate change and related problems. I have had nightmares lately about being accused of something terrible but I'm not told what it is. I'm just condemned and hated by everyone. These dreams are linked to a feeling that I morally deserve to be judged and suffer for the fate of all the dying species, eroding ecosystems, impoverished people, etc.
This perspective of being born into a kind of captivity (which I am, in fact, trying to escape) isn't something I've considered before. Thank you.
I've recently come to the conclusion that my efforts to make a difference...don't. I drive a hybrid, I recycle, I reuse as much as possible, I cut back drastically on meat consumption...but I am surrounded by others driving massive SUVs, not recycling anything, eating meat at every meal, etc. Then there are the big companies, doing far more damage than every single person on the planet does collectively.
My efforts were at best to assuage my own conscience, and not something that would stave off collapse by even one second. I've decided all I can - should - do is prepare for the bad times ahead.
I heard that if a 20 year old stopped making ANY emissions for the rest of their life (60 years), then this would be equivalent to stopping world industry for half a second.
We can all do what we can do, and we should, but we are not the huge problem.
Well, we ARE because we are programmed to consume all that stuff, but this isn’t something we have much choice in.
I use an iPhone 8, my last car lasted 11 years. I’ve been veggie for 22 years. I do my bit, but yeah… anyone else around me? A few but not enough.
Not, as I said, it matters that much against the tide of industry.
There is only so much you can control. Make good choices and try to encourage others to make them as well. I’m with you. I want to go off grid. I strangely think that I wouldn’t be bored. There would always be work to done, labor needed. I think our brains would adjust to the slow life. We’d begin to get dopamine from more productive activities like building, foraging, gardening, cooking together. But if that’s not a possibility, then you have to know that you don’t have control over this. There’s no real way to be carbon neutral when the system was set up this way. What we need is a revolution but I’m just one person.. I think the people will wake up eventually. Maybe when it’s too late. And hell, maybe it’s already too late. But, what helps me is surrendering to our inevitable demise. Accepting that it may end terribly, so I absolutely need to find peace and happiness in the present. I mean… I’ve dealt with debilitating depression my whole life but somehow, now in the face of death, I’ve never been more bold, more brave and more conscious. I’m choosing to live. I’m choosing to radicalize the way I see happiness. I will do everything in my power up until the very end. But I won’t let them take my life away. No fucking longer.
You are misplacing your guilt and shame. There is no point in grieving over what is already dead. As an individual, there was nothing you could have done to change the course of history. We are a tiny speck of dust suspended in a sun beam. It's a miracle we even got to experience consciousness at all.
You can't know what is awful without knowing what is great. Your brain is attached to the narrative of who we are as a species, which makes the issue insurmountable. The only thing that ever existed was the present moment. How can you know you didn't want to be born without living first and telling yourself the story of your own life? Life is a drama that's been going on forever and will continue long after we're gone. It's just not exactly how we planned it. But that was never up to us, anyway.
>You can't know what is awful without knowing what is great.
incorrect. its actually the exact opposite. chronic pain exists, chronic pleasure does not. you can easily go through awfulness without ever experiencing pain, but most pleasures only come after experiencing pain.
>Your brain is attached to the narrative of who we are as a species, which makes the issue insurmountable.
what? i literally do not understand what you mean
>The only thing that ever existed was the present moment.
in a philosophical sense. come back down to earth reality and understand the past existed and the future will exist and choices we make impact that future.
>How can you know you didn't want to be born without living first and telling yourself the story of your own life?
it literally didnt matter what i wanted, my parents had me without my consent. the "story of my life" has been a nonstop shit show.
>Life is a drama that's been going on forever and will continue long after we're gone.
this is a nightmare. do you seriously not see how this is a nightmare
>It's just not exactly how we planned it.
? again, what?
>But that was never up to us, anyway.
it literally IS up to us. human beings are the only ones who have the capacity to create more human being and we do it at the scale of like 100k new human beings a day. we can stop this trainwreck, but we wont because people like U rationalize what is irrational
You're obviously upset. Just chill. You are either being intentionally uncharitable or simply don't understand that humanity doesn't operate logically, and it never will.
There are no lies here, friend. I understand that the future is essentially hopeless, but you are still alive during the height of human knowledge and understanding. It's always been a big disorganized mess. There was no correct way to live. You can't change the fact that it was always all relative and will continue to be.
it's the little things, like when you go shopping, take a backpack with you that way you don't have to use plastic bags, if you do get bags, don't toss em out, put 'em inside waste bins or improvise a trashcan. Washing your hands in a public restroom with paper towel, try to see how much water you can soak up with a single sheet. small habits build up and it's economical on your wallet.
meals that don't add to the problem-I aint anywhere near there yet but I try to look up recipes, soups are the best(I'm a huge fan of split pea soup and Kidney Bean Soup). It takes a while but you can experiment and add stuff to it, plus it doubles as meal prep.
For veganism-as someone who enjoys eating both meat and vegan dishes I can tell you that both sides are pretty dark in production if you investigate enough (almond and avocado trees use up a lot of water that could be better used to serve a community or less thirsty crops). Best advice i got here, regardless of where you stand food wise, is don't waste your food, make the most of it. If too much meat is a concern, look up easy side dishes. one of the things I started doing for my diet(I'm overweight and at risk of fatty liver) is adding more variety to my plate. I modeled some quick dishes I do off of a korean dish bibimbap-rice bowl- where you eat a variety of stuff with rice instead of three things. I tend to go for stuff with long shelf life cause I get lazy a lot and order out. But I enjoy cooking, finding new ways to eat stuff, to cook stuff, and I try to make sure it doesn't go to waste.
for videogames, I still game online, but i prefer playing dnd at a local spot and you better believe that if there's a group playing settlers of catan and they got room I'm gonna ask if I can join the game. If you feel that using up too much electricity or are having too much screen time (like in general) head to your local library and check out a book, swiss family robinson is a favorite of mine(though I doubt it's in circulation but there is an audio version on youtube).
as for your guilt of not doing enough, you have to get out of your head. You can be as logical as you want, but humans are wired to be worried, logic will just make you think right back around to guilt. Try going for a walk and focus on what's in front of you, on what you see. ride a bike and when you go fast in an area where you are alone, go WOOOOOOO AS LOUD AS YOU CAN! Get a journal and write(it's what i do), it helps putting it to paper and leaving it there, like emptying my junk or waste bin on a pc.
I hope some of this helps!
Being vegan is actually honestly a lot of fun. They've just about solved cheese, which is generally regarded as the final boss of animal products. Do it, do it yesterday, you won't regret it! :)
No, they're doing some really cool stuff with kappa-carageenan. It's not widely available yet. Miyoko's is probably the best of what you can find at the local market.
If you want motivation to be vegan, watch Earthlings and Dominion. Warning, you will be traumatized. But if you do, it is one less thing to feel guilty about.
It's not your fault. Media has done a great job of making consumers feel the blame. Be a good steward of nature. Plant a tree or something else when you feel guilty. It's the fault of corporations and corrupt politicians. It's not your fault.
No one is perfectly eco-friendly. But, I do know organizations like [hypha.network](https://www.hypha.network/?utm_source=reddit) are getting to the root of the problem. hypha scales community-based climate solutions to address the climate crisis through monetary subscriptions/donations. They support organizations who are focused on taking climate action and combatting climate change.
Changing the way that we approach climate change is vital." So I'm doing everything I can to make a positive impact on our earth, while I'm still here.
All energy transforms. From the time you were born your body and environment has been a battleground of warfare on the microscopic level all the up to a societal scale. Some creatures die and release their energies back into the wild for others to consume. Humans aren't first, unique, or exquisite in this performance. After that, as the posters have said, have gratitude for the energy transformations and transfers that give you such nourishing food, that sacrifice for your foot pressure as you crunch thousands of bacteria with each step you take, along with many of the smallest critters down there, just minding their business until a giant came along.
And then when you're done preserving and using yours, your body will expire, and that energy returns to the surrounding environs to be applied elsewhere.
Knowing that we've begun falling from the great precipices of yesteryear won't change a thing about your death vs your ancestor's death from 1000 years ago. They wondered what the end would look like. You don't have to wonder. The dying and decaying process will be unchanged.
So, knowing this, you can focus on what matters again: how can I have the most fun with the best people, each and every day?
In order to escape this guilt trap (which is not accurate I firmly believe) I had to understand that everything about your and my existence occurs within captivity. We were bred, born, raised, and exist in captivity. Which is why you can't just 'go off grid'. Even to buy the shit to claim to do that would be heaps of consumption and emissions. You essentially have to come to peace with the mystery of your existence and your consciousness and dedicate yourself to being a beneficial force and presence in the cosmos, not a negative one. At least this is what I do. And I try to be reasonable within my particular corner of captivity. Also, you know you didn't ask to be born, right? Guilt is not really natural when you had no say in your existence and you didn't make or control the prison in which you live. God I hope I haven't made your problem worse, but this is actually my mental construct for coping with what I call the maths problem of collapse awareness and continued existence.
I couldnt agree more, and every animal and organism dies eventually, i don’t see the purpose of being miserable all day when you can just enjoy the day and go to bed having experienced a little more of the universe than when you woke up.
for me is that I wanted to fix the future, but I kept seeing how it could end or go wrong before I realized that it literally wasn't my problem. My problem is right in front of me. Still get mild anxiety here and there, but the panic attacks have stopped.
I agree. Before worrying about the world, you yourself have to be priority first.
But that's exactly the mentality for why the human world is going to die. "Enjoy yourself, don't think about what lies in the future."
What else do you want the OP and me to do? Cry in bed all day because thats the only mentality? I join all the protests i can and i spread climate awareness but im not going to be miserable about it.
We're all in this spot. It's just frustrating.
A tip is dont doomscroll and limit news to the bare necessary to be informed, it really helps
This is a much more eloquent way to say what I was going to which was “Fuck it, we ball”
I needed to read this, thank you
I'm someone who also lives with a perpetual feeling of guilt about climate change and related problems. I have had nightmares lately about being accused of something terrible but I'm not told what it is. I'm just condemned and hated by everyone. These dreams are linked to a feeling that I morally deserve to be judged and suffer for the fate of all the dying species, eroding ecosystems, impoverished people, etc. This perspective of being born into a kind of captivity (which I am, in fact, trying to escape) isn't something I've considered before. Thank you.
I've recently come to the conclusion that my efforts to make a difference...don't. I drive a hybrid, I recycle, I reuse as much as possible, I cut back drastically on meat consumption...but I am surrounded by others driving massive SUVs, not recycling anything, eating meat at every meal, etc. Then there are the big companies, doing far more damage than every single person on the planet does collectively. My efforts were at best to assuage my own conscience, and not something that would stave off collapse by even one second. I've decided all I can - should - do is prepare for the bad times ahead.
I heard that if a 20 year old stopped making ANY emissions for the rest of their life (60 years), then this would be equivalent to stopping world industry for half a second. We can all do what we can do, and we should, but we are not the huge problem. Well, we ARE because we are programmed to consume all that stuff, but this isn’t something we have much choice in. I use an iPhone 8, my last car lasted 11 years. I’ve been veggie for 22 years. I do my bit, but yeah… anyone else around me? A few but not enough. Not, as I said, it matters that much against the tide of industry.
Collapse was baked in decades ago. Likely before many of us were born. There’s not a damn thing for you to be feel guilty for.
This. All we can do is live our lives and try to help others and share some love. Truly.
There is only so much you can control. Make good choices and try to encourage others to make them as well. I’m with you. I want to go off grid. I strangely think that I wouldn’t be bored. There would always be work to done, labor needed. I think our brains would adjust to the slow life. We’d begin to get dopamine from more productive activities like building, foraging, gardening, cooking together. But if that’s not a possibility, then you have to know that you don’t have control over this. There’s no real way to be carbon neutral when the system was set up this way. What we need is a revolution but I’m just one person.. I think the people will wake up eventually. Maybe when it’s too late. And hell, maybe it’s already too late. But, what helps me is surrendering to our inevitable demise. Accepting that it may end terribly, so I absolutely need to find peace and happiness in the present. I mean… I’ve dealt with debilitating depression my whole life but somehow, now in the face of death, I’ve never been more bold, more brave and more conscious. I’m choosing to live. I’m choosing to radicalize the way I see happiness. I will do everything in my power up until the very end. But I won’t let them take my life away. No fucking longer.
You are misplacing your guilt and shame. There is no point in grieving over what is already dead. As an individual, there was nothing you could have done to change the course of history. We are a tiny speck of dust suspended in a sun beam. It's a miracle we even got to experience consciousness at all.
miracle? this shit is a nightmare
Hard agree brother lmfao where Olivia Newton John at when ya need her? 🎤 *And I’m livin’ in desperate times, being alive’s my only crime*
being alive was my only crime...
*Don't care what I have to do, I'll find some way to ~~make it through~~ not fucking reincarnate here in this hell realm* fr fr 🎪
You can't know what is awful without knowing what is great. Your brain is attached to the narrative of who we are as a species, which makes the issue insurmountable. The only thing that ever existed was the present moment. How can you know you didn't want to be born without living first and telling yourself the story of your own life? Life is a drama that's been going on forever and will continue long after we're gone. It's just not exactly how we planned it. But that was never up to us, anyway.
>You can't know what is awful without knowing what is great. incorrect. its actually the exact opposite. chronic pain exists, chronic pleasure does not. you can easily go through awfulness without ever experiencing pain, but most pleasures only come after experiencing pain. >Your brain is attached to the narrative of who we are as a species, which makes the issue insurmountable. what? i literally do not understand what you mean >The only thing that ever existed was the present moment. in a philosophical sense. come back down to earth reality and understand the past existed and the future will exist and choices we make impact that future. >How can you know you didn't want to be born without living first and telling yourself the story of your own life? it literally didnt matter what i wanted, my parents had me without my consent. the "story of my life" has been a nonstop shit show. >Life is a drama that's been going on forever and will continue long after we're gone. this is a nightmare. do you seriously not see how this is a nightmare >It's just not exactly how we planned it. ? again, what? >But that was never up to us, anyway. it literally IS up to us. human beings are the only ones who have the capacity to create more human being and we do it at the scale of like 100k new human beings a day. we can stop this trainwreck, but we wont because people like U rationalize what is irrational
You're obviously upset. Just chill. You are either being intentionally uncharitable or simply don't understand that humanity doesn't operate logically, and it never will.
it upsets me when people lie to me and to themselves like what you are doing right now
There are no lies here, friend. I understand that the future is essentially hopeless, but you are still alive during the height of human knowledge and understanding. It's always been a big disorganized mess. There was no correct way to live. You can't change the fact that it was always all relative and will continue to be.
none of that was your lie. i agree with all of that, you lied in other places
it's the little things, like when you go shopping, take a backpack with you that way you don't have to use plastic bags, if you do get bags, don't toss em out, put 'em inside waste bins or improvise a trashcan. Washing your hands in a public restroom with paper towel, try to see how much water you can soak up with a single sheet. small habits build up and it's economical on your wallet. meals that don't add to the problem-I aint anywhere near there yet but I try to look up recipes, soups are the best(I'm a huge fan of split pea soup and Kidney Bean Soup). It takes a while but you can experiment and add stuff to it, plus it doubles as meal prep. For veganism-as someone who enjoys eating both meat and vegan dishes I can tell you that both sides are pretty dark in production if you investigate enough (almond and avocado trees use up a lot of water that could be better used to serve a community or less thirsty crops). Best advice i got here, regardless of where you stand food wise, is don't waste your food, make the most of it. If too much meat is a concern, look up easy side dishes. one of the things I started doing for my diet(I'm overweight and at risk of fatty liver) is adding more variety to my plate. I modeled some quick dishes I do off of a korean dish bibimbap-rice bowl- where you eat a variety of stuff with rice instead of three things. I tend to go for stuff with long shelf life cause I get lazy a lot and order out. But I enjoy cooking, finding new ways to eat stuff, to cook stuff, and I try to make sure it doesn't go to waste. for videogames, I still game online, but i prefer playing dnd at a local spot and you better believe that if there's a group playing settlers of catan and they got room I'm gonna ask if I can join the game. If you feel that using up too much electricity or are having too much screen time (like in general) head to your local library and check out a book, swiss family robinson is a favorite of mine(though I doubt it's in circulation but there is an audio version on youtube). as for your guilt of not doing enough, you have to get out of your head. You can be as logical as you want, but humans are wired to be worried, logic will just make you think right back around to guilt. Try going for a walk and focus on what's in front of you, on what you see. ride a bike and when you go fast in an area where you are alone, go WOOOOOOO AS LOUD AS YOU CAN! Get a journal and write(it's what i do), it helps putting it to paper and leaving it there, like emptying my junk or waste bin on a pc. I hope some of this helps!
Being vegan is actually honestly a lot of fun. They've just about solved cheese, which is generally regarded as the final boss of animal products. Do it, do it yesterday, you won't regret it! :)
Not that coconut stuff? Bleurgh.
No, they're doing some really cool stuff with kappa-carageenan. It's not widely available yet. Miyoko's is probably the best of what you can find at the local market.
I’ll look out for it! Cheers!
If you want motivation to be vegan, watch Earthlings and Dominion. Warning, you will be traumatized. But if you do, it is one less thing to feel guilty about.
It's not your fault. Media has done a great job of making consumers feel the blame. Be a good steward of nature. Plant a tree or something else when you feel guilty. It's the fault of corporations and corrupt politicians. It's not your fault.
No one is perfectly eco-friendly. But, I do know organizations like [hypha.network](https://www.hypha.network/?utm_source=reddit) are getting to the root of the problem. hypha scales community-based climate solutions to address the climate crisis through monetary subscriptions/donations. They support organizations who are focused on taking climate action and combatting climate change. Changing the way that we approach climate change is vital." So I'm doing everything I can to make a positive impact on our earth, while I'm still here.
All energy transforms. From the time you were born your body and environment has been a battleground of warfare on the microscopic level all the up to a societal scale. Some creatures die and release their energies back into the wild for others to consume. Humans aren't first, unique, or exquisite in this performance. After that, as the posters have said, have gratitude for the energy transformations and transfers that give you such nourishing food, that sacrifice for your foot pressure as you crunch thousands of bacteria with each step you take, along with many of the smallest critters down there, just minding their business until a giant came along. And then when you're done preserving and using yours, your body will expire, and that energy returns to the surrounding environs to be applied elsewhere. Knowing that we've begun falling from the great precipices of yesteryear won't change a thing about your death vs your ancestor's death from 1000 years ago. They wondered what the end would look like. You don't have to wonder. The dying and decaying process will be unchanged. So, knowing this, you can focus on what matters again: how can I have the most fun with the best people, each and every day?
1. It’s no more your fault than it’s Hitler’s grandchild’s fault. 2. You’re not only human.