Ways to Deal with Activism Fatigue

Activism fatigue is the mental, emotional and physical burnout state of people who are in constant search of justice. This state can reveal itself as feeling useless, loss of motivation, hopelessness and sometimes guilt. This feeling can be inevitable especially in fights that require long-term changes.

Activism fatigue can reveal itself in various forms in everyone. However, these are the most frequently seen symptoms:

• Constantly feeling exhausted and worn out
• Believing that nothing will ever change
• Pulling away from or completely dropping volunteering works
• Withdrawing from social relations
• Feeling intense guilt such as “I am not fighting enough”
• Needing to completely distance oneself from the news or social media

​ ​Today’s pace of crisis is what makes activism fatigue so visible. We wake up every day with another injustice being committed. Constantly being on guard and feeling the need to do something all the time are wearisome states.

• The state of constant crisis: Climate crisis, gender inequality, economic collapse... They all come simultaneously.
• Immeasurableness of success: When the results of the fight cannot be achieved right away, the feeling of “do I run around in circles?” becomes predominant.
• Inadequacy of institutions: Frustration becomes inevitable when systems do not change while individuals struggle.
• Social media pressure: The constant pressure of being visible, producing, talking... These also create another kind of fatigue.

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Click here to read our article titled “Climate Crisis and The Role of Individuals”. ​

Feeling fatigue is not a weakness, but a part of being human. Moreover, accepting the fatigue can be the first step to a sustainable fight.

Here are six ways to deal with activism fatigue:

1. Recognize and Normalize Your Feelings

When you feel fatigued, exhausted or ineffective, do not fight these feelings. Try and recognize these feelings instead of suppressing them. You are not obliged to be motivated all the time. Show yourself compassion instead of feeling guilty. Saying “I am human too” is not taking a break from the fight, it is finding a way to sustain the fight in a healthier manner.

2. You Cannot Keep Going Without the Collective

You cannot change everything on your own. And nobody expects you to do so. When there are people next to you who think, feel and act together with you, your load will be lighter. A small group you form with people you trust will lessen your loneliness. Solidarity is not only a tactical maneuver, it is also an emotional need.

3. Digital Detox and Conscious Exposure

Constantly being exposed to bad news, crises, and disaster scenarios wears out the mind. Social media can be an organizational means on the one hand, and feed exhaustion on the other hand. Turn off notifications, limit the news feed, and use your right to share nothing on some days. You can become more resilient by practicing digital detox and exposing yourself to information in a conscious manner.

4. Celebrate Small Victories

You cannot change the world in one night, but you can change one person’s opinion, or you can voice your rejection against a law proposal. These are not things to underestimate. Recognizing and celebrating small gains will keep the hope alive. Remember, sometimes change starts in a very quiet manner.

5. Open Up to Creativity

Activism does not only consist of shouting slogans and organizing petitions. Resistance can also happen through art, writing, music, photography or soil. Opening up to creativity to express your innermost feelings would reconnect you to your cause, strengthen and transform you at the same time. Fatigue is sometimes necessary for productivity.

6. Value of Rest: Not A Step Back, But A Strategic Break

Giving a break is not surrendering. On the contrary, it is the foundation of sustainability. The constant pressure of “I should do more” would distance you from the fight in the long-term. Give yourself time. Resting, thinking and taking a breath for a while can be the fuel necessary for a come-back.

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Hopelessness is one of the most insidious enemies of activism, because fighting is a long-term process, full of ups and downs and uncertainties most of the time. But remember: Hope is not an emotion; it is a form of action. It is produced, shared and propagated willingly in a conscious manner.

Sometimes a single story can give courage to thousands of people. These examples reminds us that change is possible not only through big powers, but also through the hands of people in solidarity. Wherever you are, your story can also give hope to another.

Another way to deal with activism fatigue is to remember that we are not alone. Following young activists fighting climate crisis in different parts of the world can be both inspiring and can help us to reconnect to our cause and take a fresh breath to avoid fatigue. Because this crisis is not only on our shoulders - we are all bearing this burden all together.

Ilyess El Korbi, who started the movement of Fridays for Future in Ukraine, had to take refuge in Berlin in the middle of the war, but continued the fight there. They remind us that activism knows no bounds by stating “We must fight not only for Ukraine, but also for people in Syria and all across the world.”

Dominique Palmer from Britain approaches climate justice not only as an environmental matter, but also a racial and social issue. She calls for action via social media as well as trying to make this multidimensional crisis visible.

After witnessing how the forests she played at as a child were destroyed, Elizabeth Wathuti from Kenya founded the Green Generation Initiative to enable planting of more than 30,000 saplings. “My anger prompted me to action,” she says.

Leah Namugerwa from Uganda celebrated her 15^th birthday by planting 200 trees and launched “birthday trees” campaign” to prompt others to do the same. Fatou Jeng from Gambia works in the areas of education and nature conservation; she mobilizes young people in raising environmental awareness via the Clean Earth Gambia that she founded.

For more information about detailed stories of these young activists, you can check out this article.

The stories of these young people are both inspiring and shed a light on the truth: Activism is not only an action, but also an emotional struggle. Living with constant disaster news can be wearisome for people, both personally and collectively. And this is exactly why looking at inspiring people, getting in touch with their hopeful stories can be a way to share and transform our exhaustion.

​ ​Systematic transformations take time. A law does not change, and a practice does not disappear in one day. But every step taken with patience and insistence make the transformation possible by being accumulated. A small action taken today can be inspiration for the climate policy of the future. Each fight builds an invisible structure. This is why one needs to slow down and withdraw sometimes but one should never abandon hope. Because change progresses quietly in the depths.

Activism is a marathon. It requires not a rapid run but continuing the road relentlessly. The fatigue, disappointment, sometimes even hopelessness that may come up throughout this journey are all too human. But continuing along the road despite these feelings, it is at this point where the real indomitableness starts. Because resistance not only lies in voicing concerns, but also in staying quiet and recovering once again.

Indomitableness allows oneself a break when one gets tired but finds the courage to return afterwards. It is to be able to walk the road without leaving the fight but also without neglecting oneself. We can move forward without exhausting ourselves, by leaning against each other and remembering our collective power. Because there is hope if there is solidarity.