"I take 10 minute showers! I'm killing the planet!"

For the past few months I’ve been talking your ear off about why the earth is in trouble and how you can go green to save our environment.  And while it’s great to do whatever you can to protect the planet, there is such a thing as caring a little too much. According to the New York Times, there has been an increasing amount of people that report anxiety and stress because they feel like they are never as green as they would like to be.  And, believe it or not, such anxious thoughts about the environment can have negative impacts on your emotional state, your health, and your relationships.

How do you know if you’re just a concerned citizen or full-blown green stress case?  Read on for the answer and for ways to manage if you’re glowing green just a little too brightly.

Are you green stressed? There’s a huge difference between being concerned and being down right obsessed.  Before you go any further, ask yourself a few questions:  Are you happy with your efforts to help the environment?  Do you feel like you’re doing enough to go green?  Are you willing to give up your green efforts to preserve some of your favorite activities?  If you answered yes to all of these questions, then congrats!  You are helping in a way that is both healthy for the environment and healthy for your well-being.

Didn’t pass the test? Then you may have some anxiety issues related to going green. With all of the information out there, it’s hard to feel like you’re ever doing enough to counteract the rest of the world’s indifference.  Before you start ripping your hair out, realize that this is more of a psychological issue than an environmental issue.  An obsession with going green is just the same as an obsession with losing weight or making money – you never feel like you’re doing enough.

So how do you fix it? Unless your stress is very severe, a quick reality check is just the ticket to snap you out of it.  First of all, think about all of the things you already do to help the environment.  Do you recycle?  Turn off the lights and water when you’re not using it?  Bike or walk to work or school?  Believe it or not, most people don’t do any of these; you’re way ahead of the game!  On a similar note, don’t compare your efforts to those of others!  Not all environmentally friendly methods are compatible with everyone’s lifestyle.  Pick your favorites and make a pledge to stick to those.  As time goes on, slowly try to incorporate other changes into your routine if it works.  Which brings me to my last point…

What is important to you? We already know that the environment is high on your priority list, but think about the other things you enjoy doing.  Personally, I love to go out, drink a few beers, and hang out with my friends.  I’m not going to let the fact that I’m wasting a few aluminum beer cans ruin my night.  Going green is all about protecting your passion, so be sure that you protect all your other ones as well!

With the Go Green revolution, a lot of us have been making the effort to protect and preserve our environment: trees, animals, reservations. Hemp jewelry is so in right now and vintage is your new passion, right?

Well, guess who’s more passionate than you are? The Neo-hippie, better known as The Empathetic Activist.

The Empathetic Activist feels the pain of the distressed, whether it is animal, mineral or vegetable. When a mouse-trap is set up in the dorms, he or she will be there to protect the rights of our furry friends. When soda cans are thrown in the cafeteria trash, he or she will be there to lecture their peers on the perils of cans in dumps around the world. When a tree is cut down to expand your campus, he or she is there screaming murder through blurred vision…or at least collecting signatures to stop the madness.

The Empathetic Activist cares, but not about material objects. While we’re all spending what little money we have on a spring break wardrobe, the E.A. is perusing the local consignment/ thrift/ vintage shops while munching on some tofu, as he or she is also most likely vegan/vegetarian. (“Animals have rights too!”) And when your favorite neo-hippie is not purchasing vegan Birkenstocks, you will find him or her working for social consciousness, whether it be through debates and discussions with friends or long and heated monologues during class.

The Empathetic Activist writes for an alternative paper about subjects such as child exploitation, or the effects of racial discrimination in the workplace. He or she has more causes on Facebook than friends, and is constantly updating his or her status to advertise the latest and most pressing issue. Fundraisers are organized, protests are made, and marches are formed!

Admit it or not, the Empathetic Activist will inspire you, if only just a little. You may feel unqualified or ignorant when listening to a discussion about the way “the man” is still active and bringing us down, but you will learn something.

The Empathetic Activist is probably the most open-minded person you will ever meet: he/she is pro-interracial dating, pro-foreign films, pro-culture…pro-a lot of things. They are good people to have around, except when you consider the ones who may also be pro-water conservation. The biweekly shower schedule isn’t always ideal for those around them.

[Photo courtesy of Boomelcha on Flickr.]

For instance, I can turn down plastic bags at the grocery store. And why not? I mean, I have lots of giant purses and some canvas tote bags. I have absolutely no problem shoving my groceries in these bags instead of plastic ones.

So for the better part of this year, I have made this change. And I keep getting treated like an as*hole.

My local grocery store isn’t RUDE about my dismissal of their bags, but there have certainly been a few times when I have heard one cashier, in particular, mutter something in Spanish to the Spanish-speaking bag boy, resulting in a collective chuckle from the two of them. I’ve tried to tap into my college Spanish classes during these exchanges, hoping to decode what they’re saying, but it doesn’t matter; I can read body language well enough. And rolled eyes when I (politely!) say, “I don’t need a bag, I’ve got my own”, speak loud and clear.

However, when I was visiting my family in West Virginia this past week, there were no rude remarks in Spanish. Nope. They were to my face and in English. One day at the grocery store, I told the bag boy – again, politely – that I didn’t need a bag. He said, “Fine then”, with the attitude that only an angst-ridden-job-hating 16 year old could muster up while proceeding to crumple up the unused plastic bag and throw. it. away. In front of me. Just to make a point. What a jerk.

At the same grocery store the next day, my sister bought one can of cherry pie filling. (Yummmmmmmm!) She very courteously asked to NOT have a bag and the bag man (well into his 60′s) ignored her. Thinking that perhaps he didn’t hear her, she repeated herself, only for him to say,

“You can’t leave this store without a bag.”

WHATTTTTT? What is THAT? Since when can you not leave a store without a plastic bag? Since when does a receipt not suffice as proof of purchase? Why are these people taking our desire to help the planet as a personal attack?

I don’t want to discredit the job of the bag boy/man/girl/woman, but this has gone too far, in my opinion. They’re getting paid per hour (not per bag!), no matter what, so why should people who are trying to do their part for the planet get treated like this? Any explanations? Suggestions? Personal Tales?

(Photo from: aolcdn.com)