Load Shedding and Mental Health: The Hidden Crisis
Constant power outages aren't just inconvenient—they're taking a serious toll on South Africans' mental health.
You're in the middle of cooking dinner when the power goes off. Again. You check the load shedding schedule on your phone (before the battery dies). Stage 6. Four hours without power. Your food spoils in the fridge. Your work deadline is tomorrow, but you can't charge your laptop. Your kids can't do their homework. You sit in the dark, frustrated, helpless, exhausted.
This is life in South Africa. And it's making people sick—mentally sick.
Load Shedding: More Than Just an Inconvenience
Load shedding has become a fact of life in South Africa. Since 2007, Eskom has implemented rolling blackouts to manage the country's electricity crisis. In recent years, it's gotten worse. Stage 6 load shedding means up to 6 hours without power per day. Some areas have experienced even higher stages. This chronic stress contributes to widespread anxiety and depression.
Most discussions about load shedding focus on the economic impact—businesses losing money, productivity declining, the economy shrinking. But there's another cost that's rarely discussed: the mental health toll.
How Load Shedding Affects Mental Health
1. Chronic Stress and Anxiety
Load shedding creates constant uncertainty. You never know when the power will go off, how long it will last, or how it will disrupt your day. This unpredictability keeps your stress levels elevated all the time.
Your body responds to this chronic stress by staying in "fight or flight" mode. Your cortisol levels stay high. You feel on edge, irritable, and exhausted. This is anxiety—and it's directly caused by load shedding.
2. Loss of Control
One of the most damaging aspects of load shedding is the feeling of helplessness. You can't control when the power goes off. You can't fix the problem. You can't escape it. This loss of control is a major contributor to depression.
Psychologists call this "learned helplessness"—when you experience repeated situations where you have no control, you eventually stop trying to change things. You feel powerless, hopeless, and depressed.
3. Disrupted Sleep
Load shedding often happens at night. Your fan stops working. Your air conditioner shuts off. You wake up hot and uncomfortable. Or you can't fall asleep because you're worried about your alarm not going off in the morning.
Poor sleep is directly linked to anxiety and depression. When you're not sleeping well, your mental health deteriorates rapidly.
4. Financial Stress
Load shedding costs money. You have to buy generators, inverters, batteries, and gas. Your food spoils. Your appliances break from power surges. If you work from home, you lose income when you can't work.
Financial stress is one of the biggest contributors to anxiety and depression. And load shedding is making it worse for millions of South Africans.
5. Social Isolation
When the power is off, you can't connect with friends and family online. You can't watch TV or listen to music. You sit in the dark, alone with your thoughts. This isolation worsens depression.
For people who already struggle with mental health, load shedding removes one of the key coping mechanisms: social connection.
The Research Backs This Up
A 2023 study by the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG) found that 76% of South Africans reported increased stress and anxiety due to load shedding. 58% said it negatively affected their mental health.
Mental health professionals across South Africa report seeing more patients with anxiety and depression symptoms directly linked to load shedding. The constant disruption, uncertainty, and loss of control are creating a mental health crisis on top of an electricity crisis.
Common Symptoms of Load Shedding-Related Stress
If you're experiencing any of these symptoms, load shedding might be affecting your mental health:
- Constant worry about when the power will go off
- Irritability and anger at Eskom, the government, or your situation
- Feeling helpless and unable to control your life
- Sleep problems from heat, discomfort, or anxiety
- Difficulty concentrating at work or school
- Feeling overwhelmed by daily tasks
- Loss of motivation or interest in activities
- Physical symptoms like headaches, stomach problems, or muscle tension
Why Traditional Solutions Aren't Enough
"Just Buy a Generator"
This is the advice wealthy South Africans give. But most people can't afford a generator, inverter, and batteries. The financial burden of load shedding is part of the problem, not the solution.
"Learn to Cope"
Some people suggest meditation, exercise, or mindfulness to cope with load shedding stress. These can help temporarily, but they don't address the root cause: the constant disruption and loss of control in your life.
Medication
Doctors might prescribe anti-anxiety medication or antidepressants. But medication doesn't fix the problem—it just numbs you to it. And it comes with side effects.
Dianetics: Regaining Control
Load shedding creates external stress that you can't control. But Dianetics helps you address the internal stress—the accumulated frustration, helplessness, and anger that builds up over time.
According to Dianetics, chronic stress creates painful memories that get stored in your reactive mind. Every time the power goes off, it adds to this burden. Over time, these accumulated stresses create anxiety and depression.
Through auditing, you can process and release these accumulated stresses. You can't control when Eskom turns the power off, but you can control how it affects you emotionally. You can regain your sense of calm and resilience.
How Dianetics Helps with Load Shedding Stress
- • Addresses accumulated stress from months or years of load shedding
- • Helps you process feelings of helplessness and regain a sense of control
- • Reduces anxiety about future disruptions
- • No medication, no side effects
- • Builds emotional resilience so you can handle stress better
Practical Tips for Managing Load Shedding Stress
While you work on addressing the deeper mental health impact, here are some practical steps:
- Plan ahead. Check the load shedding schedule and plan your day around it. Having a plan reduces uncertainty.
- Create a backup routine. Have activities ready for when the power is off—books, board games, conversation.
- Stay connected. Use load shedding-free time to connect with friends and family. Social support is crucial.
- Limit news consumption. Constantly reading about Eskom's failures increases stress. Stay informed, but don't obsess.
- Seek professional help. If load shedding is seriously affecting your mental health, don't wait. Get help.
You're Not Alone
If load shedding is affecting your mental health, you're not weak. You're not overreacting. You're having a normal response to an abnormal, stressful situation.
Millions of South Africans are struggling with the same feelings of frustration, helplessness, and exhaustion. The mental health impact of load shedding is real, and it deserves to be taken seriously.
While you can't control Eskom, you can control how you respond to the stress. Dianetics offers a way to process the accumulated frustration and regain your emotional resilience.
Next Steps
If you're ready to address the mental health impact of load shedding and regain your sense of control, learn more about Dianetics.
Tony Peacock
Humanitarian & Mental Health Research Advocate
Published: 2024 • Updated: November 2025
Tony is an Australian who moved to South Africa and made it his home. At 25, he overcame drug and alcohol addiction through Dianetics after trying alternative healing approaches. He served as Church staff in Australia for 12 years before moving to SA in 2022. As a humanitarian and philanthropist, he has made significant contributions to mental health infrastructure across Southern Africa. His mission: help the able become more able using technology that makes people causative.