Please note: The following is not meant to be professional advice to guide your mental health or treatment. These are my thoughts on some topics I’m passionate about and interested in and are based on my experiences. While I refer to some research, I didn’t provide a list of references because this is meant to be fairly informal. However, if you are interested in these topics and would like to know where I got my information from, I can certainly share some of my sources with you.
For most people, when we step foot into a forest, near water, or in the mountains, we take a big deep breath and can feel our body give a sigh of relief. We know on an intuitive level, that it feels good to be outside. Now that doesn't mean that you have to be outdoorsy and want to go on a two week backpacking trip through the rugged mountains, although that's good too. All it means is that we know that when we step away from the noise of the city and take a moment to stop and walk through the river valley is that it has a calming effect. And there's been some really neat research on why this happens.
What has allowed some of this research to happen has first been an acknowledgement of how good it feels to be in nature. Countries like Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Scotland, Denmark, and Sweden started by creating spaces for people to engage in nature. This ranges from indoor gardens to "therapy forests" dedicated to getting people to engage with nature for their health and spaces where people can enjoy them freely to organized groups. As a result of the creation of these spaces, these countries have been able to support research where they can compare the impact of people spending time in urban spaces vs. spaces in nature. Their findings are interesting, but not surprising to those who have felt that sigh of relief when you step outdoors.
One of the findings that I find the most interesting is that the part of our brain that is involved in rumination (racing cyclical thoughts) calms down significantly when we spend time outside. I find that interesting because in my work with clients, troublesome ruminating thoughts are often very pesky to get rid of and it's so neat to me that we have this free resource (nature!) that can be of service.
Additionally, research has shown that spending even 15 minutes in nature reduces the indicators of our bodies stress responses. Spending up to two days in nature can make a significant impact on our stress response and boost our immune system for up to 30 days! It has been shown to help us feel calm, invigorated, reflective, and to reduce symptoms of depression, anxiety, and ADHD.
The research is so compelling and I love being in nature so much that I dream of winning the lottery so I can buy a big property on Vancouver Island and have a centre there for people to come and connect with nature while engaging in their personal work. And while right now that might just be a dream, I am lucky enough to have an office space that's a 5 minute walk from Ross Creek, where there are walking paths through a treed area. If you're interested in combining nature, physical activity, and therapy, check out my Walk & Talk therapy option (when weather appropriate) on the Services page and let me know that this is something that you're interested in!
Interested in further reading/information on the subject?
Check out Florence Williams' work. She has a book called The Nature Fix and a quick video about what happens to your brain in nature.
Nature and Therapy by Martin Jordan is targeted towards therapists, but provides an understanding of the benefits of engaging in nature and examples of how it can be incorporated into therapy. Ecotherapy: Healing with Nature in Mind edited by Linda Buzzell and Craig Chalquist is similar.
The Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature Deficit Disorder by Richard Louv discusses the role of nature in relationship to the development of children.
What has allowed some of this research to happen has first been an acknowledgement of how good it feels to be in nature. Countries like Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Scotland, Denmark, and Sweden started by creating spaces for people to engage in nature. This ranges from indoor gardens to "therapy forests" dedicated to getting people to engage with nature for their health and spaces where people can enjoy them freely to organized groups. As a result of the creation of these spaces, these countries have been able to support research where they can compare the impact of people spending time in urban spaces vs. spaces in nature. Their findings are interesting, but not surprising to those who have felt that sigh of relief when you step outdoors.
One of the findings that I find the most interesting is that the part of our brain that is involved in rumination (racing cyclical thoughts) calms down significantly when we spend time outside. I find that interesting because in my work with clients, troublesome ruminating thoughts are often very pesky to get rid of and it's so neat to me that we have this free resource (nature!) that can be of service.
Additionally, research has shown that spending even 15 minutes in nature reduces the indicators of our bodies stress responses. Spending up to two days in nature can make a significant impact on our stress response and boost our immune system for up to 30 days! It has been shown to help us feel calm, invigorated, reflective, and to reduce symptoms of depression, anxiety, and ADHD.
The research is so compelling and I love being in nature so much that I dream of winning the lottery so I can buy a big property on Vancouver Island and have a centre there for people to come and connect with nature while engaging in their personal work. And while right now that might just be a dream, I am lucky enough to have an office space that's a 5 minute walk from Ross Creek, where there are walking paths through a treed area. If you're interested in combining nature, physical activity, and therapy, check out my Walk & Talk therapy option (when weather appropriate) on the Services page and let me know that this is something that you're interested in!
Interested in further reading/information on the subject?
Check out Florence Williams' work. She has a book called The Nature Fix and a quick video about what happens to your brain in nature.
Nature and Therapy by Martin Jordan is targeted towards therapists, but provides an understanding of the benefits of engaging in nature and examples of how it can be incorporated into therapy. Ecotherapy: Healing with Nature in Mind edited by Linda Buzzell and Craig Chalquist is similar.
The Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature Deficit Disorder by Richard Louv discusses the role of nature in relationship to the development of children.
