Nature’s Healing
Close your eyes for a moment and imagine walking in a forest. The wind on your skin and hair, the sounds of leaves rustling, and the smell of the earth. Your feet firmly planted in the dirt taking in all the sensory experiences that the forest has to offer you. Take a deep breath in for 4, and exhale out for 8, noticing what you feel.
Our bodies hold so many emotions from day to day stressors to traumatic events. Sometimes we are unaware of how much our bodies are holding, and it is not until we take a moment of slowness, that we notice the healing our bodies desire. Our lives move fast, with many of us relying on technology to have connection, an ability to work, or to feel relaxed. This has created an increase in indoor time. Coupling these findings with people experiencing an increased amount of stress, sparked my curiosity around healing in nature, and the impact that nature has on our bodies. Think back to how you felt during that visualization. Some of us find a sense of calm in this space, and research backs this up. Dr. Qing Li has done research on what is coined as forest bathing, and the impact it has on our nervous system, blood pressure, stress, energy levels, and concentration.
This type of healing is not exercising in nature, but rather settling in, moving slowly, and allowing our body to enjoy the sensation and science based vibrational frequency that nature has to offer us. Whether this is done by stepping into nature outdoors, or creating nature in our homes or offices, the results are similar. Our bodies crave the calm of allowing our senses to be flooded by healing properties. Giving ourselves moments of forest bathing is a gift we can give ourselves, and can increase our understanding around what our bodies can feel like when in a space of calm. The more we know what our bodies feel like when calm, the more connected we can be to our body's signals.
I am a firm believer that healing is body, mind, and soul, and nature can be a way of tapping into the body's healing, and offering ourselves some moments of connection and peace. I invite you to take a moment for yourself in nature, giving yourself the opportunity to see what it has to offer you.
In the words of John Burroughs “I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in order.”
Some locations to enjoy nature:
Calvin Eco Preserve
Blandford Nature Center
Knapp Valley Forest
Luton Park
Rosy Mound