Nature has amazing healing abilities for us as humans, it is apart of us. As time goes on we grow further and further distant from our natural habitats within nature. How much time do you spend in it? Did you know the average person spends 93% of their day indoors? How do you think this is impacting our health?
Patients in hospitals with a view of nature recover quicker then those who do not. When we go out into nature, it is only within a matter of minutes that our mood can increase, our cortisol reduces, our heart rate lowers and it is correlated with improving your immune system.
There is a growing tend in Japan for doctors to prescribe forest bathing as a form of medicine. This is essentially telling patients to get out into the forests and engage all 5 of their senses within nature. Nature has a strong power to help us heal and it is an essential part of our health and our survival.
Spending time in nature is also correlated with having improved physical health, it helps us feel happier and more energetic. Even just thinking about nature or looking at pictures of it can illicit the benefits of nature. When you spend enough time in nature you feel your breathing relax, it starts to shift your focus from the internal to the external, reducing your stress and even coming to have an impact on anxiety and depression.
Spend a few days out in nature and your mind will start to become restored, it gives you a larger attention span, clears your head of a lot of the clutter and allows you to fall more into creativity. If you have been finding yourself uninspired lately or bogged day by the constant connection to screens, do not underestimate the power of getting yourself out into nature. Taking time to completely disconnect from everything that is going on in your mind.
When was the last time you went out and spent time in nature? When was the last time you engaged in your 5 senses while in nature? Nature is abundantly available to us, especially with being so lucky to live in the countryside and it is always free to enjoy. Not many things these days that are good for your health you will find are free.
How can you make an effort to spend more time in nature this week? What are your favourite places to enjoy that submerge you within nature? The weather grows warmer and perhaps you are finding yourself more inspired to go outside.
If you find you have been feeling flustered and cluttered having spent so much time indoors lately, can you perhaps get yourself outside even for just 5 minutes a day? 5 minutes a day is all you need to start noticing a difference.