If you knew there was a secret remedy that could reduce stress, promote a healthy body-image, and significantly improve your mental health, you would grab it with both hands right?
Well the world does hold this remedy, in nature. Simply spending time surrounded by nature, even small patches of greenery in an inner city area, has a whole range of benefits for your health.
Nature as Therapy
Ecotherapy is a practice which has at its heart our connection to the natural world. It works by increasing the time we spend in nature, and celebrates the various restorative effects this has on our body, mind, and soul.
There are many theories as to why an immersion in nature feels so good, but a lot come back to the same idea known as the ‘Biophilia Hypothesis’. Essentially, we love nature as humans because we evolved in it, it’s in our DNA.
We feel drawn to nature and if we commit to spending time in it, and enter into an open communication with it, we begin to develop a greater understanding of the world around us and, in turn, ourselves.
By giving nature greater access to your life, you can reap these rewards. Here are 7 ways nature teaches us about life and nurtures our souls:
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Nature knows no labels
Western modern society is built on a foundation of quick shortcuts that we use to quickly interpret, and oftentimes judge, our fellow citizens to determine how we should interact with them. People’s job titles, clothes style, and social class all construct for us a picture of a person. Continue reading