It Matters Where We Walk
Walking ‘in nature’ has repeatedly been shown to bring more benefits than walking in other outdoor settings, such as urban environments with busy streets, heavy traffic, and little greenery. Walking in green space exposes people to a range of environmental sensory inputs, including natural soundscapes (e.g., birdsong), visual stimuli including landscapes, flora, and fauna, olfactory stimuli (e.g., plants), and tactile stimuli (e.g., the warmth of the sun, breezes, the feel of the ground), which may also result in a greater sense of connection to nature. Nature connectedness has been found to improve one’s mood and reduce negative thoughts. Even passive interactions with nature may affect one’s state of mindfulness while also enhancing mood and nurturing self-esteem.
Nature Promotes Effortless Attention
Attention Restoration Theory (ART) suggests walking ‘in nature’ may reduce concentration fatigue.
ART divides human attention into two components: direct and effortless. ART proposes that connections with nature allow people to observe the environment around them with ‘effortless attention.’ Effortless attention is involuntary and refers to the brain’s inherent tendency to capture stimuli. Moreover, the human attraction to nature allows cognitive processes to be relaxed. Many studies indicate that natural scenery requires less attention than urban scenery.
As people spend more time in natural environments, they increase their present-moment awareness. Trait mindfulness is positively associated with positive mood, and ‘mind-wandering’ was the mediator between mindfulness and negative mood. Studies indicate that consecutive mindful walking in nature improves both positive mood and mindfulness levels.
Benefits of Walking in Nature
Walking in nature can lead to additional, more distinct psychological benefits such as lower stress and anxiety levels and an overall better psychological state when compared to indoor physical activity. Studies show that spending time in nature reduces blood pressure and heart rate and improves cardiopulmonary and neurochemical parameters. As for our mental health, studies show that spending time in nature can improve depression, lower stress levels, improve sleep, and boost memory, cognition, and attention. Spending time in nature has also been used as a therapeutic approach for people recovering from trauma. Nature contact has also been linked with a lower incidence of loneliness. This is critical because loneliness is one of the main risk factors for diminished mental and social well-being.
Nature Prescriptions
Nature prescriptions by mental health providers have emerged as a potential solution to enable and empower people to spend more time in nature. High interest in nature prescriptions is a response to challenges in health care caused by COVID19 and our ongoing climate crisis. These prescriptions usually involve immersion in nature with mindful attention to all five senses, through which the physical and psychological healing of the body occurs. This total sensory experience of nature stems from mindfulness, which intentionally focuses on the present without judgment through activities such as walking or meditation in nature.
Here are a few observations from a meta-analysis of nature prescriptions:
First, nature prescriptions can occur across diverse settings, including green and blue spaces. Green spaces can be urban landscapes such as parks, forests, and hills or natural environments and may include activities such as farms and gardens, lakes, and seas for outdoor swimming.
Second, nature prescription programs can use various activities to suit the participants' health conditions.
Third, in addition to health professionals, social and community services were effective channels to introduce participants to the intervention. Some interventions were implemented as workplace programs for office workers.
You don’t need a mental health provider to write you a nature prescription. Based on the research, there is a lot of flexibility in how you approach your time in nature. Take a moment to write your personalized prescription for spending time in nature. After all, who knows what will work for you better than you?
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