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Mental health is integral to overall well-being and is receiving greater attention in recent years. Spending time in nature and ecotherapy have shown to impart mental health benefits, which explains why they are used as a therapeutic approach. Patients have shown healing and the ability to cope after they spend some time in the wilderness away from their stressors.
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Mental Health Benefits of Nature
Routinely spending time in nature is a simple and cost-effective way to beat the stressors of daily life. According to research, there are several mental health benefits when you are in contact with nature, including an increase in happiness, positive social interactions, an improved sense of well-being, and finding meaning in life.
1. Reduction in Stress
The green scenery of the wild has a calming effect, which reduces the intesity of anxiety, thereby lowering stress. Psychologists have found that quiet locales and the majesty of nature allow plenty of self-reflection and can thus help you overcome depression.
2. Cognitive Benefits
Studies have shown that when we are outdoors, especially in the woods, our situaltional intelligence is sharpened. We pay more attention and improve our memory to navigate. Therefore, it can be said that spending time in nature and ecotherapy provides significant cognitive benefits, such as agility, working memory, and focus.
3. Socializing Behavior
Although one might think that we escape to the wild to stay away from people, it is well known that group activities while spending time in nature could form the basis for healthy socializing. Nonjudgmental and collaborative interactions in group ecotherapy renders a host of mental benefits. Social activities during outings and trekking create the rapport for healthy relationship building and personality development.
4. Physical Benefits
Physical fitness and mental health are closely linked. Therefore, any form of outdoor activity in nature meets the physical exercise requirements in an enjoyable manner. Going on a hiking trail or gardening in the backyard burns a good amount of calories as an exciting workout. You need to be careful about the limitations of your body to reap the benefit.
You will also notice an improvement in sleeping habits and enhancement of bone health due to exposure to sunlight, both of which have been shown to reduce depressive symptoms.
5. Increased Mindfulness
Taking a walk or jogging in the woods can be a meditative act. They improve mindfulness as you become aware of your thoughts and how to process them positively. Feelings of gratitude and abundance emerge quite naturally and act as a balm to frayed nerves and dejection. Ecotherapy helps us tackle our worries and stressors realistically with the mindfulness habit.
6. Improved Resilience
Resilience is necessary to bounce back from life's setbacks. It is also known as the mind muscle and is a vital component of our mental makeup. By navigating the wild outdoors with adequate supervision and just-enough challenge, we build the resilience muscle and that is an important tool to have. Higher resilience is reflected in a greater sense of self-worth, which helps overcome depression.
Spending time in nature helps an individual's nervous system recover during times of stress, according to a study. Ecotherapy has been proven to be effective for those suffering from post traumatic stress disorder.
7. Enhanced Self-Esteem
Wilderness therapy boosts self-esteem through the achievement feedback mechanism. Successfully completing a trek or a set of activities in the woods acts a tonic. It improves your self-confidence by proving that you can move out of your comfort zone and accomplish tasks.
Types of Ecotherapy for Mental Health
There are different approaches in ecotherapy with the aim to improve mental health and well-being. Here are some of the most popular ways to spend time in nature for mental health benefits.
1. Community Gardening or Farming
Gardening is a solo activity, but community farming is interesting as it tests the skills to grow, harvest, and manage produce in a small- to medium-scale farm setting. Animal husbandry is sometimes included. The sheer joy of growing crops and sharing the output with the community, especially the less privileged, can be a source of sustainable mental well-being.
2. Wilderness Therapy
Wilderness therapy involves allowing people to spend time in the forests with appropriate safety measures and under unobtrusive supervision. It is planned for a short and specific duration. It aims to build coping skills and has been shown to be effective in substance abuse issues.
3. Forest Bathing
This involves simply walking around in nature and experiencing the sights and sounds in a flow mode. It facilitates mindfulness and uplifts the mood when combined with journaling or reading in nature.
Ecotherapy should be undertaken only on the recommendation of trained therapist and the activities included and duration of therapy should be calibrated to the needs of the patient. Even without overt mental diseases, simply spending a few minutes every day enjoying the outdoors and nature can help us face challenges and stressful situations with confidence.
Steve George Verghese is a trained psychologist with an MSc in Counseling Psychology from the Indian Institute of Psychology and Research.
