What’s your relationship with nature? Do you enjoy spending time in nature? Do you feel connected to it?

I was recently reading a 2021 study by UK’s Mental Health Foundation about mental health and nature and found it completely fascinating so I started diving a little deeper and I wanted to share some of what I learned with you.

According to the MHF 2021 study, 45% of UK adults said that connecting with nature has been very helpful in managing and supporting their mental health during the pandemic. Another 34% said that since the start of the pandemic they have connected more with nature.

What does it mean to connect to nature?

The study has found that any green space (parks, forests, urban gardens) as well as any blue space (rivers, wetlands, beaches, canals) can be beneficial. Now they do say that ‘high quality’ (spaces with wide variety of plants and wildlife) natural spaces are better for our wellbeing, but that we shouldn’t knock a local city park or some urban trees if that’s all we have access to, because it’s really about how we connect to nature.

How does connecting to nature help my fatigue?

Connecting to nature can generate positive emotions like joy, calmness and creativity. It can also help improve concentration and focus. Research has also showed that nature connectedness—that’s the official term—is associated with better mental health, and in particular lower depression and anxiety levels. In 2019, a review in Science Advances shared evidence that connecting with nature, amongst other things, increases happiness, positive social interactions, a sense of meaning and purpose, and decreases in mental distress. A 2015 study in the Journal of Environment Psychology found that even a few moments of green and nature can give a tired brain a boost.

So how can I accessibly connect to nature?

The more time spent in nature, or connected to nature, the better. A 2019 UK study showed that people who spent 2 recreational hours in nature in a week reported greater health and wellbeing. But, not all of us have the luxury to spend so much time in nature, and like most things, it really is quality over quantity. We don’t all have easy access to biodiverse parks, or forests, or natural reserves. But we can still connect with nature in different ways.

This is where giving yourself grace can come in. Depending on our situation, what’s going on in our lives, we may not be able to do everything “textbook perfect.” That’s OKAY! We don’t have to be perfect. What is important is for us to meet ourselves, and our current situation, where we’re at and work from there. In the case of connectedness to nature: Having a plant or two in your house or at your desk at work can help build your connection. If you can take a quick break during the day, if possible, go for a short walk, look up at the sky and at any plants, trees, green or blue spaces around you. One study found that even listening to nature sounds, like crickets chirping and waves crashing, can be beneficial to creating a connectedness to nature and supporting our mental health.

Funnily enough, just as I'm writing this, a Washington Post article was sent to my inbox, talking about how indoor plants help boost your mood. Seemingly, a lot of us are on a similar wave length these days.

Here are some of my suggestions to develop your connectedness to nature to help you reduce fatigue and support your mental health:

• Go for a walk in a natural space
• Plant something, nurture it, and watch it grow! This could be an inside house plant, in a window box, on a balcony, in a garden, or all of the above.
• Look up at the sky, see if you can see any shapes in the clouds.
• Do a flower meditation
• Put on nature sounds as background noise when you’re working, reading a book, cooking, or just chilling.
• Do yogic movement, breathing exercises (asana and pranayama), and meditation in nature! (This is one of my favorite things to do… as I’m sure you’ve noticed considering I give weekly Yoga in the Park sessions and work with a mountain guide to take people up to the mountains and do yoga in completely natural spaces.)

How will you start connecting more to nature?