It will come as no surprise to CILTI members and supporters: Nature—and forests in particular—can heal us. Physicians and mental health professionals the world over recognize this. Many have begun to prescribe nature walks to their patients.
Certified Forest Therapy Guide Christina Knecht of Huntington says there’s lots of research to support this. Many studies point to the benefit of long doses of outdoor time.
But even shorter stints in nature can have a deep impact. In a few hours close to home, people can feel the same kind of benefit as they’d get from a weekend getaway.
Forest bathing, as it’s known in Japan, “gets you out of your head in a quick way,” Christina says.
What is it, exactly, about walking under towering trees? “They’re just so majestic,” Gale Sherwood Manlove says. Her land, Sherwood Forest, is protected by a conservation easement held by CILTI. “There’s so much they’ve seen, and they’ve lived so much longer than we’ve lived.”
Muncie resident Rick Shafer calls this type of experience “a very efficient and healthy way to calm yourself down.” He trained in the same program as Christina, through the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy.
“You can spend two hours in the woods and your blood pressure can drop,” he says. “Your cortisol levels can drop. People get really worked up these days, with social media, the news, and all the screen time. But even twenty minutes (of nature infusion) will calm you down.”
Christina notes that the Western mind tends to forget or override any connection to nature. So when she leads a walk, she asks participants to sink into a place. She’ll guide them to notice any pleasant feeling touching their skin—and to simply breathe.
“We’re trying to help start or regenerate this relationship we have with nature,” she says.
A guided experience can be helpful, but it isn’t essential. Taking a mindful walk through a nature preserve will likely bring a real sense of well-being, whether that’s in solitude or in company.
Meltzer Woods and the Laura Hare Preserve at Blossom Hollow, to name a few, are great places to experience the magic of forest bathing. They’re two of the featured preserves in our ongoing Trek our Trails Challenge, which encourages people to visit our most beautiful places.
The more people rekindle a love of nature, the greater the drive to protect it. That’s why our mission includes the word “wonder.” And why we’re so passionate about protecting nature for tomorrow’s children.
Thank you for your support as we protect natural areas for generations to come!
Shawndra Miller
Communications Manager