It's so easy to curl up indoors and hibernate this season. It's cold outside and we'd much rather stay in the warmth of our comfort. I should know, it's my most favourite thing to do. After all, I'm an introvert and home is my happy place. But it's also a place where I ruminate over my stresses and worries from time to time, and sometimes I find it difficult to find the answers to my problems. I've tried talking to the four walls; they don't know the answers either!
Something I find quite helpful, and have started to do more and more of, is to let nature heal me. When we are outdoors, at one with nature, we get a different perspective. Somehow we get some clarity and we feel different. Better. Grounded. Happier even.
Use nature to heal you. Let it help you when things get too tough.
Try these simple things, most days, and let the very source of life work its magic...
Feel Awakened
In a similar way to how cold water therapy works, where immersing yourself in cold water helps stimulate your body to increase its blood flow and circulation, thus healing your ailments, rejuvenating you and giving you more energy and less stress, it's also quite as effective to let the cold and crisp air hit your skin and refresh your senses.
Get outdoors, as often as you can, and just feel the cold air against your face. Take deep breaths in and gently breathe out. Embrace the crispness of the air, just for a little while, and take in how it feels on your skin.
Once you get back indoors, you'll be amazed at how fresh you feel. Somewhat reawakened. Your energy levels may increase and it's a good way to start the day well.
Go For A Nature Stroll
If you have a dog, it's the perfect excuse to go for a walk in nature. A great way to physically exercise, for you and your dog, which we all know has its benefits in giving you feel-good endorphins that set you up for a great day ahead.
Or maybe you could meet up with a friend and go for a stroll together. A great bonding exercise and a time to be present in the moment.
Maybe you'd prefer to spend some time alone. Another one of my favourite things to do! Being out in nature allows for reflection and to slow your pace down. Take a slow stroll and think about all of the challenges or obstacles you may be facing right now. Nature has a clever way of helping you to make better decisions. The answers to your questions will come to you when you are at one with nature.
Sit somewhere in silence for a while, on a park bench perhaps, and reflect. See what you come up with. Most of the time, the answers to our questions are already laying dormant within us. We just need to unlock them.
Bring The Outside In
If you are not able to get outdoors, or you really don't want to, you can still let the energy of nature heal you from indoors. Get yourself an indoor plant; a piece of nature that you can care for, look after, nurture and be responsible for. Watch it develop and grow strong, and attribute this process to your own growth and development.
The energy that nature gives you is the closest thing to inner healing that you can get from life itself.
Appreciate Your Natural Surroundings
Whether you are indoors or outdoors, you can fully appreciate your natural surroundings and draw out feelings of gratitude that can heal you.
Sit by a window and just watch nature for a moment. Look at the way the trees dance around in the wind, still standing strong and firm, in the knowledge that they can grow through what they go through.
If you're outdoors, take in how the season has changed. Take note of the process that nature goes through; it is not static. It's in a constant flow, changing its cycle, adapting, ending a part of itself, so it can come back anew and stronger than before.
Connecting with nature is a very important part of good and positive mental health. It's easy to take nature for granted. We've got so much else going on, right?! Wrong. It's the very thing that drives life. It brings us back to reality and keeps us grounded. It boosts our health and well-being.
So let's learn from it, connect with it, take notice of it, and heal from it.