coming home: small ways of incorporating nature into your everyday

Sandra Durham, MMFT (temp) at Claiming Ground Counseling PLLC

The benefits of spending time in nature are immense. According to various studies highlighted in The Nature Fix by Florence Williams, being in nature supports the parasympathetic nervous system, lowers blood pressure, decreases stress, can ease depression and boosts the immune system. Many of us know this to be true; we feel the peace and balance nature brings when we watch the sunset or see the bright spring blooms on a neighborhood tree. This truth is passed down from our ancestors, a legacy from Indigenous peoples that our industrialized society, grind culture, and attention economy continuously distracts us from. Our day to day responsibilities and tasks often make incorporating nature into our routine really difficult.

But what would it be like to forge a relationship with nature… truly get to know the trees in your neighborhood, the squirrels and birds around your house or the giant Cumberland River that weaves throughout our city and provides water for us each and every day. Maybe this spring is the perfect time to try out this truth our ancestors already knew, that when we connect with nature, we connect more with ourselves and the community around us.

Ideas for how we can bring nature back into our everyday lives:

Use this website to learn more about the people that came before us and use that knowledge to feel more grounded to, and mindful of, the place you live and work Native-Land.ca | Our home on native land

Leave your phone inside and spend 10 minutes in your yard… playing, gardening, sitting and watching the nature in your neighborhood, going on a walk.

Window gaze: set a time for 2-5 minutes and just gaze out a window… Notice what nature you can see and pay attention to your internal experience.

Sensory walks: go on a walk in your neighborhood or at a local park, tune into all your senses on this walk. What do you smell? How many sounds can you hear? What various colors do you see?

Start realizing how alive the more-than-human-world is. On your way to work or during a lunch break, pay attention to how much aliveness is all around you (from the hundred year old trees to the tiny ants on the sidewalks)… Life is all around us thriving and growing - the trick is to start paying attention to it!

Find a nature buddy to connect with - pick one plant close to your house or start with your pet and just notice what it’s like to make more time with that part of nature.

Use these ideas as a springboard to get creative and try various ways you can start to build your relationship with nature. Notice if this kind of connection helps your overall wellbeing and in what ways it might help you show up better as a counselor or in your other various roles. Make space this spring and allow yourself to simply be. Wishing you many small moments of connection with yourself and the natural world going forward!