Forest Bathing in the Blue Mountains
Forest Bathing Session – Multiple Dates
$35.00
Discover shinrin-yoku – and increase your health and wellbeing with a forest bathing session in the Blue Mountains.
Shinrin-yoku is the practice of bathing all the senses whilst taking in the forest atmosphere. It’s a slow practice. Shinrin-yoku is restorative, both mentally and physically, like a bath.
Regular forest bathing lowers blood pressure, reduces stress, improves empathy and creativity, and boosts our immune systems!
Location: Blue Mountains – South Lawson Waterfall Circular Walking Track – Meeting at 74 Honour Ave, Lawson NSW 2783
Time: 10.30am – 1.30pm – A delicious light snack and tea is included.
What to expect: Your experience will be guided by me. 3hrs of connection to the beautiful bush surroundings, tune into your senses and receive a deep rejuvenation from nature. It will also include a ‘foraged tea’ ceremony in the bush with a healthy light snack.
Forest Bathing
And yet most of our time now is spent indoors and in urban environments, with our heads in devices consuming media.
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Since the year 2000 we have officially become an urban species
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By 2050 66 % of world’s projected 9 billion population will live in cities
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The average American spends 93% of their time indoors, 6% is spent in cars, Europeans spend about 90 per cent indoors.
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When indoors people in the US spend as much as 10 hours & 39min a day consuming media
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One study showed people in Britain spending an average of 8 hours and 41 mins a day on their devices, thats more time than an average person spends asleep
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The more time we spend with new technology the more likely we are to suffer – symptoms have been linked with anxiety, headaches, depression, mental fatigue, eye and neck strain, insomnia, frustration, irritability etc.
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There was even a term coined in 1984 for it Technostress.
But the good news is that even a small amount of time in nature can have a massive impact on our health and there is now a term for doing exactly that which is
Forest Bathing.
What is Forest Bathing
‘Taking in the forest atmosphere’
Forest bathing (a literal translation of the Japanese word Shinrin-yoku ) is a concept that originated in Japan. It’s simply the practice of immersing yourself in nature, or more specifically, the forest.
It’s all about the art and practice of of connecting with nature, through slowing down, relaxing and connecting through your senses.
While you can do this alone, it’s helpful to originally have a guided experience. A guided experience involves walking slowly amidst nature as well as taking time to simple sit and be and engage in optional activities (called Invitations) to open up all your senses and help to activate the self-healing capacity of your body and mind.
This is why partaking in a guided forest bathing experience can be helpful at first. To have a structure that is helpful in facilitating slowing down and introducing the soulful practice of “Wandering.
With the invitations acting as practices to expand your awareness and open all your sense to the natural world. Far beyond just your normal 5 senses be that of intuition, deep feeling, memory, play, imagination and so much more.
Allowing you to connect with nature in a much more intimate and meaningful way than they ever before.
Science Backed
And there’s actual so much science behind this practice that show us the array of benefits such a simple practice can do.
Physical Level
On a physical level, forest bathing helps you feel better and healthier.
Here are some examples of how this occurs and results from studies in this field:
Trees emit essential oils known as phytoncides
Trees emit, phytoncides, basically an essential oil, to protect themselves from harm. Due to the mutually beneficial relationship we have with trees, when we inhale phytoncides, it helps to lower blood pressure, and increase a sense of calm. Phytoncides also boost our natural killer (NK) cell activity, which is part of how our immune system fights against things like cancer.
Negative ions bring positive vibes
Negative ions are invisible molecules found in the forest, the mountains, and near water. When you visit these places, you absorb negative ion into your bloodstream, which produces a biochemical reaction that boosts the production of serotonin (a neurotransmitter that’s responsible for alleviating depression and relieving stress).
Just 15 minutes will give you an immune boost
Studies show that the immune boost from just fifteen minutes in the forest lasts up to 30 days.
Take a break and look at fractals!
Did you know that even just looking out the window or at photos of nature has beneficial effects? One study even showed that hospital patients with a view out the window healed faster than those without a window to the outside world.
Mental Level
On a mental level, forest bathing can improve your mood, reduce anxiety, give more focus, energy and creativity and a sense of inner peace.
Look for fractals to relax
Fractals are an imperfectly perfect pattern that is found in all of Nature. Modern geometric life is not often designed with fractals. Our eyes have a fractal structure too, so when we look at natural things (trees, plants, the ocean, fire, etc) a resonance occurs that allows our eyes (and therefore our minds) to relax.
Social Well-Being
At the level of social well-being, research shows that connecting with nature can reduce a sense of social isolation and strengthen relationships.
Spiritual & Emotional level
When it comes to the spiritual or emotional level, forest bathing can cause you to experience an enhanced sense of connection with the greater whole, facilitate so-called ‘awe’ experiences, and nature can serve as a mirror for your emotions.
Soil is a natural antidepressant
Ecological level
When we fall in love with nature again, or build a friendship with nature, we will also protect it better. All traditional and indigenous cultures have sacred ways of being in relationship with the Land. Forest bathing is about remembering who we are and how to exist on this planet as we come to see we are nature as well.
So to conclude this little presentation, Nature is not only nice to have, but it’s a must-have for our health and through sensory immersion in the forest or in other nature-dense locations, our ancient physiology is re-tuned to the healing rhythms of the natural world, with remarkable results.
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Forest Bathing in the Blue Mountains
Forest Bathing Session – Multiple Dates
$35.00
Discover shinrin-yoku – and increase your health and wellbeing with a forest bathing session in the Blue Mountains.
Shinrin-yoku is the practice of bathing all the senses whilst taking in the forest atmosphere. It’s a slow practice. Shinrin-yoku is restorative, both mentally and physically, like a bath.
Regular forest bathing lowers blood pressure, reduces stress, improves empathy and creativity, and boosts our immune systems!
Location: Blue Mountains – South Lawson Waterfall Circular Walking Track – Meeting at 74 Honour Ave, Lawson NSW 2783
Time: 10.30am – 1.30pm – A delicious light snack and tea is included.
What to expect: Your experience will be guided by me. 3hrs of connection to the beautiful bush surroundings, tune into your senses and receive a deep rejuvenation from nature. It will also include a ‘foraged tea’ ceremony in the bush with a healthy light snack.