Embrace the outdoors for your mental wellbeing

Nature. I am sure you are fed up with me writing about this, but it really is an important factor when it comes to creating wellness within our lives.

Do you ever wonder why people enjoy the great outdoors? Why walking up the side of a mountain is much loved by many? Being out and about in nature improves your mental wellbeing on a whole new level.

Regardless of if you live in the city, the country or by the coast, nature is easy to find and it is free, just open your door and there is it. Being outside enables the body to take in fresh air, aka oxygen which in turn enables the brain to function correctly. Plus being outside creates endorphins within the body which in return gives us a happy feeling.

When we are in sunlight, we get more vitamin D into our skin and serotonin into our bodies which is not only good for us but also produces a natural remedy within us enabling people to sleep.

To put it simply, nature does the following:

· Maintains a healthy brain

· Improves your overall mood

· Improves physical health

· Grounds you (if you are unsure on what this entails send me a message)

· Helps to reduce stress within the body

· Can help reduce anxiety

· Can help with sleep

Have you ever sat outside to just be? Have you taken the time to get to know and appreciate nature?

I recently spent an hour with a small group of people outside, we were asked to close our eyes and use our other senses to enjoy where we were. It took me back to my childhood, where we used to sit on the back field (a field behind my parents’ house hence the name) which filled me with happy memories. Once the activity was over, that happy feeling remained and continued for the rest of the day.

Here I have a few suggestions of what you can do outside:

• Walking

• Hiking

• Gardening

• Outdoor swimming

• Cycling

• Running

• Visit your local park

• Sit by a river, canal, lake, or sea and put your feet in, if safe

• Sit around a campfire (and maybe sing a song or two, as singing or even humming also releases those ever-loved endorphins)

• Smell the flowers

And here’s an idea, if you collect objects from your walk to bring into your house you will have happy memories whenever you look at those objects.

Or, if you struggle with getting out and about, fill your house with plants. Bring the outdoors to you.

Let me know if you try any of these ideas and how they have impacted on your mental wellbeing.