Nature Therapy: A self-led Forest Bathing walk

iv: Nature Therapy

A self-led forest bathing walk

Nathalie Moriarty

Come to the woods, for here is rest. There is no repose like that of the green deep woods.

John Muir (1938)

The first thing to note about a self-led Forest Bathing Walk is that you are in the driver’s seat— so to speak. You get to choose your own pace, where you go, what you do, and how long for. There are no hard and fast rules, no one saying you must. The only thing you should aim to do is to slow down, focus on your senses and relax into the experience.

When choosing a route, consider the following:

- Forest Bathing should be an enjoyable, relaxing experience. A simple circular route of 1-2 kilometres will suffice for your walk, and less is fine too.

- A minimum duration of one hour is recommended; however, more time spent in a woodland will have longer lasting benefits.

- A place where there is a stream or running water is beneficial.

- Your woodland should include coniferous species, as these are known to release more phytoncides.

- More phytoncides are released on warm days, so take the opportunity on a warm day if you can.

Above all, do not feel pushed into anything you do not feel comfortable and safe doing.

Sensory Invitations

In Forest Bathing we follow sensory invitations as they are offered to us in Nature. There are benefits to focusing on each of our senses in turn. With time you may naturally combine these sensory inputs to home in on certain things in the forest, or to enjoy the multisensory landscape that is being offered to you.

For this self-guided walk I will focus on each sense in turn to provide you with some examples of sensory invitations. With some practice you will easily see and follow the sensory invitations that are offered to you in the forest.

The hardest thing may be to lose your selfconsciousness about what are appropriate ways to behave as an adult. Try to let go of this. Forest Bathing can be seen as a sensory exploration of the world as we experienced it as children, when we did not think twice about taking off our shoes or picking up worms.

I invite you to find your inner child and let them explore freely, leaving the rules of the adult world behind.

Come with me, to where you will never, never have to worry about grown up things again.

Peter Pan to Wendy. (J. M. Barrie, 1911)

Sight

As you slowly walk through the woods, I invite you to spend 10 minutes using your sight to explore your surroundings. What can you see?

- What colours are there?

- What shapes can you see?

- What can you see up close and what can you see far away?

- Is there anything that stands as different to everything else?

You can combine the looking with touch. If you see something intriguing, get up close to it and touch it. Pick it up if it is something loose.

You may find that having a camera with you and taking pictures of what you see can help you to focus on the visual. This might be a helpful tool, too, to distance yourself from intrusive thoughts. If you have a camera you may prefer to photograph everything that entices you, or else to choose a topic or theme. Here are some examples of photography themes:

- A particular category of colour, such as pale green.

- Spirals— how many can you find?

- Various leaf shapes— how many can you find?

- The tiniest things that you can see.

- The shapes of entire trees.

Touch

As you see things around the forest that capture your interest, they may ‘invite’ you to touch them. Spend 10 minutes exploring the woods through your sense of touch. I invite you to focus on textures. Try touching a variety of different things, such as:

- Inanimate objects like sticks and stones.

- Living plants.

- The different leaves of different plants.

- Tree bark— how many different types of bark texture can you find?

How do you perceive things differently if you don’t use your hands? You may find this intriguing. What does a fluffy dandelion seed head feel like on your upper lip, compared to against your fingers? How about removing your shoes to feel the ground?

Smell

As you explore the textures of plant leaves and barks, you might notice that some leave residual smells on your fingertips. I invite you to use your sense of touch as a gateway to exploring the smells of plants and trees. As you continue walking through the woods, I invite you to focus on the smells your nose is being exposed to. If you identify a new smell as you walk through an area, stop and follow this odour to its source. You may like to open your mouth while smelling, as our senses of taste and smell are strongly related.

Taste

As you wander through the woods, you may recognise some plants that are edible or safe to eat. Try nibbling on the tips of their leaves to see what flavours they might hold. Plants found in the forest range from the sweet pallet of forest fruits to bitter and sour tastes. Mushrooms hold a deep earthy flavour. An important note: Only choose plants you are 100% certain what they are, and that you know you can safely eat. If you are interested in exploring forest edibles, purchase a simple guide to edible plants.

Some easy to recognise and safe plants include:

- Spruce shoots (Picea sitchensis)— the new growth at the tips.

- Pine needles (Pinus sylvestris)

- Bramble leaves (Rubus sp.)

- Nettle shoots (Urtica dioica)

- Elderflowers (Sambucus nigra)

- Hawthorn shoots (Crataegus monogyna)

- Mayflowers and buds (Crataegus monogyna)

Later in the year:

- Blackberries (Rubus sp.)

- Elderberries (Sambucus nigra)

- Hawthorn berries (Crataegus monogyna)— discard the seed.

A nice way to round off your self-led walk is by drinking a forest tea, infused with the plants you have discovered. Bring a flask of hot water with you on your walk and, as you see an edible leaf or flower, consider picking it and placing it into the flask to add to your tea. You may prefer to focus on a tea made using one plant species, or to try a variety in the same flask.

Diaphragmatic Forest Breathing

Slowing down your breathing is a quintessential practice in Forest Bathing. Somewhere along your walk, find somewhere comfortable to sit or stand. Place one hand on your chest and the other on your belly. Take a moment to calm yourself and take a few of your normal breaths in and out. Try to slow these down and make them more deliberate. After a few more breaths, focus on your hands. Take a deep and slow breath in and feel your tummy rising. Try to keep the hand on your chest still. Slowly release the breath, letting the hand on your tummy sink in. Do this as many times as you wish, each time focusing on the outbreath being slower than the inbreath. This is diaphragmatic breathing, and by doing this you are inhaling the forest air deep into your lungs.

Another glorious day, the air as delicious to the lungs as nectar to the tongue.

John Muir (1911)

Grounding mediation

Find somewhere comfortable to sit or stand, or do this meditation as a continuation of your breathing exercises. Close your eyes and imagine roots growing deep into the earth from wherever you are touching the ground— for example, from your feet if you are standing. Imagine these roots interconnecting with the roots of the trees, fungi and plants around you. Feel your connection to the plant life surrounding you, and feel how your body connects to the ground. Do this for as long as you like. After a while, retract your imaginary roots back into your body, taking the energy of the earth, trees and plants with you.

I never saw a discontented tree. They grip the ground as though they liked it, and though fast rooted they travel about as far as we do. They go wandering forth in all directions with every wind, going and coming like ourselves, traveling with us around the sun two million miles a day, and through space heaven knows how fast and far!

John Muir (1938)

Safety

- This isn’t intended as a fast hike over challenging terrain, so keep things simple.

- Wear stout footwear that matches the weather and conditions underfoot.

- If Forest Bathing in winter, make sure you wear enough layers and warm socks and gloves.

- Follow discernible paths and tracks that you will be able to follow back again should you get lost.

- It is a good idea to have a mobile phone on you in case you do get lost, even if it is switched off.

- Do not rely on your phone for map-reading in remote areas.

- Tell someone where you are going and how long you will be away.

- If you choose not to take a phone and aren’t able to tell anyone where you are going, make sure you are confident in your ability to not get lost and don’t take unnecessary risks.

- Always apply your own common sense and know your own capabilities.

- Do not consume anything that you have not positively identified as edible.

- Remember you can always turn around and go back, if for any reason you feel it is not safe to continue your walk.

References

The John Muir quotations were selected from the Sierra Club Archives at www.vault.sierraclub.org/john_muir_exhibit/

The J. M. Barrie quotation was selected from Peter Pan and Wendy (1911), republished as Barrie, J. M. & Zipes, J. (2004) Peter Pan. New York: Penguin Books.