It’s true. Many of us have lost our connection with nature. And who can blame us, what with our easy access to food; warm, safe housing; and technology to entertain us? But if you’re feeling lost, frazzled, or listless when it comes to modern life, maybe it’s time to try to regain that connection.
Gardener, author, speaker and wellbeing retreat host Ellen Mary talks to The Daily Move about forest bathing, a mindful activity that humans have been practising since ancient times. It can benefit the mind as well as the body, and only requires two things: the forest and you.
What is forest bathing?
Unlike the title suggests, there are no baths involved in forest bathing – and it’s not a form of wild swimming or cold water therapy, either, so if you’re averse to public swimming, you’re safe with this activity! To get a better idea of what forest bathing entails, we asked Ellen what it involves and its benefits.
“So forest bathing, in a nutshell, is about walking in a wooded area full of trees and birds and wildlife, where you’re walking with intention to help your health. It’s called Shinrin-yoku in Japan, which actually means forest and bath.
“It’s kind of like a walking meditation, but being very aware of what’s going on around you. It’s about absorbing in all of the oils from the trees – they’re called ‘phytoncides’ – which are actually the forest’s way of communicating. The trees are communicating about pests and diseases, but the oils that are emitted are really good for our health. As we’re walking, we’re breathing all of that in.”
Phytoncides and their benefits for humans
Ellen briefly mentions phytoncides here, but let’s expand on the science behind them, and their many benefits for humans.
Phytoncides are released by plants to help prevent the growth of unwanted bacteria, some fungi, and certain microorganisms, as well as preventing insect attacks. Essentially, they’re “plant protectors”, but they are said to positively impact humans, too.
One study, which involved participants engaging in a forest bathing trip in Japan, found that natural killer (NK) cell activity increased after their trip, and levels were maintained for at least 30 days post-trip. NK cells are important in fighting infections and cancer cells, so this study suggests that forest bathing at least once per month could help in warding off illness.
More recent research found that phytoncides could actually provide benefits to humans, even in a non-forested environment. Gynaecological cancer survivors were exposed to phytoncide essential oils while meditating for one hour per day, five days per week. Following the experiment, it was found that their cortisol (stress hormone) levels had decreased, while their NK cell levels increased, in comparison with a group of study participants who were not exposed to the essential oils.
While these studies strongly suggest that phytoncides may offer significant physical and mental health benefits for humans, further research is necessary to substantiate these findings.
To get the most out of forest bathing, Ellen suggests doing more than just walking through a wooded area. This is a time to really be present and in touch with your surroundings.
Ellen says, “We are a whole human race with nature deficit disorder. We’ve lost our connection. But when you’re forest bathing, you’re connecting with everything that’s around you. You’re looking at the details, perhaps in the bark, or you’re spotting the leaves on the ground. You’re engaging all of your senses.
“It’s just you – or perhaps you and others if you’re on a forest bathing tour – and just seeing what’s around you and being totally engaged with it, emptying the craziness in our minds that goes on all of the time, turning off technology and just being in the wisdom of the trees.”
The origins of forest bathing
So, where does forest bathing come from? The term was coined in Japan in 1982 by Tomohide Akiyama, the head of the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries, and the activity was encouraged to help city dwellers escape the stresses of work and life (in Japan, it has been reported that more than half of employees are mentally distressed). However, the practice itself came about long before the eighties. In fact, many ancient cultures recognised a link between nature and human wellbeing.
Ellen acknowledges that forest bathing nothing new, but that the Western world are being reintroduced to this ancient practice thanks to a global rise in wellness interest, “Indigenous peoples all around the world have been forest bathing, in some way or another, forever. The Western world had forgotten all about that. But thankfully, there’s been some research, mainly in Japan, but now a little bit more around the world about the benefits of being in the trees.”
Forest bathing: A two-way relationship
It’s easy to get caught up in the negative impact of humans on the natural environment. However, there are ways that we, as individuals, can reduce our footprint on the natural environment. Forest bathing has lots of benefits for humans, so to preserve the value of the forest, it is encouraged that participants make as little physical impact to nature as possible. The quite twee, but very appropriate, phrase springs to mind: “Take only memories, leave only footsteps.”
Ellen says, “One thing to remember when you are forest bathing is that it’s a reciprocal agreement. We’ve already taken so much from the natural world. So when we go forest bathing, it’s not just about taking from the forest for our wellness – we’re breathing in the oils, we’re touching the moss and the leaves, and if you can walk bare feet, that’s even more amazing, as you’re grounding yourself. But it’s also about giving back and remembering that this is a two-way agreement.
“Often, on the forest bathing tours, you might find something that really stands out to you or called to you, like a stone, a leaf, a twig, or something that’s laying around. And then at the end of the session, we put that back. It’s a ‘thank you’ to the forest for allowing us the time and the space to be here. We need trees to survive. We wouldn’t be here without them. So we have to remember to give thanks.”
Getting out of your comfort zone in nature
If you’re new to forest bathing, and especially if you’re not used to spending time in nature, it’s not uncommon to feel a little awkward. But why, when we’re natural beings?
Ellen answers, “I think that because we’ve become so far apart from the natural world, we’ve forgotten how to spend time in nature, but the one thing to remember is that we are nature. We often say, ‘let’s connect with the natural world’, or ‘let’s connect with nature’. That’s really important. We need to connect and reconnect. But ultimately, I think it’s more about the fact that we are nature, and once you start remembering that, that’s the key to getting rid of awkwardness, because you belong in nature.
“So there’s other people around you, and it’s hard to switch off, and you’re wondering what to do. I think it’s just about pacing yourself, like meditation. When you meditate, it can take some time to get into it. So when you’re walking amongst nature anywhere, not just in the wooded environment, but in the park or in the garden, just take some time without expectation. We place so much expectation on ourselves to feel, or do, or be in certain ways. Just walk, just be yourself, just relax your mind, just look around. And I think when you engage your senses, you’re forgetting what else is going on around you, so you kind of lose that awkwardness.
“A little bit part of that also is about self-confidence. To anyone who feels awkward doing anything that they want to be doing, remember that this is your time. It doesn’t matter what anyone else is thinking, or looking at, or doing. One thing I love to do is, if I do feel particularly awkward, anxious or nervous about anything, focus on one thing. So, you look at a leaf in a tree, and focus really intently on it, and see if you can hear it, and it’s like everything else dissipates, and it’s just you in this moment.”
How to forest bathe if you live in a city
A lot of people live in urban spaces where there may not be a lot of greenery. According to the Ordnance Survey‘s 2023 data, just 18% of London is public green space, while Manchester’s green spaces make up 20% of the city; Liverpool, 17%; Glasgow, 18%; Leeds, 16%; and Plymouth, just 9%. So what’s Ellen’s advice for those who live in cities to reconnect with nature?
“There’s greenery everywhere. There’s greenery in the cracks of the pavement. There’s a dandelion that will pop up at the side of the road. If you’re in the city, you will see buddleia growing at the sides of the train tracks. Of course, there is less nature in an urban environment – but it is there. And when you seek it and you find it, it’s kind of extra special, because you’re not expecting it.
“There was a study recently that suggested we’ve got this thing called ‘plant blindness’. They asked people to walk around and said, ‘what can you see?’ And people answered ‘phones, people, buildings, cars, roads, traffic lights’. Nobody said, ‘the tree, the clouds, the dandelion, or the fern growing out of the side of the wall. So this has been termed ‘plant blindness’. Don’t be plant blind. Get outside and see what you can find. And then you can see how incredibly resilient plants actually are. If you see a tiny little bit of grass growing out of a crack in the pavement, you’d think, that bit of grass really wanted to live, right?
“Most urban environments have some parks, some benches, some kind of trails to walk along, some trees. It’s not just about being in a wooded environment. If you want to connect with nature, there are numerous different ways. But you’ve got to get out and seek it, and know that it’ll be good for you to do so.”
Ellen Mary’s wellbeing work
Ellen has all these great tips about forest bathing, but where do they come from, and how does she directly help others? Here, she tells us about how work in the wellbeing sector:
“After a long spell, some years ago, of being unwell, I discovered being outside in nature, gardening, tending to my herbs, going for walks in woodland, it made me feel so much better. And I wanted more people to know that being outside and this free, wonderful natural world that we have can be accessed by anyone.
“My goal now, if you like, is to get groups of people together to forest bathe. I take people on guided forest bathing walks where people can find that all important connection for wellness again. I also run a nature therapy consultancy called People Plants Wellbeing, and I also run retreats where we stay in private woodland, and it’s absolutely magical. It’s so beautiful. We get go on forest bathing walks every day, or we stargaze in the evenings, or we go and look at bats in the night on nature trails – all kinds of different healing modalities, but outside amongst the trees. There’s energy healing or reiki in the trees, meditation in the trees, yoga in the trees, because I believe that all of those practices are amplified when you are simply surrounded by the magic of the forest and breathing in all of those wonderful oils. So that’s what I do. It’s nature therapy, all about being outside, and reconnecting, and improving people’s lives!”
Watch this interview on our YouTube channel.
One response to “Just 20 minutes of this ancient practice can improve your mental wellbeing”
[…] this sounds familiar, it’s because walking yoga shares some common ground with forest bathing, another practice that invites us to slow down, notice our surroundings and reconnect with nature. […]