Once through the forest alone I went

burnt out? Stressed? Reconnect with yourself through connection with nature

Once through the forest
Alone I went
Goethe

Much has been written about the therapeutic, healing power of time spent in nature, especially walks in woods and forests. It’s a common leisure activity and ‘cure’ in many cultures. Growing up with a German father, walking in the woods was a regular Sunday event and one often followed by afternoon coffee and cake.

In Canada, where I grew up, we’d drive out along the coast on Sunday afternoons and then stroll through the pine woods to the rocky beaches and clamber like goats on the great slabs of granite with the salt spray of the Atlantic in our faces. We’d often, in warmer seasons, take along a picnic to share in a sheltered spot. In late summer, we’d gather wild blueberries along the bushy paths stretching between the wood and the rocks. My sister adored them, the blueberries, but me not so much at the time. There’d be weeks of blueberry pancakes, blueberry cakes, blueberries with cream, blueberry this and that… On our way home, we’d stop at a little Greek diner for pumpkin pie with whipped cream, my favourite, or a seasonal fruit crumble. The old Greek owner and chef would always shout a greeting to my dad from the window in the raised kitchen, ‘Afternoon, Capitano’. Not sure where the ‘capitano’ came from – perhaps from a hat my father wore. He had a fondness for hats.

A bit of deer wrangling with the cousins in the Lower Saxony forest.

Long summer holidays in Germany with my grandmother always involved weekly Sunday afternoon outings to some forest or other with extended family members of all ages. As a child, I’d hop and skip along the path, holding hands and swinging between the arms of uncles, singing old German walking songs. We’d often start with lunch, a typical German affair with wild game meat in some deliciously creamy sauce and boiled potatoes and kohlrabi smothered in butter and parsley, and then set off to walk for hours through the woods, stopping here and there to greet cows or catch our breath on a bench or climb a deer lookout or make fairy houses in the roots of the trees with twigs. Magical. The path always brought us back to the country restaurant where we started and a huge slice of strawberry cheesecake with whipped cream awaited.

Moody teen contemplating strawberries and cream post forest walk.

So, there, a sweet tooth and a love of forest walking was born at an early age! Reflecting back, this experience was a beautiful example of a family tradition of seeking that otium mentioned in my previous post. It also incorporated many elements of the Blue Zone principles for living a long and healthy life: time, laughter, and deep conversations with loved ones; natural movement in the form of walking; creativity in forest play; rest and quiet contemplation of nature in good company; and local, seasonal diet – clearly the copious amounts of butter, cream, and sugar weren’t the best but, you know, a little of what you love is good for the soul.

Walking in the forest, a type of ecotherapy, has always been an integral part of German culture. Many celebrated German authors and thinkers through the centuries have written about their love of forest walking, the benefits of time spent in nature, and our connection with nature. There is also the concept in Germany of ‘wellness through Waldeinsamkeit’ where you go into forests alone to cure stress. There’s a lovely article here about it. The Japanese also have what they call ‘forest bathing’ or ‘shinrin-yoku’ and no doubt there is something similar in other cultures. If you know of any, please do drop a note in the comments below

Time spent walking in nature – a walk to clear your head as it’s often called – has to be part of any self-care journey. A recent article by a coaching duo dissed the notion of ‘self-care’ as merely ‘soothing’ tips and techniques that don’t actually resolve anything. They advocate for deeper ‘mindset’ transformative therapy, shifting from a ‘comparative’ to a ‘regenerative’ paradigm, when dealing with burn-out and stress, and it doesn’t involve meditation, a walk in the park, bubble baths, or running away to off-grid communes. Or, at least this is not enough – a mere bandage. They sustain that it’s about how you see your value. Is it based on your ability to conquer and achieve more than others i.e. comparative? or, is it inherent? Does life beget life and is thriving mutual, not exclusionary i.e. regenerative? You can find out more about this coaching approach here. Something to reflect on.

For a true self-care journey, I would agree that soothing activity is not enough. It would and should incorporate this deeper work as well. If you really want to take care of yourself, overcome stress and burn-out, put yourself onto a path where you can thrive, then you do need to dive deeper, transform your mindset, understand your value and your values, your purpose or mission in life, and what kind of relationship you are nurturing with yourself and the people around you, your ecosystem. It takes time and can be tricky when you’re tired, stressed, and suffering from the accompanying brain fog. And, this is where making time for soothing self-care activity can help, perhaps as a starting point. Being in a state of calm and relaxation, detoxified, can greatly facilitate and support, give oxygen to, that deeper reflection.

There is a lot of research which supports the therapeutic value of walks in nature, even a lunchtime stroll through a nearby city park can be beneficial for mental, physical and emotional well-being. It’s natural movement exercise so builds your strength and flexibility. It’s relaxing and engages all of your senses, and all of this promotes:

Reduction of stress and anxiety
Increased attention span
Reduction of blood pressure
Exercise (strength and flexibility)
Decreased risk for depression

And, if encounters with nature are combined with coaching, it can be truly transformative. I have a deep appreciation for this and, over the past few years, I’ve been incorporating nature into my coaching practice through ‘walk and talk’ sessions and have started offering ‘coaching in nature’ retreats. It’s been an eye-opening and wonderful journey so far.

Whether one walks the forest path alone in quiet contemplation and connection with nature or with good company on the road like family and friends or a coach in your ear, it’ll be soothing, recharging, and may offer space to listen to your inner voice and for creative thinking to help you tackle those nuts you are finding hard to crack. Embrace some otium!

Let me know what you think of all of this. And, I’d also really love to hear stories of your own childhood nature encounters!

Take care of you!

F ox

foxonthego