Grounding, Earthing, Releasing, Recharging and Relaxing. These are things one does when in nature. For some this might by dipping your toes or fully immersing yourself in a body of water such as an estuary, creek, ocean, river, lake, stream etc. For others this might be simply sitting or lying on the ground perhaps under a tree. One of my personal favourites is tending to my garden, especially transplanting seedlings into the vegetable patch after sowing and nurturing them from inception of their seed form.

I believe all of us instinctively know that being in nature is good for us. Unfortunately, in many parts of the world today, there are many who are simply (and literally) out of touch with Nature and coincidently there are many (perhaps the same people) who are not healthy humans. Picture high rise buildings and ‘concrete jungles’ where people are unnaturally spending all of their time living. ie working, socialising, eating and sleeping without any physical contact with Earth. Is this an ideal setting to support optimal health for humans and other creatures of the earth? Our planet is currently in an unsustainable state just as our lifestyles are psychologically unsustainable. [1]

Here is an extract from a Medscape article that explains part of the link between nature and health:

Today, the link between nature and human health is as clear and as urgent as ever. There is a growing body of evidence to suggest that simply spending time in natural environments can have significant positive effects on a wide range of mental and physical health issues, from diabetes to anxiety. Over the last decade, a rising number of health professionals have begun to prescribe "doses" of time in nature to patients and to advocate for the rise of nature prescription programs throughout the world.[2]

I feel fortunate to be living in a region with volcanic cones and craters, dunes, forests, streams and estuaries, rivers, ponds, lakes, wetlands, harbours and offshore islands. Some of which I intentionally seek out, some of which I gratefully stumble across.  I live in an urban environment 5km from the CBD of Tāmaki Makaurau (Auckland) and am conscious and appreciative, to be in contact with nature every day. In less than two years in our modest property, we have grown passion fruit, lemons, cucumbers, strawberries, blackberries, plums, tomatoes, sliver beet, chard, kale, pak choy, spinach, several lettuce varieties, rocket, carrots, beetroot, spring onions, basil, oregano, thyme, mint, rosemary, parsley, coriander, chilies, wild edible flowers, beans, peas. None of which was on the wee property when we arrived (there was some lavender).

I love what Sue Stuart Smith says:

In this era of virtual worlds and fake facts, the garden brings us back to reality….a reality that is sensory and physical, and stimulates the emotional, spiritual and cognitive aspects of our being. [1]

I feel I have experienced this reality through the evolution of our urban garden so far and this has played a key role in my wellbeing during this time.

Gardening is just one way to ‘get in touch’ with nature. Grounding, Earthing, Releasing, Recharging and Relaxing are some of the beneficial side effects. What ways do you interact with nature to reap these health and wellbeing benefits?

[1] Recommended read: The Well Gardened Mind by Sue Stuart-Smith

[2] Returning to our roots: How nature Prescriptions Can Help Patients by Molly MacGilbert Source here