NATURE IMMERSION
Honoring Ancestral Knowledge
This is a guided slow, relaxing, nature-based mindfulness practice. A kind of nervous system “reset” that has the potential to remind us of the Interconnection of All Things. The importance of our relationship to land and place is rooted in ancestral Indigenous Knowledge all over the world. It can take shape in many different ways. Community wellness, and the overall wellness of our own mind, body, and spirit, is directly connected to our ongoing relationship with the Earth, La Madre Tierra. Deepen connection. You may begin to notice, in your own way, that the knowledge or understandings that you seek for outside of yourself, already exist within you. It is more about being “here”, in the present moment, than it is about being “there”. Allow your body to engage its own restorative processes. Experience the integrative health benefits of Forest Bathing or Shinrin Yoku, such as lowered blood pressure, lowered cortisol concentrations, enhanced immunity, less stress, more focus, enhanced creativity, and so much more. You are the medicine. Tú eres la medicina.
TESTIMONIALS
Who is a Group Guided Nature Immersion for?
Eco-antidote for Tech Boom Burnout:
Temporarily disconnect from devices. Take a break from screen time. Relax amongst the organic compounds of the Earth. "Bathe" in the terpenes and phytoncides emitted from plants and trees. Slow down, relax.
Specialized Teams of People & Corporate Wellbeing:
Team building. Incorporates elements of the practice of "council sharing" for improved communication.
Brainstorming. Creative and restorative.
First Responders and Risk Management:
Offers the opportunity to drop into your para-sympathetic nervous system. Help your body to engage its own restorative processes to do the healing work it needs for better mental focus, and improved overall health between operational assignments. Can be explored as a team building or Situational Awareness exercise.
Earth Ambassadors and Environmentalists:
Deepen connection to that great web-of-interbeing of which we are all a part. Everything is connected; everything is related to everything. We are connected to each other and with the cosmos. Everything is in movement and transformation. Remember our sacred relationship to nature. Remember the importance of caring for the Earth.
Recovery Groups:
A practice of mindfulness & meditation to enhance peer support and internal work. Incorporates elements of the practice of "council sharing". You are the medicine.
Integrative Wellness Practice:
May enhance the results of other Health & Wellbeing practices in your life.
Student Groups:
Foster an understanding and personal relationship to the importance of planetary health and global awareness.
Nature Enthusiasts:
Deepen connection to the Earth and the More-Than-Human world. Meet like-minded people.
Celebrations:
Foster feelings of gratitude, appreciation
Artists & Activists:
A chance to allow oneself to relax, restore, recharge, connect. Team Building. Enhance creativity, mediation practices, and communication
Disaster Recovery
Persons, communities, and forests are interrelated systems that may undergo collective trauma after disasters. May assist and support with recovery for communities affected by forest fires.
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· Experience the health benefits of Forest Bathing
· Nervous system reset
· More energy
· Better sleep
· Enhanced immunity
· Healthy digestion
· Reduced inflammation
· Lowered blood pressure
· Increased production of natural killer (NK) cells; a type of white blood cell that plays a role in the body’s first line of defense against infections and diseases
· Activates the para-sympathetic nervous system
· Lowers cortisol concentrations. (Overexposure to these chemicals in the body, in response to chronic stress, over time, can increase risk of anxiety, depression, heart disease, weight gain and memory and concentration impairment).
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· Increased focus
· Enhanced creativity
· Less stress
· Enhanced memory
· Improved mood
· Less anxiety
· Relaxation and more
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· More connected
· More alive
· More present
· Experiences such as joy, transformation, rest, forgiveness, grief, self-acceptance, love, reconciliation, insight, dreams, awe, perspective, purpose, empowerment, empathy, integration, release, wholeness,
Health Benefits of Nature Immersion
Guided Nature Immersion Basics
Gatherings may last from 2 to 2 ½ hours:
This general time frame can be modified to be shorter or longer in length. Or may be explored as an “add on” to a longer, more fast paced trail hike.
Integrative practice:
Incorporate a private guided Nature Immersion into a larger event or inter-disciplinary corporate retreat. May enhance the results of other wellness practices.
First Responders and Specialized Teams:
May be included in a Risk Management or Situational Awareness exercise. A wellness practice between operational assignments. Team building.
Why hire a Certified Nature & Forest Therapy Guide?
There has been an uptick in non-certified guides guiding Nature Immersion or Forest Bathing walks, so Elena addresses that question here. Please click HERE to read why you should hire a Certified Nature & Forest Therapy Guide.