Forest Bathing is when you immerse yourself in nature in a mindful way, using your senses to improve well-being. Forest Bathing is also known as Shinrin-Yoku. The practice started in Japan, in the 1980’s to cope with stress.
The five S's of Forest Bathing
1. Senses: Use your senses to bridge inner and outer nature
2. Slow: Walk slow, think less, feel more
3. Safety: Be prepared, stay alert, stay calm
4. Sharing: Share insights in small circles, listen like trees
5. Science: Find the stillness, experience the oneness
Benefits of Forest Bathing
- Relieve stress
- Better sleep
- Avoid burnout
- Boost immunity
- Increase focus and memory
- Improve heart and lung health
- Control anger and addiction
- Reduced anxiety and worry
- Improved mood and energy levels
- Overcome depression and sadness
- Speed up recovery from illness and injury
- Enhance emotional intelligence
- Find calm, creativity, and clarity
The Science behind Forest Bathing
- In a study from the Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine Journal, researchers compared how people felt after walking in the forest vs. walking in an urban environment. Those who walked in the forest lowered their stress hormones, pulse rate, and blood pressure.
- Trees and plants give off essential oils that protect plant life from parasites. When we breath in those oils, they promote higher immunity. They also reduce stress, enhance sleep, and lower blood sugar levels.
- A study of nearly 20,000 people in the U.K. showed that spending at least 2-hours a week in nature, whether all at once or spread out throughout the week, improved self-reported health and well-being.
How to take a Forest Bath
You can forest bathe by immersing yourself in nature and decreasing distractions. These moments of bonding with nature can be in short or long, but they should be a minimum of 20 minutes at a time.
While bathing in nature, pay attention to everything around you, listen to the birds, feel the sunshine on your skin, and hear the swaying of the leaves moving with the breeze. Take deep slow breaths, smell the wildflowers, touch the trees, and feel the grounding of the earth underneath your feet.
Forest bathing can be done alone or with others, and at any age, but there should be peace and quiet with enough time and space to meditate, relax, and think. Consider nature as a trusty companion that is there to listen to you and to nurture you.
For more information about Forest Bathing, make an appointment at the Lifestyle Medicine & Wellness Center.