It's understandable to feel uneasy of late, the news has been brutal for the last several months. Floods, hurricanes, forest fires and recently, the mass shooting in Las Vegas, Nevada. Experts tell us to choose our news sources carefully to ensure credibility, and to limit our time being barraged by the onslaught of opinions in Social Media.
We realize the responsibility to stay informed, but we also realize the importance of limiting the time spent listening to nonstop news reports and discussions. Get involved where you can, and contribute to causes where you feel most passionate. Connect with like-minded people, write your local representatives, volunteer, send money to disaster relief organizations, you get the idea. Be proactive.
In addition, we think there's a disconnect for many people to the natural world. Too much screen time - TVs, computers, tablets, and smart phones creates "Nature deprivation."
Exposure to nature not only makes you feel better emotionally, it contributes to your mental wellbeing reducing blood pressure, heart rate, muscle tension, and the production of stress hormones. It may even reduce mortality, according to scientists such as public health researchers Stamatakis and Mitchell.
If you live in an urban environment, take a walk in a local park, or along a tree-lined street, find a green space. Visit an arbortetum. Country dwellers will likely find connections to nature a bit easier. Even soothing views can help restore our serenity. We think it's time to spend less time in front of the screen, and more time walking in the woods.
The Japanese call walking in the woods, "shinrin-yoku," which translates as forest bathing. We think it's a perfect description of the benefits of being in nature.
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