Easy Ways To Incorporate Nature Into Your Life To Save Your Mental Health

Feeling overwhelmed with your busy life? Anxiety over, well… everything?

It’s okay—I’ve got the solution.

Take a deep breath.

Imagine yourself stepping into a garden. Your bare feet sink into soft green grass. Leafy trees rustle in the breeze and flowers bloom. Ahead of you, a stone fountain is trickling water, the sunlight dancing on the surface.

The tension melts from your body, and your mind quietens. Welcome to the undeniable power of nature.

Yes. Studies show that when we place leafy plants in offices, new employees adjust quicker. Children who are exposed to nature learn quicker, and express greater creativity. In hospitals, viewing natural landscapes and access to gardens helps patients heal faster and lowers self-reported pain.

But, feeling connected to nature holds the real key to mental resilience and a sense of purpose in life. People with an ‘ecological’ sense of self were found to have better overall mental and physical health.

It’s identifying with nature—rather than viewing humans as existing outside of it. For centuries, art, culture, and stories were interwoven with nature—but since the technology boom of the twentieth century, we’ve been growing ever distant from our organic roots.

When we view ourselves as part of a wider ecosystem, we experience profound benefits from engaging with nature. We don’t just feel calmer, happier and healthier for surrounding ourselves with the natural world—we feel a sense of belonging and purpose too.

Color isn’t just a trick of the mind; color is energy. It has a psychological and physiological effect upon us. When we see color, wavelengths of light hit our retinas; these vibrations are converted into electrical impulses that pass into our brain, evoking a biochemical and psychological response. This response can vary greatly depending on associations with specific colors—a memory, and cultural interpretations.

Whether you’re at home or in the office, surround yourself with your own version of paradise. Indoor palms, windowsill herbs, orchids, winter flowering jasmine, a ficus tree, a nod to the 70s trend with a rubber plant—bring the outdoors in.

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