We’re now off to the Japanese tradition of Shinrin-Yoku or ‘Forest Bathing’. If you haven’t read my others post in this series, check out the first one here to get a sense of what’s going on.

Also, sorry that this is up so late, my entire draft got deleted and I couldn’t bring myself to start again from scratch. Chaos!

What Is It?

Shinrin-Yoku, translates to English as ‘taking in the forest atmosphere’ or more succinctly ‘forest bathing’. It’s a Japanese practise of immersing yourself in nature to relax and reap medicinal benefits. One site claims that it can boost immune function, reduce blood pressure, and accelerate recovery from surgery. I’m not sure that there’s the evidence to back those claims, but nature has long been considered a good booster for mental health. Mindfulness is all the rage at the minute, and heading outside into the fresh air is a great way to practice it.

Giving It A Go

The first problem I had with my forest bathing is that I hadn’t eaten all day and desperately needed a wee. This meant that rather than basking in the beauty of nature, I was wandering around complaining. The second problem I faced was that I went on my forest bathing adventure with my mother, who really doesn’t do strolling. She is the embodiment of humanity’s deadliest predator skill; sustained speedwalking. When I suggested we stop and look at a tree for a while, she offered to go get lunch and come back to pick me up afterwards. Funnily enough, I wasn’t keen on the idea of hanging out in the woods alone, so I kept up with the marching pace.

Despite the obstacles, I resolved myself to get fully into the forest bathing spirit. To my advantage, it was a beautiful day, cold but sunny. All the bluebells had bloomed and I’d remembered to take my hayfever tablet so I wasn’t unstoppably sneezing. Perching myself on tree stumps for photo shoots was not quite in the ‘humbly embrace nature’ spirit of things, but the surroundings were just so lovely that I couldn’t resist.

I wasn’t entirely sure how I was supposed to be forest bathing, the information I found online was often vague. I found one site which suggested 6 steps: Breathe, relax, wander, touch, listen, and heal. I worked my way through the steps almost by accident. I’m always curious about the texture of things, my least favourite thing about museum trips is staring longingly at art I’m not allowed to touch. I was having a great time touching tree bark, picking flowers, crunching twigs under my feet. Forests are a field day of sensory input, so it’s very easy to ground yourself and focus on physical sensations. This grounding is fundamental to mindfulness, so wandering in the woods definitely lends itself to relaxation.

Scoreboard

Cost: 4/5

Forests are free, but you might have to buy yourself a train ticket or some fuel to get to one if you live in a city.

Time Commitment: 3/5

Up to you, but you probably want to give yourself a good hour or so to really get into the spirit of things.

Joy Factor: 3/5

I had a good time wandering about, but that may have been more to do with hanging out with my dogs and my mum. Forests are relaxing, but I can’t say I felt overwhelmed with joy and excitement.

Total Score: 10/15