Nature has always played a pivotal role in keeping our emotions and overall health in check. Both mentally and physically, the pandemic has shown us just how important it is to have that refuge from the stress of everyday life at times.
Nature can be a walk in the park, a dip in the river, a walk along a beach, or even a little gardening. But in general, gardening is the main method in which people find some inner tranquility and a much-needed mood boost closer to home.
Here’s how you can get started and help to keep your mental health as robust as possible.
Fresh air and time away from devices
Leaving your mobile phone and other digital devices indoors while you get to know nature again is an important step in creating a separation between your chores, stresses, tasks, and your personal time in the garden.
It may seem unusual at first, but over time, you’ll soon grow to love it. That initial relationship with your garden needs to be a positive one, and this is the key starting point.
Green surroundings promote inner calm
The benefits of nature and its healing qualities aside, we are all susceptible to the color schemes around us, and they can have a profound effect on our moods and behaviors.
The color and texture of a soft green hedge can play a huge role in a garden’s overall appeal and help to keep your mind and body in a more positive state. Hedges like the emerald green arborvitae require very little maintenance while adding some calming green depth to your garden.
Maintaining and caring for something
The act of routine and nurturing something as it grows can help to boost your overall mood. For those of us who let our thoughts run wild, it’s also a great way to concentrate and focus on something outside of our own heads.
Seeing the beautiful garden we cultivate bloom into life is also extremely rewarding, which helps our serotonin levels and boosts our overall self-esteem.
Appealing to your senses
The garden provides many calming and regenerative qualities that appeal to our senses. The feel of fingers in the soil and cool air against the cheek, the smell of a freshly bloomed flower, the sound of leaves rustling, and the taste of fresh fruit are all synonymous with being outdoors.
For smaller gardens, or those of you who are looking to take up gardening as a simple mindfulness hobby, try to appeal to at least two of these senses each time, to help promote inner wellbeing.
Letting your creative side shine
Expressing yourself is a wonderful way of shaking off those intrusive thoughts and letting your creative side take over for a while. Think of a garden as a completely blank page that you can do whatever you want with!
It doesn’t matter if that’s adding some crazy and fun colors to your paving and fences, or just making a small nook for reading. All that matters is that you’re enjoying yourself, and taking care of your own wellbeing.
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