It is time to do some forest bathing -It will make you more creative
“It is the marriage of the soul with nature that makes the intellect fruitful, and gives birth to imagination.
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It is well documented that any physical activity can reduce stress and anxiety. But, there’s something equally special about just being in nature, whether in an urban park, a suburban green space, or on a getaway to a beach or the woods. Stretch out on a sunny hillside, watch the clouds drift by and let the chorus of birdsong wash over you. Feel the stress melt away, the feel-good hormones surge, and you’ll automatically immerse into that creative space.
Let me give you a great example of someone who has looked into this for many years: Dr Qing Li of the Nippon Medical School in Tokyo. Every day Dr Qing heads to a leafy park close to his office. It is not that he wants to eat his lunch there; he believes the time spent under the trees’ canopy is a critical factor in the fight against diseases of the mind and body.
Then, once a month, Li spends three days in forests near Tokyo, using all five senses to connect with the environment and clear his mind. He believes this practice of shinrin-yoku — literally, ‘forest bathing’ — has the power to counter illnesses, including, depression and anxiety. He maintains that it also boosts the immune system, lowers blood pressure and aids sleep.
Li is one of the world’s experts on this practice, which emerged in Japan in the 1980s. He was part of the team that carried out an experiment in 2014 where participants were assigned to walk either in a forest or an urban centre — taking walks of equal length and difficulty — while having their heart rate, blood pressure and other physiological factors measured.
Results showed that those who walked in forests had significantly lower heart rates and higher heart rate variability, which indicated there were more relaxed and less stressed than those who walked in urban settings. The researchers concluded that there’s something about being in nature that had a beneficial effect on stress reduction, above and beyond what physical exercise alone might have produced.
Another study, carried out by the Finnish Forest Research Institute, also found that city dwellers who paid short-term visits to urban nature areas, like public gardens or parks, experienced stress relief. Those who strolled for as little as 20 minutes through an urban park or woodland reported significantly lower stress than those who walked through a bustling city centre.
These studies and others provide evidence that being in natural spaces — or just looking out a window onto a natural scene, or even watching a nature documentary — is good for us. And yes, as you knew I would say, this inevitably has a positive effect on our creative capacity. The more creative you become, the less stressed and anxious you will be, which increases your well-being and happiness. And this cycle repeats itself, time and time again.
I am very fortunate that my home office is situated at the end of our garden. The office overlooks large trees, bushes and plants, and I can sit and watch nature at play, through the four seasons, from my desk. Some of the frequent visitors to my garden are wood pigeons, which are truly amazing birds. They mate for life and live as a couple. They return to same nesting site each year, rebuilding and making repairs to their nests.
What I find astounding is the structural strength and beauty of these classic, round-shaped bird’s nests. Regardless the weather conditions, from torrential rain to 60-70 mph winds, the nest holds, protecting the pigeons and their young.
And this is a fundamental characteristic of all nesting bird habitats around the globe. Not only do these amazing habitats protect the birds’ young, generation after generation, but they also inspire humans to create fantastic structures of our own. Nature has become the spark that fires up man’s imagination.
For example, the design of nests inspired the architecture firm Herzog and de Menron to design and build the remarkable Bird’s Nest Stadium for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The façade consists of thousands of steel ’twigs,’ in-filled with translucent panels. This provided the same insulating qualities as feathers, mud and moss in a real bird’s nest.
Nike shoe designers studied mountain goats to develop an all-terrain trainer, the Goatek Traction. Japan’s Shinkansen bullet train is modelled on the kingfisher’s aerodynamic beak. Swiss engineer George de Mestral observed the tiny hooks on burrs that had latched on to the fabric loops in his woven pants during a hunting trip, leading him to develop Velcro.
The list of innovations that have been inspired by nature is significant. The more you study it and spend more time in it, your well-being and happiness will increase, leading you to become more creative. Animal, insects, marine life, and plants are the most skilled creators and inventors, and just ‘being in and observing it’ will be so beneficial for you.
Just observe, and see what it teaches you. The natural world is the ultimate library, accessible to everyone and ready to reveal its wonders. It is also the best teacher. Study, experience and embrace it. It will fire up your creativity like nothing else will, and you’ll see your stress and anxiety levels drop precipitously.
This extract is taken from Neil Francis’s new book, ‘’The Creative Thinking Book – how to ignite and boost your creativity’’, which will be published on 29th September. It can be pre-ordered from this website, https://www.neil-francis.com/shop-1/p/the-creative-thinking-book, any other good book shops or Amazon.
www.neil-francis.com