Therapeutic power of catching a wave
GENERATIONS of surfers know there’s nothing like catching the perfect wave, but now new research has looked at just how beneficial the power of the sea can be.
The Swansea University study examined how a group of adults living with the consequences of acquired brain injury benefited from groupbased surf therapy on the Gower coast.
Lead researcher Katie Gibbs, a final-year PhD student, said: “Nature has long demonstrated the capacity to facilitate wellbeing. Increasingly, interventions involving the natural environment are used to help aspects of wellbeing in clinical populations.
“But we wanted to find out how nature-based interventions such as surf therapy could be used when it comes to promoting wellbeing in the context of neurorehabilitation.”
Katie and her colleagues from the School of Psychology interviewed 15 adults with acquired brain injury following a five-week intervention where they worked with Surfability UK, a Gower-based community interest company which specialises in providing surfing experiences for people with additional needs.
Their findings have just been published by online journal PLOS ONE – a peer-reviewed open-access scientific journal published by the Public Library of Science since 2006.
Scientists at the university have been collaborating closely with clinicians from Swansea Bay University Health Board and Hywel Dda University Health Board to re-examine our way of thinking about health and wellbeing and consider how these insights could be used to support people living with pervasive impairment after a stroke or acquired brain injury.
Katie said: “We know physical health and psychological wellbeing are influenced by many things, including healthy eating, sleeping well or physical exercise. But our health and wellbeing are also influenced by whether we gain a sense of meaning, purpose and achievement in our lives; whether we have a sense of belonging and it can even be dependent upon how connected we feel to our natural environments.”
One group which often struggles to experience various determinants of wellbeing are people with acquired brain injury. In addition to having emotional, cognitive and physical difficul
ties, many feel isolated and unable to reintegrate into their communities.
A majority of stroke and brain injury survivors have difficulty returning to work or engaging in the leisure activities they once enjoyed, which limits opportunities for social connection, joy, meaning and purpose.
To address this, clinicians looked for diverse ways to give people with stroke and brain injury opportunities to experience wellbeing in their local and natural environments. This resulted in the partnership with Surfability UK, whose work offering surfing experiences at Caswell Bay led to it being featured on BBC1’s DIY SOS.
Since teaming up around three years ago, up to 50 stroke and brain injury survivors have enjoyed two-hour surfing sessions for up to five-week periods.
In interviews conducted with 15 of those individuals, Katie and the team learned just how life-changing the experience had been.
She said: “Over and above everything else, we found surfing nourished the belief that despite ‘being a bit broken in some places’ participants could experience wellbeing.
“Many said their experience gave them a ‘valid reason for being alive’.”
The research looked at the positive changes the participants experienced over those five weeks and beyond, when they enjoyed the benefits of being in nature and connecting to the present moment in a safe and supportive environment.
The group activity also meant they could connect with others, gaining a sense of belonging and community that they struggled to experience elsewhere. Within this community, they began to reappraise themselves and what they were capable of, with help from the clinicians who worked with them to set meaningful goals.
Katie added: “Our themes capture how immersing individuals in natural environments can provide the context for stroke and brain injury survivors to experience various pillars of wellbeing which they are often sorely lacking in.”
Up your game for a less stressful and happier life
So much of adult life has an agenda – the daily grind, a clean house, bills to pay – that there’s little time left for doing something just for the fun of it.
But if your weeks are all work and no play, it could be taking its toll on your mental health – and making you less efficient in the long run.
“Many of us have forgotten how to play – and the pandemic has made it worse as we’ve got out of the habit of socialising,” says Alicia Navarro, founder of Flown (flown.com), a virtual co-working platform who has seen for herself how play feeds your mind to perform better at work.
“But the lack of play can have a profound effect on health and wellbeing. If you neglect the need for magic in your life, you lose your mojo.
“Various studies have shown that simply the act of playing triggers the brain’s ‘awesome foursome’ of positive hormones: endorphins, oxytocin, dopamine and serotonin, which raise your mood and allow you to focus.”
It’s very easy to think you don’t have enough minutes in the day, but time out will improve your focus and help you achieve more.
“Playing as a team is a proven way to enhance productivity,” says Alice. “One study found that 45 minutes of team video game play improved work performance by 20%.”
Research by Boston College neuroscientist Dr Peter Gray in the US found that play uses the same state of mind as creativity and learning, thus priming your brain to take on tricky tasks.
Experts believe that making time to do fun things for their own sake – can help ward off depression, reduce stress, spark imagination and improve your relationships both at work and at home. So, if playtime has been absent in your life since you left primary school, it’s time to bring it back.
Not sure where to begin? Alicia has simple suggestions for getting started...
Schedule your play: Organised fun is good, so block out some time in your diary to play. Otherwise it will end up at the bottom of your to-do list.
Take a walk on the unfamiliar side: Walk home, but along a route you wouldn’t normally take. Try to notice things you haven’t noticed before.
Gamify the mundane: Can you avoid stepping on the cracks in the pavement? Do time trials on unstacking the dishwasher? Have a “getting ready for bed race” against your partner?
Play Spotify roulette: Type a random word into Spotify (or YouTube) and listen to the first three songs that come up. You might hear something weird, funny, or something you love.
Take the “smell a rose” challenge: Challenge yourself to notice one thing a day that brings you joy, then photograph it. The results can be inspiring.
There are infinite ways to play: Psychologists say there are four types of play: other-directed (fans of team sports suit this), lighthearted (for those who like to laugh), intellectual (chess, anyone?) and whimsical (jumping in puddles or a deliberate stroll in the rain). So if one activity doesn’t quite do it for you, try something else.