Lucy Jones
The writer discusses the importance of nature for our well-being.
What does spending time in a green space do to us?
Spending time in a natural environment can reduce stress, boost our immune systems, curb worry or anxious thoughts, lower inflammation, relax the nervous system, enhance recovery, expose us to important micro organisms that may have antidepressant-like effects, as well as provide opportunities for awe, calm, focus, happiness and psychological restoration. As one scientist put it to me, it’s like a club sandwich. We all know intuitively that many of us feel better after a walk in the woods or by the sea but I wanted to find out how and why it works. What is the mechanism? My mind was blown by the variety of evidence – multiple mechanisms! – I found while researching Losing Eden.
What is ecological grief?
It’s the psychological response to the nature and climate emergency, a mourning for the more-than-human world, as it depletes. People in many countries worldwide are already suffering directly from the impact of the climate crisis, with the expected mental health problems that are caused by trauma and peril. Others are experiencing fear, anxiety and depression about a future that looks precarious. These feelings are a rational response to what is happening on Earth – and they are sadly only set to increase.
Has spending less time in nature caused the West’s mental health crisis?
Not caused, but my research for Losing Eden led me to believe it is a factor. Imagine you have an environment that can enhance mental and physical health through myriad pathways. That’s the natural environment right outside your door. So many of us, and certainly as a society, overlook this. We are losing out on something that can be measurably therapeutic, at a time of rising rates of mental health problems. The evidence suggests that exposure to nature has an important relationship to human mental health. In other words, our disconnection is bad for our minds.
How can this disconnect be tackled?
Collective action against the war on nature. Nature-based learning in schools. Mindful and culturally sensitive programming in public parks. Building nature connection into health and social care. Planning housing with greenery in mind. An overhaul of our current system of value and worth. And an overhaul of the misconception that we are separate from nature, instead of intimately interconnected, and reliant on it, for our lives and sanity. Megan Shersby