04/05/2018 / By Jessica Dolores
Modern technology is a two-edged sword. It makes our life more convenient. But it also makes living more complicated. We multi-task, deal with higher stress levels, and go to bed thinking of a thousand and one things.
It’s a far cry from pre-smartphone days, when our ancestors looked up in a sky awash in moonlight and contemplated their next moves. They woke up to the chirping of birds instead of a cell phone’s ring tone. They went to the beach to while away the time instead of surfing the Net for the latest Netflix movies.
Always on the go and under stress, many people feel depressed, even if they live amidst the most modern conveniences and the most stylish of homes. They forget that the solution is simple — reconnecting with oneself and going back to where it all began: nature.
Lucinda Bakken White found this out by herself when she suffered from a bout of depression. Ironically, this employee in a psychiatric office found the final solution, not in her office, but in nature’s soothing arms.
“When I take time to pause in nature, without the distraction and noise of a cellphone or even music, I find the space to hear my inner voice — and I’m able to connect deeply with everything around me,” writes White.
Below are her recommendations for a calmer, stress-free life.
Nature will reward you in ways you never imagined. A study involving University of Michigan students found that those who walked around trees in an arboretum scored 20 percent better in a memory test than those who did not. A similar study on depressed persons showed that nature walks improved memory more than walks in the urban areas. Still another study revealed that a person’s mental energy improved after they saw pictures of nature. City-scapes, on the other hand, failed to achieve this effect.
Seeing the beauty of nature inspires awe, one of best ways to get that much-needed mental boost. Nature is one gift you need not spend a fortune on. And it keeps giving back, as long as we take care of it.
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Tagged Under: depression, depression cures, depression treatments, holistic health, Meditation, mental depression, mental health, natural cures, natural health, natural remedies, Natural Treatments, power of nature