The Magic of Being in the Moment, in Nature

We’re facing a crisis in this country, that has every day people treating each other poorly, our elected officials making bad decisions for the nation’s wellbeing, and our collective health on a downward spiral. I believe this crisis is nature-deficit disorder (NDD). Its presence causes everything from decreased attention span, increased rates of anxiety, and depression, a Vitamin D deficiency, and the list goes on.

While the implications of this disorder run deep, the cure is simple — get outside! And I mean really get outside. Americans now spend 90% of their time indoors, and an average of 11 hours a day on a screen, leaving little to no time to connect with nature. And while connecting with nature might seem a daunting task to those of us who call a concrete jungle our home, studies have shown that even a window that looks out on a green space, a patch of grass, a tree, can have positive effects on our mental health. But let’s go even further. Research from our friends in Japan, and South Korea show that mindful walks in pine forests decrease heart rate, and blood pressure, lower cortisol levels, improve sleep, and boost immunity. In Japan, they call walking in the forest shinrin yoku — or forest bathing.

Doctors there prescribe forest bathing for a myriad of ailments including post-surgery recovery, anxiety, and depression among others. That’s where Wanderland comes in.

My husband and I founded Wanderland Outdoors not only for recreation sake, but to be an outfitters that reconnects the nature inside us all, with the nature around us. Here in Colorado, Ponderosa Pine, burbling rivers, and bucolic valleys are in abundance. You don’t have to go far to find yourself in the throws of a green space. Want more of an experience? Join me this summer for a mindful hike in our iconic Rocky Mountain National Park. We’ll begin by acknowledging our Ute ancestors, who were the original stewards of this land, breathwork, mindful body movement, then, we’ll hike to a beautiful spot to meditate. At the end of our hike, we’ll enjoy a tea ceremony as we council by fire.

It’s possible to bring ourselves back from the physical, and mental apathy that nature-deficit disorder has created. We can restore our mind, body, and spirit by communing with nature — fly fishing, hiking, eating food

prepared in the tradition of open fire. Let’s get to healing, by being in the moment, in nature.