Forest Therapy – or Wilderness Therapy – or Forest Bathing – or Shinrin Yoku… oh my gosh, so many names… and still the question: What is it?
Forest Therapy is a slow immersive walk in nature that engages your senses, gets you to slow down and offers health benefits like lowered cortisol levels.
A definition without an experience is still tough to digest, though, isn’t it.
When you join a Forest Therapy walk, whether it’s with Rose and Redwood or through another Forest Therapy Guide, you’ll likely start with an invitation that engages each of your senses. I’ll ask you to listen for sounds that are near to you or far away. Or, perhaps notice how your sense of smell changes as you move your head from left to right. Each of the statements are phrased as suggestions, generally opening with “I wonder what…”
Why?
Forest Therapy is invitation-based.
Each of the “activities” in Forest Therapy is invitational, meaning you can choose to engage in it, or follow what your heart is suggesting you do. This makes the practice “trauma-informed.” It also allows you and the forest to engage with one another in the way your soul needs.
As a certified Forest Therapy Guide, I try to create invitations that are open-ended and offer space for limitless exploration.
As you engage in the invitations, you may suddenly notice something you had not seen before.
For example, in this video, I’m simply noticing the path of falling leaves.
As I notice them fall, I see they gently swirl. The path is not linear.
Life follows these types of curves, I note to myself. And I notice that I feel peace with that thought.
You may see something different. Perhaps you notice the colors. Or listen to the sounds. Perhaps you see the path. Or look at the leaves still clinging to the branches. Or none of this.
And it is all in perfect order.
And that makes Forest Therapy a beautifully individualized practice.
Another type of invitation might sound like this:
“Go and explore this space. I wonder what textures you’ll find.”
— Erika Hovland Bahij, ANFT Certified Forest Therapy Guide
If we were in the woods together, perhaps you would see these:
What are you noticing?
You could try this invitation now – go outdoors and spend 10 minutes slowly walking around to notice textures (you can do this inside your home, too). You may find yourself lost in thought. You may feel distracted. If so, I gently suggest you remind yourself to remain present and to come back to the invitation.
In a Forest Therapy walk, at the end of a period of time, you’re invited to join a sharing circle where we offer what we are noticing. These circles take place after each invitation. Depending on the length of the walk, there may be 3-5 distinct invitations.
Ending the Walk
Guided Forest Therapy walks include a closing tea ceremony where we pause to share a cup of tea and snacks. Someone may share a poem or a story, we might share deeper insights or deeper laughter.
Zero expectations
One of the important aspects of Forest Therapy is the ‘undoing of expectations.’ There is no goal or end game, no prescribed experience or emotion. There is only what nature provides you. And trust you will receive exactly as it is meant to be.