Nature and Our Mental Health

You may say: "No surprise that nature is beneficial to our mental health". But can you figure out why that happens.

Multiple studies have shown that there is something about nature that helps us feel happier, more focused, or just generally better. According to psychologists, it is not just about getting in some sunshine and Vitamin D. Instead, it might have to do something with our sense of belonging.

It's not a new idea that exposure to natural environments has been an important part of mental health treatments for a long time. As early as the Middle Ages, monasteries for those with mental illnesses created so-called restorative gardens. And in the 1800s, people designing mental hospitals would try and make sure their buildings were surrounded by acres of natural land.

Recent research has shown that spending time in nature can improve wellbeing in a variety of ways, both for those with and without clinical conditions. For example, spending time in a wilderness preserve or tree-lined city street has been shown to result in higher feelings of revitalization. Also, walking through nature for 50 minutes provides mood boosts and other cognitive benefits for people with depression. There is also evidence to suggest that people with schizophrenia, ADHD, and other conditions experience similar benefits when exposed to scenery.

There are several factors that have been floated around as possible explanations for this.

- One is that nature allows us to recover from stress and attention fatigue. This is the idea that urban environments have too many things competing for our attention and do not provide us with that peace.

- Other suggestion is that nature offers exercise opportunities, facilitation of social interaction and development, and opportunities for personal development in general.

But a lot of these factors don’t really explain the mechanisms of how we gain psychological benefits just from existing in nature, rather than running around in nature, chilling with friends with nature.

In fact, some researchers argue that these positive effects, at least in part, come about because of an increased sense of connectedness to the natural world.

More specifically, when people just report that they feel part of nature, their mood boost tended to be better. So it was not just about seeing nature; it was about feeling like they are part of it.

It is that sense of connectedness that causes all those positive benefits. So we all have some innate urge to seek out nature. We need to see ourselves as part of it, belonging to the same group as the various plant and wildlife species we share our planet with.

It can be hard to prove evolutionary hypotheses like this, but the concept that we need to belong to groups to stay mentally healthy is one of the main principles of social psychology research.

In fact, it is such an important concept that having a sense of belonging with other people is seen as a core human need in some models. Not having this sense of belonging can lead to things like lowered immune response, and poorer sleep quality.

It’s a plausible idea, but like with a lot of other big ideas, it would help to have more research to be sure. If no studies, though, do suggest that time in nature is really good for you. So even if we do not totally know why, it is probably worth visiting your local park sometime. Your brain — and your mood — will thank you.