What trees do to us
On the magic of nature-based downregulation
The time of the tree post has arrived, and part two of a Julia Baird double bill, no less. Thank you, Julia, for agreeing to appear again so soon.
I am terrible at relaxing and resting. I’m unskilled at it and I don’t like doing it, so I don’t do it, at least not at levels commensurate with my trigger-happy little nervous system. I have had to engage professionals to teach me how to do this most basic (and most pleasurable?) of regulating things.
Because of that, I am amazed at what trees do to me.
A while ago I started going to sit with the trees because, in a ME/CFS crash, I couldn’t go for my usual walk. I would sit with the trees - and the tennis boys, who, along with Amy Schiller, diverted me from my tree post into a post about the value of the commons - and look very closely at them.
I did this because I knew, in theory, what the company of a tree will do to a brain and nervous system. And so, all wired from not being able to regulate via walking, I went to the trees and asked them to do their work. I expected little.
As someone who finds regular relaxation such a mission, who ends yoga horribly stressed, who resists a nap like it’s trying to get me, these trees truly blew me away.
Writes Julia Baird, in her book on awe and wonder:
“We are joined to the Earth in ways we barely understand.
…when we are exposed to sunlight, trees, water, or even just a view of green leaves, we become happier, healthier and stronger. People living in green spaces have more energy and a stronger sense of purpose, and being able to see green spaces from your home is associated with reduced cravings for alcohol, cigarettes, and harmful foods.
She cites all kinds of studies and examples, and notes that the research is consistent but imperfect. This summary tells it best:
…the findings about mood improvement are unequivocal, and as Frances E. ‘Ming’ Kuo, of the University of Illinois has pointed out, it is natural to assume, according to the evidence so far, that ‘total exposure is important; all forms and quantities of exposure are helpful; and the greener the better.”
And then, for bonus points, we know that experience of bodies of water is even better:
“It’s not just forests that uplift us, but oceans too. A 2010 multi-study analysis found just five minutes spent at the coast was enough to strengthen us. It also found, to the surprise of no-one in my swim group, that while ‘every green environment improved both self-esteem and mood, the presence of water generated greater effects.’ Even better than the forests!”
I know the science of this, in gist form at least, but the experience of it still feels more like magic to me, especially after all that time TRYING to relax and ending up more tightly wound.
All those other relaxation methods require focused effort of some kind. Sitting with the trees and looking about is (deliciously) much more passive. The trees are doing the work, and I don’t even have to pay very close attention. And yet, after only ten or twenty minutes I feel more still, less rushed, more like myself.
I love you, tree. I receive you, and I thank you. 🙏🏼
May you befriend your local trees and woodlands.
May your heightened, buzzing nervous system receive the elixir of tree (or ocean) and be soothed.
May the trees feel proud of themselves.
Until next time
Katie