NATURE BASED THERAPY

Nature based therapy is about using nature as part of  the therapy, where we might encounter, or be open to encountering, the 'other than human' or 'more than human' aspects of the world around us. 

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Walk and talk, and nature based therapy is becoming more and more popular as we learn how beneficial it is to have more contact with nature. 

Sitting in a room across from another person isn't for everyone, and sometimes this can be a barrier to accessing counselling, or, in the case of nature based therapy, wanting to work in a way that promotes accessing something 'other' than what is available to us in a therapy room.

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Carrying out therapy in this way can alleviate some of the difficulties that people can face with room based counselling such as high shame responses, as we are not face to face in the same way, but shoulder to shoulder. 

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We will find a mutually convenient place to walk in nature whilst talking about whatever issues you are facing in life. It would be useful for you to consider what draws you to want to work outside, and to talk about this in our first session. 

Taking therapy into the outdoors does mean being open to the elements, and this can bring another dimension to the work; however, it does also mean that being prepared for being out in the rain or sun will need to be considered.

Sessions do normally go ahead whatever the weather, unless it really is torrential rain, or unsafe to be outside. 

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In 2020 I attended Hayley Marshall's 'Taking Therapy Outdoors', 4 day residential course which takes aspects of ecotherapy, nature based therapy, and a whole lot of Hayley's experience in the field, all somehow slotted into 4 days of experiential learning. It was an incredible 4 days of learning and experiencing how restorative nature is when we allow ourselves to become amerced and reset by her.

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