The Restoring Ability of Nature

Do you sometimes feel bone-aching exhaustion? What I am referring to is the tiredness you feel when you have depleted all mental and physical resources and your body just craves rest and relaxation. For survivors of CSA, sometimes sleep is just not enough, and our bodies need more to get back to equilibrium.

Our world is fast-paced and technology changes constantly around us. People are buzzing around our cities like a hornet’s nest rushing here and there like the world is on fire. It’s hard to keep up with everything despite scheduling tools and reminder apps. If you are a working mom like me, you must also run the house and have a growing family. Life can be overwhelming with everything it throws at us.

People are buzzing around our cities like a hornet’s nest rushing here and there like the world’s on fire

We recently had the stomach flu tear through our home like a tornado, which brought our whole family down in the same week. But when life throws us melons it is a time to think how we can turn that around and make “lemonade” instead of just licking our wounds and feeling sorry for ourselves. Our little “time out” from work and school brought us closer together and we all recovered within a few days. As soon as we all got back on our feet again, my youngest said “Mom, can we go to the forest?”

The trees, fields, and flowers are blossoming all around us in a cascade of colors and shades.

It’s springtime and as the core temperature rises, nature is waking up in the beautiful sunshine. The trees, fields, and flowers are blossoming all around us in a cascade of colors and shades. The grass is lush for the animals to feast on and migrant birds are back again. It is a perfect time to go out and enjoy nature.

I’m very lucky to live near a forest with Yew trees that are perfect climbing giants for little ones. As I watch my kids climb and squeal their excitement in amongst the bendy tree branches, I can’t help but tune into the forest surrounding us. Everything is alive and flourishing. The abundance of nature’s sounds has a calming effect on me. I feel my heartbeat slow down a little and my whole body relaxes in a way it never does in the city. Here in the forest, I feel so much more at ease. As human beings I think it is important to stay in tune with nature and appreciate our world.

Do you ever take time out from work and let yourself just be you? It is important for everyone to relax but even more so if you are a survivor of trauma. Trauma has a tendency for survivors to feel tense, even in normal situations. Sometimes I feel a bit like I am wearing layers of emotions like a thick and heavy winter jacket with layers of jumpers underneath. It could be anything weighing me down. Those layers need to be shed sometimes and let our bodies just breathe whilst clearing our heads from everything.

Do you have a special place where you can just breathe and forget the world for a while? It might not be the forest but maybe you will find it on the beach near the ocean or a lakeside. If water is not your thing then it might be on top of a mountain at the end of a big hike. It might be in the park, or it might be with a friend in your backyard. Wherever you feel most comfortable and at home, make that place yours and visit as often as you like.

I have a real passion for nature. It makes me feel at home. It was the place I ran to for comfort when I was abused as a child. It’s where I sought solace from bullies when I was a teenager. It is where I found my inner peace and myself. I always brought my notebook and sat for hours letting my thoughts fall onto the page.

Nature has a restorative ability for me. It could be for you as well. Wherever you go and whoever you meet, nature will always be around us waiting to welcome us, embrace us when you are sad, and listen if you talk, scream, cry, or rage. Nature is always there.