Nature Deficit Disorder
"...nature can help people recover from 'normal psychological wear and tear' - but nature also improves the capacity to pay attention"
I find it interesting that the simple act of going outside can carry on into the everyday goings on of your life. I am curious what Hartig describes a normal psychological wear and tear. My guess is, being out in nature, away from social norms, it is the conditioning of being a citizen. I would describe psychological wear and tear, specific to my experience, as socializing with people, planning the day, constantly executing, and constantly thinking about the next thing to do. Even being on the bus I'm not thinking of my environment or being in the moment, it is the time i wonder. Being in nature, I presume, can allow for the mind to focus on the present and when any thoughts come up, there is space for it. |
| http://www.lynntelfordsahl.com/blog/2014/3/7/your-stressed-brain-on-money-3-steps-to-make-better-financia.html |
"They also reported more positive emotions and less anger."
I have experienced this first hand. I attended a school down the street from my house that was an intense environment. Fights broke out, students talked during instruction, there was bullying, etc. All this put me in a negative head space. Originally, my transportation to and from school was by bus. Still in an environment that kept me anxious and angry at everyone. For no particular event, I would lash out on the people around me. Then one day my mother, who noticed how negative I was, suggested I walk home from school. The first day I did, it caused a major improvement in my attitude towards my day. Whatever happened in those 7 hours I was in school, it all just seemed to melt away on my walk. During my walk I interacted with flowers, heard the birds, and experienced all Georgia had the offer during the seasonal changes.
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| https://www.miele.ie/domestic/refrigeration-and-wine-conditioning-units-2497.htm?mat=10153920&name=KFN_29283_D_edt/cs |
"The greener the setting the more the relief"
The fact that many people do not live in areas where there are places to get out and experience nature makes it a sad fact that they have bottled up emotions and stress that isn't dealt with. Also, I'd like to belief that everyone has access and time to experience nature the way I can, but it's just not the reality. Waking up to birds chirping in my last home in Georgia, reassured me somehow. The singing was therapeutic, no matter how hard of a rest I had.
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| https://www.coloursofnature.com/how-to-practise-meditation-stress-relief/ |
Louv R. (2011). Nature-Defecit Disorder and the Restoritive Environment. In University Colloquium: A Sustainable Future(pp. 1-14). Fort Myers, FL: Florida Gulf Coast University.
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