Finding Your Right Mind — with Vanessa Potter

We have some treats for you in this week’s ParkBathe bonus. check out Sage's favourite walk from Go Jauntly, the walking App - guess where it is !

And I promised some instructions from Jules Howard, allround zoologist and pond nerd on how to create your own water wonderland in your back garden that will be full of jiggling, wriggling cool critters for you to seek out. Plus you’ll be supporting your local wildlife by creating a new watery habitat for frogs - so that makes you an environmentalist too! 

Lil Stevens from the National history museum gave me a few top tips of plants to look out for around the lake. That way you enjoy much more than just the fab dinosaurs and of course, a great day out. 

If you do make a bucket pond in your garden send us a picture ! we love hearing from you on social media and share this bonus with anyone who might like it.

LINKS:
https://www.gojauntly.com 
https://cpdinosaurs.org
https://cpdinosaurs.org 

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Here are some fun nature activities to do with friends and family in your local park. These  activities can be done at any time of year and with pretty much any age group too - so big kids are catered for !

 Stephanie Thorlby, one of our guest guides, brought some of her Forest School experience to our ParkBathe sessions. Learn how to make a 'leaf rose' in this bonus (which is a really simple to do but looks amazing) Why don't you share pictures of your own leaf rose on our social media channels?

We also have an activity inspired by Andy Goldsworthy to help you create stunning pieces of art by using only natural elements. Check out his work on our FB group. Let your imagination go wild as you use twigs, leaves, stones, bark, petals or grasses to make your own art in the park - and leave it there for someone else to discover on their walk.

Finally, we share the amazing work that Go Jauntly do. This is a walking App that has hundreds of FREE walks available for on their App. The really good thing is that you can not only choose the location and distance of your walk but see which ones are family friendly, dog friendly, rural or city based plus there are fun activities and games you can do along the way. Check our their 'Nature Notes' feature and the 'Green Care Code'. 

https://www.gojauntly.com

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Welcome to this episode examining the relationship between children and nature. Today we  eavesdrop on some of our younger ParkBathers as they experience forest bathing in Crystal Palace park. We're also exploring our own experiences  of nature from childhood – and how that relationship influences us and changes over time. 

We delve into the inevitable subject of how little children spend in nature and while we're not going to demonise screens and technology, we take a stark look at how damaging overuse of screens can be for children’s mental health, their sleep, mood and general wellbeing. (if you want some tips on managing your kid's tech time look up my interview with Dr Fintan Nagal from Series 1)

Kirsten looks at the research suggesting that a connection to nature is our biological imprint - we have an affinity for the natural world. When children spend most of their time indoors, they miss out on that connection and become alienated from nature which triggers a host of issues, depression, obesity, and attention deficit disorder. Kids who have direct access to nature are better learners. Exposure to nature has been shown to reduce stress and increase attention spans.
 
So, we're going to talk about the sense of awe and wonder being in nature evokes and show you exactly what happened when we took a group of teenagers on a forest bathing walk. You might be surprised at what we discovered - we were !

So listen to Kirsten explain the science behind why children need to develop a relationship with nature from a young age and hear input from our guests this week, Rachel Massey, Ellen Devine, Gary Evans, Sage Fitzpatrick and Andy Shipley.
 
Don't forget to check out our Bonus Episode with tips to engage your children (and your Big Kids) in fun, creative park-based activities including some fun walks courtesy of the free walking App Go Jauntly.

LINKS:
https://tfb.institute
https://www.otherwaystowalk.co.uk
https://www.forestryengland.uk
https://www.natural-inclusion.org
https://www.gojauntly.com

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Happy new year and welcome to  this new episode investigating everything you need to know about our sensory system and how we see, hear and feel when we're out in nature...

Forest bathing is simply walking mindfully in nature while absorbing the woodland atmosphere – but of course – it’s so much more than that, and we can't delve into the benefits of being in nature without talking about  our incredible senses.

Humans have five basic senses: sight, hearing, smell, touch and taste and so we take a whistle top tour of each giving you fun facts, science and interviews. Did you know we can detect trillions of different scents and that scientist have found that leaves can tell us when they're dehydrated? 

But we often overlook our sensory system, which is why we're going to talk about how our attention gets hijacked, auto pilot, attentional fatigue and the science of attention restoration (which is the amazing way nature restores our senses) We also look at why stress affects vision, how hearing in a certain way can be a game-changer for some - and lots more !

This week’s bonus track contains some really cool ways to use urban environments along with green spaces to boost creativity and open up your mind in a whole new way! so check that out. 
If you want to have a go at forest bathing yourself in the park check out our bonus audio guide, available in this series. 

 LINKS:
https://www.otherwaystowalk.co.uk
https://www.streetwisdom.org
https://tfb.institute
https://www.natural-inclusion.org
https://blogs.uoregon.edu/richardtaylor/
https://hubermanlab.com
Written and produced by Vanessa Potter, editing by Melissa Green. 

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To accompany our episode on our sensory system here are some activities that you might like to try in your local green space, garden or in the streets where you live.

We've talked a lot about fractals, these are the repeated geometric patterns which we find in nature, such as the veins on a leaf, the fronds of a fern, even snowflake on windows. Go out into nature and see if you can hunt down some of these patterns. You could make it a game with friends or family.

We have lots of other ideas to boost your senses in fun, exciting and creative ways. There are also some great FREE sensory offerings from Andy Shipley, a nature facilitator who specialises in inclusion - check out the 'rhubarb' on his Sensory Odyssey Tour on his website (I'm not saying anymore !) We also have a sneak peek at the Street Wisdom Tune Up series, offering new ways to engage with and explore the streets where you live - so check out their website too.

Join us next time where we'll be looking at how children and families engage with nature, and what we can learn from that. If you want to have a go at Forest Bathing yourself, try our FREE audio guide as part of this series.

LINKS:

http://natural-inclusion.org
https://www.streetwisdom.org

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Today on the ParkBathe podcast Kirsten and I are indulging in our tree-nerd alter-egos! I’ve always liked trees, but learning about forest bathing has given me a new respect for our tall friends. Forest Bathing is all about trees – as you walk mindfully in nature absorbing the atmosphere – it’s the trees that provide that atmosphere.  

Trees have a therapeutic and regenerative effect upon us humans - but it’s more than that, they are part of our ancestral heritage. Trees and plants provide shelter and food for wildlife, absorb carbon dioxide, give us breathable air, moderate temperatures, and lock-up water — reducing flooding. Themassive oaks in the Great North Wood in Crystal Palace Park look pretty cool too. Yet, while weknow nature is central to human life, we often disregard it — and somehow see it as secondary..  

So, check out our weird and wonderful tree facts and hear about the groovy science from our expert interviewees on what trees do for us. We’ll hear how being in nature influences artist Emz Finch and boosts her creativity and the curious way in which trees communicate with each other. If you didn’t know trees talk to each other – we’re going to fill you in on how they do that — and some of the things they say!  

 We'd love to hear what you think of this episode and if you tried out any of the 'tree tips' in the bonus episode (they're fun to do with kids and big kids!) There are lots of links below, along with helpful organisations as today we cover the topic of PTSD and miscarriage. 

Links 

Tree Guide

Wood Wide Web film

Marco Mencagli’s book the secret therapy of trees. 

Peter Wohlleben’s book the hidden life of trees 

Stefan Batorijs

Emz Finch

Rachel Massey, Other Ways to Walk

PTSD support 

 Hospital study

Find Forestry England here:

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Written and produced by Vanessa Potte

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This bonus track is jam-packed full of tree tips ! It's got great advice from both Ellen Devine from Forestry England and Karen Prices from the Westonbirt National Arboretum on how to start tree-spotting, but also fun, interactive exercises to try out when you're out in your local park.

There's even a great mindful breathing exercise from guest artist Emily Finch that will help you start your day off with a positive glow, while sitting under a tree :) 

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Series 3 has arrived with a super exciting new citizen science health project called ParkBathe ! 

What is ParkBathe?  Earlier this year I created a new health intervention based on Forest Bathing with Kirsten McEwan, a researcher at Derby University. Kirsten researches Forest Bathing (which is simply mindful walking in nature while absorbing the atmosphere) We combined Kirsten's knowledge of this Eastern social prescription with my own production and meditation advocacy work and created an urban park-based model that is accessible and easy for anyone to learn. We especially wanted to appeal to people who were sceptical of anything that appeared woo-woo or new age.

Kirsten and I met when I interviewed her in series 1 (check out her insightful episode on compassion !) and ParkBathe has become a project we are both passionate about. We're grateful to be funded the National Lottery and to have support from the Upper Norwood Library Hub who helped us make this film. 

 In this first episode we get into exactly what Forest bathing is — because just saying it's ‘mindful walking in nature’ doesn’t cut the mustard. I explain how losing my sight in 2012 led me to develop to a new relationship with the natural world and how walking in nature was an integral part of my recovery. It was that knowledge that informed this project. Nature benefits us in so many weird and wonderful ways — and we plan to reveal how it does that with the help of nature and forest bathing experts. I was delighted that world renowned scientists such Dr Qing Li and Dr Yoshifumi Miyazaki agreed to share both their research and wisdom on Forest Medicine with me. 

You'll also hear from some of the ‘ParkBathers’ who came on the walks Kirsten and I ran in Crystal Palace Park this autumn so you'll hear for yourself if 1 hour of slow, mindful walking did anything to alleviate their stress and anxiety...

If you’d like to experiment with forest bathing for yourself — check out my FREE bonus audio guide that you can use in your local park.  

Useful links: 

Kirsten’s paper on UK Forest Bathing 

What is Shinrin Yoku? 

Dr Qing Li’s book 

Dr Mayazaki’s book 

Dr Yasu Kotera’s paper on Forest Bathing 

Forestry England 

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TWITTER

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Written  and produced by Vanessa Potter. SFX by Zapsplat. 

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If you'd like to bring the benefits of trees into your own home — ParkBathe can help ! This track provides instructions on how to make your own reed diffuser which you can place in rooms around your home — or give away as a present !

Reed diffusers are  fun and easy to make . We'd LOVE to see what you create so do share with us on Facebook or Instagram or Twitter ! We'll be sharing the ones we make too :) 

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In episode 2 of the ParkBathe series we provide a comprehensive low-down of the mind-boggling  science of forest bathing. Here we dive into why forest bathing (which is simply walking mindfully in nature while absorbing the woodland atmosphere) is really, really good for us. We offer practical and easy ways to bring nature’s benefits into your home — so check out the bonus episode !

Kirsten McEwan and I started ParkBathe in March this year and have provided 1 hour guided forest bathing sessions in Crystal Palace Park to over 175 people as part of a citizen science initiative funded by the National Lottery. Today I talk to world renowned researchers in the field of forest medicine, Dr Qing Li from Tokyo's Nippon Medical School and Dr Yoshifumi Miyazaki from Chiba University.  

We look at how our bodies cope with modern-day stresses like work pressures or worries at home. We hear from Joanna Bristow-Watkins, a forest bathing guide, on how our nervous system regulates chronic stress and how forest bathing can decrease the amount of cortisol (the stress hormone) that our bodies secrete. We even get into the weird and wonderful world of natural killer cells and what these strange-sounding white blood cells do to combat cancer.  

We hear from Dr Yasu Kotera at Derby University and Stefan Batorjis, a Forest Bathing guide and trainer.  Dr Kotera gives a useful understanding of how the East and West each view ‘medicine’ in quite different ways and he explains the common understanding within cross-cultural psychology that the eastern philosophy of medicine bases it (as claimed by many cross-cultural psychologists such as Nisbett e.g., in his book The Geography of Thought) in a more holistic, less directive manner. 

So, sit back, put your feet up and prepare to be blown away by how trees and plants provide beneficial chemicals that we breathe in and what positive impact this has upon our immune system. We promise, it’ll change the way you view your local green space. 

 Useful links: 

Kirsten’s paper on UK Forest Bathing 

What is Shinrin Yoku? 

Dr Qing Li’s book 

Dr Mayazaki’s book 

Dr Yasu Kotera’s paper on Forest Bathing 

Joanna Bristow Watkins  

Forestry England 

LINK to ParkBathe FILM

INSTAGRAM

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

LINKEDIN

Written and produced by Vanessa Potter

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