How Nature Can Help You Find Peace
A few years ago, during one of the most difficult times of my life, I had an up-close-and-personal experience in nature. I was hiking a mountain trail and began to feel overtaken by anger at my current situation and my perception of injustice in it. My counselor had been encouraging me to feel my anger, express it (in a contained way!), and allow it time to move through. So it hit me on that mountain trail: now’s the time to try it!
As the anger bubbled up, I began to scream and yell. Louder and louder. I began gesturing with my arms - punching at the air. More and more wildly. I looked around to see if anyone else was within earshot, hoping no one was seeing this crazy man! The amazing thing was the more I let my anger out - the more wildly I expressed it - the safer I felt. None of the nature beings around me seemed to mind. No judgement. In fact, the exact opposite of judgment: complete acceptance. I could be free to be the real me as angry as I was. I felt welcome. All of me was welcome - even the not-so-pretty parts.
As I look back on that poignant experience, I see it as one of my introductions to the therapeutic aspects of nature. Since then, the wilderness has become a place of solace for me. A place of healing. A place where I am at home. The presence of wisdom - the presence of patience - surrounds me. I feel love. I find the answer for many things I have struggled with in addiction. In fact, I’ve found nature to be the perfect fit and one of the healthiest alternatives for the relentless pleasure-seeking of addiction.
“In the woods, I feel that nothing can befall me in life… which nature cannot repair.”
—Brian Klink
Therapeutic nature coaching and experiential healing are a big part of my coaching practice. Read more here.
Self-reflection: Recall a pleasant childhood experience in the natural world. What was it like? What made it memorable? How did you feel? How might you recapture those childlike feelings in the outdoors today?