Treebath - Forest Therapy for Improved Mental Health

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Everyday Movement Meditations

Ahhh March, our winter savouir! As much as we love the wonders of winter, it is quite nice to feel the sun on our faces and the pricking shoots of fresh new grass beneath our feet once again! March (and the springtime that it heralds) is a time of renewal and rejuvenation for the earth and its inhabitants- think fresh buds on the trees, birds building nests, warmer weather and longer days.

All in all March is a time of movement from the old into the new, and what better way than to mark the coming of springtime with a few movement meditations to help you get outdoors and enjoy it! Easy to do and exceptional in their results, these meditations can be done anytime, anywhere, with only the great outdoors as your guide. 

WALKING MEDITATION #1

Develop a sensory connection to yourself

Take off your shoes and focus on your feet. Wiggle them around a little bit and ask yourself “what can I feel?” Is the earth hard? Soft? Warm? Cold? Take a minute to connect with the soles of your feet before slowly and purposefully lifting a leg and starting to move forwards. Extend your leg with purpose, noticing the sensations that arise as you move; can you feel the air brushing past you? Can you feel your body counterbalancing your weight? Can you feel the weight as you put your foot down? Can you feel any other part of your body aside from your leg moving? Walk slowly and with purpose, feeling each sensation and taking note of it.  

WALKING MEDITATION #2

Go on an internal and external ‘notice walk’

Deepening the skills practiced in walk #1, keep focusing on your internal sensations but begin to move your focus outwards: what can you notice around you? Tune into each of your 5 senses individually, asking what you can see, smell, touch, hear, and taste. Perhaps stop for a moment to do this. Is any of it moving and changing around you too? Maybe reach out to touch and smell a leaf or blade of grass, feel it flutter against your fingers and hear the whistling of the wind around you. Notice the world in a new way, and see what happens. 

MOVE WITH THE WORLD

An intuitive movement meditation

Now that you’ve practiced these basic internal and external movement meditations, see if an intuitive movement meditation works for you! Close your eyes and connect with your body, noticing your 5 senses and the different sensations they are alerting you to. Focus on one of these senses and try to mimic it with your body; blow with the breeze or follow a scent towards its source. Allow yourself to be free to move in whatever way that appeals to you, noticing all the time your body and mind as you do so.

We hope you enjoy trying out these movement meditations! If you’ve enjoyed trying them out or want to share any other self-guided meditations you enjoy feel free to post them in the comments below, email us at youmatter@tree-bath.com, or let us know on our socials!

We can’t wait to hear all about them!