Connecting with nature has many reported benefits to our physical and mental wellbeing. Some of these benefits include:

• Stress reduction
• Improved respiratory function
• Improve immune system
• Improve vitamin D levels
• Reduce heart rate
• Reduce muscle tension
• Reduction in pain
• Increase positive emotions
• Increase sensitivity of senses
• Provide avenue for exercise
• Improve social connection with others outside
• Expand awareness of life outside ourselves
• Improve empathy towards other living things
• Improve sleep quality
• Develop perception and intuition skills
• Decrease anger and aggression

While it’s beneficial to submerse yourself in a natural surrounding, it’s also important to engage in mindful connection so that you become aware of the elements of nature. There is definitely a benefit to taking your work calls outside in the garden, however, you will gain more benefits if you are disconnected from activities that distract you from connecting to nature.

It’s also important to develop a sense of connection to nature so that you can understand your connection to all energy in the universe. Experience is important, however, awareness of our experience is also an important part of the process.

While there are many activities we can engage in with nature, it’s important to remember that simply being in nature outside can deliver essential benefits to our wellbeing. This can include simple activities such as eating our lunch outside, taking a casual walk, or simply sitting amongst trees. You can also connect with nature by doing simple household tasks such as watering your garden.

If you want to be more active in nature, you can undertake more interactive activities with nature including swimming and hiking for example.

Connecting with nature can also entail interacting with other living beings in nature. This can involve listening to birds, marveling at the colors of butterflies, watching the flow of a river, or smelling the various flowers on display. Watching nature can itself provide important benefits as we slow down and become more attentive to how nature interacts.

As we connect to nature, we can engage our five senses to appreciate what nature has to offer. Below is a list of our 5 senses and how we can connect with nature using our 5 senses:

• Sight – see the amazing colors in nature
• Hearing – hear the birds call each other
• Smell – the unique fragrance of flowers
• Taste – growing natural fruit and vegetables in our garden
• Touch – the various textures of water, sand, soil on your feet.

10 WAYS TO CONNECT TO NATURE:

1. Walk outside and become mindful of:

– The temperature
– The wind or stillness of the air
– The color of the sky
– The ground you are walking on. Walk bare feet on grass if possible.

2. Take a swim in the ocean or a creek, or at least wade in with your feet if possible. Feel the flow of water.

3. Eat some fruit or vegetables from a garden that you can pick from. If you don’t have your own garden, some commercial growers allow the public to pick fruit and vegetables.

4. Start a garden or grow in pots. Immerse your hands in the soil and how to care for another life form.

5. Lie down on the grass or a reclined chair and observe the sky during the day for clouds, or at night for stars. Expand your idea of how large the universe is.

6. Open windows and doors in your house to invite sunlight and natural airflow into your home.

7. Visit a nature reserve to observe animals

8. Go camping and develop your life skills to live with nature

9. Tackle a physically demanding challenge such as hiking to help develop problem solving skills

10. Take a forest bath

Nature is intrinsic to the flow of universal energy. As our connection to use Reiki develops over time, so too does our connection to the natural environment around us. Through Reiki we can develop a deeper understanding of how energy flows through our external environment and between each living being including animals, plants, and humans.

Engaging in Reiki practice can help us become more attuned to the physical sensations of energy flow. This is also relevant to experiencing nature as we become more aware of the air, smells, and the warmth that the sun generates.

Mentioned above is a list of our 5 senses and some examples of connecting to nature using our 5 senses. As an exercise to deepen our connection to nature using Reiki, we can engage in some Reiki meditation prior to interacting with nature. Once we are focused on our energy flow, we can connect with nature and notice how heightened our senses can become.

Reiki can improve our overall awareness which can help as we attempt to connect with nature. Reiki can act as an amplifier to what we sense in the environment around us.