Why Does Nature Relieve Us Of Stress?

It is more and more fashionable to take a walk in the countryside. Hiking clubs, mushroom hunting in the fall, camping holidays have multiplied. Used to big city life and its amenities, what makes us want to spend time in such a different environment? Could it be that nature frees us from stress?

Chronic stress is one of the main causes of doctor and psychologist visits. We are all able to recognize that contemporary life presents a series of drawbacks that hamper our relaxation. Let’s take a look at these factors to see how they relate to finding nature.

Stress and its causes

Stress is a normal, adaptive feeling that helps us respond to emergencies, but city life can sometimes trick the body into believing it lives in constant danger. This is when we can talk about chronic stress.

Stress can have roots in many areas of life, both internal and external. Here are some examples :

• Biological tendency to stress. Some people are more sensitive than others.
• Difficult living conditions. Poverty, situations of mistreatment, natural disasters or chronic diseases are some examples of stressful life situations that favor its chronification.
• Personality characteristics. Various studies have shown that certain personality traits, such as insecurity or impulsivity, predispose to chronic stress.

• Diet. Although it seems unlikely, bad eating habits are linked to the onset of stress. An example of this is the abuse of caffeine and processed fats.
• Environment. Excessive noise, crowded places or lack of free time are key factors that prevent us from relaxing, and contribute to stress.

However, to find out why nature relieves us from stress, we need to pay attention to environmental factors. If you want to know if any of these conditions are affecting you, then read on.

How does nature free us from stress?

Our relationship with the environment is very complex. Thousands of factors are linked to each other and to us, and it is often difficult to identify where the spiral started. It may have started within ourselves or something outside has triggered it.

On the other hand, the modern model of life has evolved so much over the past few centuries that it has become very complex for biology. Factors such as the work environment or pollution can conflict with the body’s natural rhythms. This is where nature comes into action.

Listening to silence

The ambient noise in a city is constant. The neighbor who makes noise at all hours, the incessant traffic, the construction sites. There is never a moment of rest. These sounds become so normal for consciousness that it surprises us when they disappear.

Alvarsson and his team compared the performance of two groups for completing a task after they were faced with a stressful stimulus. One of them must have listened to the ambient noise of the city, and the others to the sounds of nature.

The performances of those who had to listen to the sounds of the city were significantly worse. The researchers therefore concluded that the sounds of nature help reduce the activity of the sympathetic nervous system, the system that we activate when we detect danger.

Loneliness is also necessary

Human beings are a gregarious species, and the company of other humans – and even non-humans – is necessary for their emotional well-being. However, we are used to living in small groups and that makes crowds stress us out. There are even studies that link declining fertility to overpopulation.

When we are in a naturalized environment, the simple fact that there is no one around fosters a feeling of intimacy and introspection. This feeling can be blurry when we are in constant interaction with other people.

Pollution

When we talk about pollution in a big city, it is not just about the air. Although polluted air is one of the factors leading to stress and anxiety disorders, other types of pollution affect well-being.

This is the case with light pollution. In large cities it also has an effect on the body, since it modifies the circadian rhythms normally guided by sunlight.

The “nature pill”

In conclusion, we will quote the study of MaryCarol R. Hunter. In this study, it was shown that twenty minutes of exposure to a natural environment was sufficient to reduce blood cortisol levels, even if that environment was in a large city.

For this exposure to be effective, screens, aerobic exercises and even reading should be avoided. These new discoveries unite progress with the roots of biology, opening the doors to new ways of caring for health without sacrificing the comforts of modern living.

Our thoughts

Emotional self-regulation is a key element in achieving self-control. This is why we are discussing the subject here.