Forest Bathing - An impulse to connect with nature and feel like just being

I'm afraid of the forest. That's my first thought after I found out that I should write a report about the forest. But then I found a very interesting topic: forest bathing. At first glance I think it sounds very much like an esoteric gimmick. So I start the self-experiment to find out if it really is or if it is of any use.

It's June 11th and today is the day of the day: I'm going to go forest bathing for the first time. All I need is a seat pad. The meeting point is the forest car park, which is surprisingly easy to find. Three other women also take part in this forest bathing session. One of them has this experience just like me, today for the first time. I immediately felt more comfortable there. The manager Sandra Opel is already on site. It all starts on the dot at 10 a.m.

The first station is right at the entrance to the forest. It begins with a meditative introduction. The director Sandra Opel invites us to explore our six senses: hearing, seeing, smelling, tasting, feeling. The sixth sense, as Ms. Opel so beautifully puts it, is intuition. In the conversation I have with her afterwards, she explains: “Forest bathing is a conscious being in nature, where you open your senses. The forest is about coming into contact with nature and then also with yourself via nature.'' The main motto, which is conveyed to us right at the beginning, is: "Everything is possible, but nothing has to". I feel the ground beneath my feet and imagine a connection with Mother Earth. Sandra Opel describes it as saying hello to the earth. Then each of us draws a card that shows a plant that blooms in the current season. I draw an oak tree, which is to have a more detailed meaning later on.

The beginning can be imagined as a typical mediation. We close our eyes and focus on everything outside by making contact with our inside. I suddenly realize how good it smells. Like a forest, totally fresh, not too warm, but not too cold either. Exactly right. I also feel the mosquitoes on my legs, but they always upset me.

Then let's go. It is important to slow down and feel inside yourself. Therefore, everyone walks this route at their own pace. The birds are very present on this day. I particularly focus on the chirp. It feels like diving into another world that slows down. The floor is uneven. From time to time grass gently strokes my legs and the sun's rays warm my skin. I particularly notice the strong smell of herbs on this day.

Before forest bathing, I was wondering how it differed from hiking. On this first stretch, however, I notice the difference immediately. Sandra Opel also confirms my feeling afterwards. It depends on the individual person, how he goes into nature, she says. "Some of them start running and if I just think about my father, he starts running. He also perceives things in some way in his own way. He loves being in the forest. But that's just too fast for me. I go about things differently and in any case it has just as much added value.” Also, she goes on to say, the therapeutic setting helps you to feel more inward.

Here, some people benefit from an instructor just as much as a personal trainer in the gym. Sometimes we need to make a commitment to others in order to make a commitment to ourselves. When we know a coach will be expecting us at an agreed time, we're more likely to go out and do that one thing we know is good for us.“Many people find this difficult because they have never learned to feel inward. With forest bathing you can perhaps learn a little more or get an impulse, but it doesn't have to be," says Opel. That's exactly what Haida Bolton emphasized in an interview for "Super, Natural British Columbia". In 2016, she was certified by the Society for Nature & Forest Therapy as British Columbia's first forest therapy leader. Bolton pointedly says that a forest therapy leader is not a therapist. "The forest itself is the therapist." she says. “The forest does all the work. The leader simply opens the door to the forest to help establish the connection between the person and the forest.”

After the first distance that we run alone, Sandra asks us all how it was for us. On the one hand, it felt very soothing. The sun shone through the leaves onto our skin. I also noticed the different trees for the first time. So also the oak from earlier on my card. She puckered.

You can recognize the oaks by the solid wood, the thick bark and the huge bark. The bark is the outermost layer of bark on most trees. It arises from the cork and dead parts of the bast, another layer in the tree.

On the other hand, I found it very difficult to focus on the inside because a lot was happening on the outside. Inside the forest you can hear not only the sirens of the ambulances, but also the noise of airplanes. However, the manager emphasizes that this is a matter of practice.

The deeper we get into the forest, the quieter it gets. The smell of the linden blossoms is becoming more and more succinct. Linden smell delicate, cool and slightly sweet at the same time. The tree is literally alive and you can hear tons of bumblebees and bees buzzing. As Sandra Opel tells us, you can even eat lime leaves. The mucus in the leaves has a calming effect and is good for fever. They are particularly delicious in April and May, she explains. The small leaves are best. These are easy to chew and swallow. During my research, I also found out that the leaves are said to taste very good raw in smoothies and salads, on sandwiches and in desserts, as well as cooked.

It continues with the forest bath in a clearing. The sky glows bright blue without a single cloud in the sky. Our task, or the impulse, is to sit under a tree for 10 minutes and perceive what the forest makes us feel. I let myself be guided intuitively to an oak tree. I can feel the individual cracks in the bark on my back. I also notice the very strong smell of wood. The birds are chirping in the background and a light breeze is blowing across my skin. Under the tree I feel the feeling of security for the first time. I'm not afraid to be here anymore and I even imagine sitting alone at this very spot. After meditating under the tree, some report feeling exhausted. Opel then explains that each part of the tree has a different effect on you. For example, one can draw strength from the root, while the crown brings light into the interior.

Sandra then hands us a plant and we have to guess which one it is. It's St. John's wort. A plant I didn't even know existed in the wild. The herb can help with mood swings and is therefore often used as an herbal antidepressant for depression. "It blooms during the summer months and illuminates us from within," explains Opel. After ingestion, however, you should avoid direct sun contact.

Before I took part in the forest bathing session, I imagined it to be something like group therapy, in which everyone shared their problems and these were then solved in nature. Of course it's not quite that simple. Sandra Opel explains to me that forest bathing is not only suitable for people with mental disabilities, but "absolutely for everyone". “We evolved in the forests and everyone reacts, whether they like it or not, when they are in nature. Even if it's just biochemical processes in the body. But they also have an effect on our spirit, on our soul. And I don't know anyone who says I don't feel better afterwards. Everyone is talking about vitamin D and the substances that are in the forest that we breathe in have an effect on our body. It has been proven that they strengthen our immune system.'' The sounds of the birds are calming, have an effect on the vegetative nervous system and bonding hormones such as oxytocin are released. Oxytocin is known as the cuddle hormone, bonding hormone and mother-child hormone.

In addition, Opel explains that forest bathing looks a bit different from ladder to ladder. Forest bathing is a term that is not protected. So there are no specifications as to how such a session should proceed. "Everyone who does this has their own wealth of experience that they bring to the table and also what has helped them the most." It also depends on who is there with which topics. In the two hours it is often not possible to go into more personal topics. "It's mainly about conveying what kind of energy is in nature right now and what is it doing to me? We all go through the cycle of the annual cycle and when we come into contact with nature again, we can get to know ourselves in a completely different way.”

The forest bathing ends with a refreshing drink: naturally also from nature. Sandra gives us small cups and pours us a slightly pink drink. Then she asks us what that might be. My first thought is: "Something with herbs". I grimace slightly because it tastes very bitter and just different than anything I've drunk before. Still, it reminds me of something, but I just can't tell what. Finally she solves the mystery. The drink is rose petal juice. It reminds me of the rose water I put on my face every night. Rose blossoms have a multifaceted effect, not only in the medical field, but also in the case of blemishes and wrinkles.

Overall, it is a major concern of the naturopath to connect people with nature. I noticed that not only while bathing in the forest, but also afterwards in the conversation with her. She had such a wealth of knowledge about nature and could name almost every plant. At first I was skeptical that a single forest bathing session could change something in me. But then I quickly realized that it's not about making a big difference or making my fear of the forest disappear. Sandra Opel's main concern is to give impulses that you can then implement for yourself and she definitely succeeded.