At some point this year, I started noticing a decline in my mental health. Unexpectedly, this took a pretty hefty toll in my day to day life. I found myself sitting in my room doing nothing for most of the day, along with not ever getting outside as much as I had been previously.
I don't know what caused this slump, but I am very grateful that I found something that helped me dig myself out. A conscious practice where staying present is the key focus helped me in ways that I couldn't have imagined.
Now here I sit, feeling healed.
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If you're interested in looking into this topic any deeper, I've left a couple great articles on the subject here.
https://time.com/5259602/japanese-forest-bathing/
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jun/08/forest-bathing-japanese-practice-in-west-wellbeing
https://www.rei.com/blog/hike/theres-no-running-in-forest-bathing