What is Forest Bathing?

If you've never experienced forest bathing, you might be wondering just what it is, exactly. Does it involve loofahs and rubber duckies?

I found a rubber ducky during a conference at Mohican State Park, so she joined me for some forest bathing!

No, forest bathing doesn't mean taking a bath outdoors!

At it's simplist, forest bathing, also called Shinrin-yoku, is a mindfulness practice involving immersing one's self in the natural environment of the forest using all of the senses to fully connect with the environment.

In the chaos of our daily lives, it is easy to become distracted and disconnected from the natural world and from ourselves. Forest bathing encourages us to slow-down and "smell the flowers" (both figuratively and literally!) to experience the healing power of nature.

During a forest bathing session, a trained forest bathing guide (such as myself!) will help participants to engage in activities to help them fully experience the natural environment with all of their senses: sight, sound, smell, touch, sometimes even taste (though I only recommend taste if one is 110% sure of their plant identification skills!).

My forest bathing sessions are fully customized to the needs of the participating group. A session during a pagan gathering may focus on experiencing the presence of nature deities and offering gratitude to the spirits of place, whereas a session for a corporate retreat would be more secular in focus with an emphasis on mindfulness and stress-reduction.