How Nature Heals
- Amy Stafford, M.S.
- Mar 23, 2023
- 13 min read
We are designed to be intimately connected to nature and the life around us.
A simple walk in a green space can do wonders for our overall health, our mental health and our stress levels. Getting outside in nature is a way for us to reconnect – with ourselves and with the energies of this planet.
“In a world that can be chaotic, noisy, and full of distractions, it’s common to lose sight of who we truly are. Deep down inside ourselves, we all have a true self, a core essence that is unique and authentic. Finding our true self requires us to slow down, quiet our minds, and tune in to our heart’s inner voice.
One way to reconnect with our true self is to spend time in nature; it has a way of calming our minds and reminding us of the beauty and simplicity of life.”
There are many ways in which connecting with nature can help bring us back to balance and vitality:
Reduced stress and anxiety
Boosted immune system function
Lower inflammation
Improved detoxification
Improved sleep quality
Increased energy levels
Lowered blood pressure and heart rate
Improved mood
Improved sense of well-being
With that list, why wouldn't we spend as much time in nature as possible? For some, the issue is access; for others its time.
What most may not understand, is that "nature" doesn't have to mean going to the beach or the mountains. It can be in your backyard or a nearby park.
Prioritizing spending time outside, a minimum of 60-minutes per day where we are fully immersed and making contact with the earth for at least 30 minutes of that, will do wonders for your health.
Connecting with the earth
Humans used to be in contact with the earth 24/7, even while sleeping. Modernization has us separated from the earth in our daily lives – we wear shoes with rubber soles, we spend most of our time indoors, fewer people are growing their own food (so less time with hands in the dirt). Time spent in nature – on beaches, swimming in lakes/oceans, walking or hiking through a forest have become rare occurrences for some.
Yet, this connection with the earth is more vital now than it was in the past. Our stress, our diets, the lack of activity, and exposure to toxins and EMFs all mean that we accumulate more (+) electrons in our body than we should – and this has a significant impact on our health, creating havoc within our cells.
Grounding or connecting directly with the earth via soil, grass, sand, the ocean, and swimming in lakes or rivers allows us to rebalance our (+) and (-) charges in our body. The earth provides us what we need in many ways – and this includes an abundance of (-) electrons.
We want at least 30 minutes of grounding to experience the benefits of grounding throughout our body, but even some is better than none.
Some of the measurable benefits are listed below:
Sleep improvement
Normalized day-night cortisol rhythm
Reduced pain and inflammation
Reduced stress levels
Shifting of our autonomic nervous system from sympathetic toward parasympathetic activation
Increased heart rate variability
Enhanced wound healing
Reduced blood viscosity
Essentially, it brings improved cellular function and gets us back into harmony with natural biological rhythms.
If you are unable to ground yourself outdoors, there are products that can allow you to ground indoors as well. This is a recommended site for grounding products: Earthing.org (no affiliation).
Feeling the sun on our skin
While it is true that going outdoors for prolonged periods without protection from the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays, especially in peak hours, can potentially damage the skin and the eyes, we definitely need the sun.
Natural light can help facilitate normal eye development among kids, not to mention maintain healthy biorhythms as we grow older. Below are some of the benefits of sun exposure (without sunscreen – do so in safe hours of the day – before or after midday – and for a limited amount of time):
Your brain is triggered to release serotonin when the sun hits your skin. Serotonin is associated with boosting your mood and helping you feel calm and focused.
5-15 minutes of direct sun exposure provides our vitamin D for the day. The darker your complexion, more time in the sun is needed. Vitamin D is important for our bones, our immunity, and our mood.
Sunlight helps to set people’s circadian rhythms by regulating the levels of serotonin and melatonin. An hour of light in the morning and you will sleep better at night - this is especially helpful when traveling.
Sunshine gives signals to our brain to be alert and awake, which is partly why getting outdoors can help you feel more lively and energetic.
Exposure to sunlight triggers the skin to release stores of nitrogen oxides, which cause arteries to dilate, lowering blood pressure.
A specific wavelength in sunlight can travel deep enough in your body to have an effect on certain types of adipose (fat) tissue that might protect against metabolic syndrome.
The sun has been known to help with inflammatory skin conditions such as psoriasis, eczema, and acne.
Sunlight has also been associated with improving autoimmune diseases such as arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease.
Exposing our eyes to sunlight is important for eye health and eye sight as well.
Skin cancer has made so many afraid of sun exposure – but it is an essential aspect of our life on this planet. When we eat healthy, connect with earth, and maintain cellular health with antioxidant balance, our risk of damage from the sun is significantly less. Use of sunscreens on a regular basis is actually a cause of skin cancer – do your research, and find products with the least amount of toxins in them to minimize this risk. Visit the EWG guide to sunscreen for more information. Sunscreen Guide - Rated by Scientists | EWG
Water is Life
Water that nature provides is alive with energy via its geometrical structure. It contains not only H2O with some minerals, but also energy and information that our body thrives on. Water actually has memory - if a snowflake is melted and then refrozen under the same natural conditions, it reforms into the exact same snowflake. It is energy that forms matter, not the other way around, and water is no different.
The information that water can provide us is transmitted via frequency patterns/wavelengths. The science of cymatics shows us that sound influences the structure of water, and while still scientifically controversial, there are many who believe that water can hold a ‘memory’ from the influence of light, sound and even human intention.
The practice of Amazonian healers singing to their water for the purposes of healing has been found to be very effective over many years.
Maybe we should be more aware of our own thoughts and emotions as we are holding that glass of water we are preparing to drink!
Living water has a higher frequency and is able to heal. We’ve all heard the stories of waters around the world that can heal when you bathe in them – this is due to the unique frequencies found within those waters. The same is true for water from artisanal springs – it has unique frequencies that provide us the nurturing and healing properties that nature intended.
I no local springs are available, then you can purchase natural spring water. One of the best options is the water from FIJI – it has been proven to have a higher frequency than most and drinking 1.5L of this water a day at room temperature has been shown to help bring your body back into balance. Isn’t nature beautiful?
Drinking water
Chemically treated water (Tap Water)
I don’t recommend ever drinking water straight from the tap (unless it is untreated well water that is free of toxins from runoff (nearby farms or industry)
Chlorine and Fluoride causes many negative effects on our brain and our body. These are poisonous to our body and have significant impacts on our willpower and brain function; fluoride is known to be a cause for thyroid problems. There are massive movements to get fluoride removed from our water supply.
Water's natural geometric structure is significantly damaged from the treatment and the movement through the pipes to get to your faucet.
The dissonant vibrations of the heavy metals and toxins remain (similar to how homeopathy works) and get transmitted to our body when we drink it. These dissonant vibrations are chaos-causing frequency patterns that disrupt our own energetic frequency and can cause imbalances.
Too heavy in minerals (you know that white powder that gets left behind in your teapot? Well, this also gets left in your body as well, and can calcify your arteries and ligaments).
Filtering or purifying water
Not recommended: Steam distillation kills water and renders its structure more harmful in that it will pull from your body those things your body needs so that it can reharmonize itself. This is NOT recommended for drinking water. However, it can be very useful for Neti pots, and anything where you need sterile water.
Recommended: Reverse Osmosis removes all of the natural minerals, damages the structure of water and uses a lot of water to create the filtered water you need. However, it can be revitalized with natural crystals. (see below)
Recommended: Berkey Systems will filter out the chemicals and toxins – chlorine, heavy metals, pharmaceutical drugs, pesticides, etc – but it does not restructure the water that has been damaged simply by running through your pipes. It also does not remove the energy of the toxins that still remain in the water. The same will be true for many other filters out there.
Don't have a filter?
Chlorine will dissipate if the water is allowed to sit exposed to the air for 24 hours before drinking.
Bentonite Clay can be used to purify the water.
Note: many filtering systems do not remove fluoride.
Restructuring filtered water using natural quartz crystals
Quartz crystals have the ability to reform water's crystalline structure over time (8-24 hours)
How to do this:
Use real quartz crystals: clear quartz, smoky quartz, rose quartz, or amethyst
Place a handful of crystals in a glass pitcher or jar
Fill the container with filtered or spring water that you purchased in a bottle
Let it sit for at least 8-24 hours
Note: this will not bring the water "back to life" so to speak, but it will help restore optimal geometric structure of the water. Natural artesian waters have been rejuvenated and charged by earth over hundreds of years - nothing we do can mimic this.
Spending time in a forest amongst a community of trees
The concept of Forest bathing originated in Japan, and is often 'prescribed' by a doctor as one of their treatment remedies.
“Forest bathing and forest therapy (or shinrin-yoku) broadly means taking in, in all of one’s senses, the forest atmosphere. Not simply a walk in the woods, it is the conscious and contemplative practice of being immersed in the sights, sounds and smells of the forest.” - Global Wellness Institute
Benefits:
Spending time in forest environments will lower your pulse rate, blood pressure and concentrations of cortisol.
Spending time in a forest will also provide greater parasympathetic, and lower sympathetic, nerve activity than a city environment does.
Spending multiple days in a forest has been found to significantly increase Natural Killer (NK) activity, the number of NK cells, and the expression of intracellular anti-cancer proteins, while significantly decreasing the concentration of adrenaline in urine. This increased NK activity lasted more than 7 days.
Forest bathing also has hypertensive effects: SBP and DBP in the forest environment were significantly lower than in the non-forest environment.
A 2-hour forest bathing experience led to changes in autonomic nervous system activity and emotions. Heart rate and systolic and diastolic blood pressure were significantly lower after the short experience, while the mood scores for “tension-anxiety”, “anger-hostility”, “fatigue-inertia” and “depression-dejection” were also significantly lowered.
Our food and Energy – biochemical vs biophysical components of food
Simply put, what nature provides is best. Plant foods from nature are full of energy and information our body needs to thrive that just can’t be created in a lab.
Have you ever felt so full of vitality that your energy is off the charts, while at the same time balanced with an ability to totally relax and be at peace?
Have you ever felt what it’s like to have an incredibly clear and focused mind?
I have (a while ago), and it was while I was on a fully raw-food diet for 12 weeks. It is amazing, and yes, I am going to be going back on this in the spring (it’s not appropriate for winter).
Why does this type of diet provide so much vitality? It's due to the enzymes that remain intact, the energy that isn’t changed by high heat, and all of the chemical compounds that are found in living foods. This is why you are not allowed to heat your food above a certain temperature when on a raw food diet.
For the month of April we will be focusing on detoxification and renewal, and we will go into more detail on the idea of living foods then.
How Plants and Earth minerals can heal
Herbal Remedies
Since this is such a wide topic, the only note I will make here is that quality (how and where it was grown, how it was harvested, and how it was prepared) is vital to its healing properties. Many Shamans have found over the centuries that speaking and connecting to the herbal plant (letting your intention be known) before taking a part of it for healing dramatically increases its healing properties.
Flower Essences – these work at an emotional level and are great remedies to have in your toolkit. To learn more, these are two great sites:
Essential Oils
Quality matters with essential oils. Personally, I use DoTerra, but there are other brands that are quality out there as well. I have been using these since my children were little. Like herbal remedies, this topic is very expansive, but there are a few key oils that I use all the time with great success: Lavender, Frankincense and Tea Tree oil.
I will share a little about Lavender essential oil since it is what sold me on the power of essential oils. The king of oils, it can be used for many purposes: relaxation, hives, bug bites, bruises, burns, wounds, respiratory illnesses, etc. I have watched hives disappear in ten minutes after application of diluted lavender essential oil, and I have also successfully treated burns, bruises, and bug bites with this oil over the years.
You can find a link to DoTerra in our shop HERE.
· Mushrooms
Augment the body's immune system*
Support stress and fatigue reduction*
Provide support for daily environmental assaults*
Deliver enzymes to support digestion and absorption of nutrients*
Provide polysaccharides to increase the activity & impact of natural killer cells and macrophages*
The two providers I recommend are:
https://dritheherbalguy.com/collections/antioxidants-and-immune/products/immu-shrooms%E2%84%A2
https://hostdefense.com/collections/all
To learn more:
Castor Oil
A natural, very healing remedy shared by Edgar Cayce, typically as a castor oil pack.
How-to instructions can be found HERE.
Bentonite Clay (BC)
Composed of ash taken from volcanoes, this clay is dried in the sun, filtered and then sold commercially in various forms.
In its natural state, bentonite clay has negatively charged molecules. Most toxins and heavy metals have positively charged molecules. This allows the two to bind together easily and stay united as the toxin removal process occurs.
When taken internally, BC essentially “seeks” toxins in the body to bind with due to its chemical composition. It acts like a magnet and sponge, absorbing harmful substances so they can be removed from the body.
(NOTE: I have found the best internal form to be from Dr. Schulze – he offers it in capsule or powder form, and it comes combined with charcoal, flax seed, psyllium seed, and more to help it move through your system. He offers another intestinal pill that helps your body eliminate this as part of his bowel detox program. www.herbdoc.com).
It also makes a great face mask. Use pure bentonite clay and mix with a little apple cider vinegar to make a paste. (Can also add a bit of oil to keep it from drying it too much as a mask). Apply to your skin or hair and let sit for 5-20 minutes depending on the sensitivity of your skin. NOTE: the vinegar may be too much for sensitive skin, if it is, then just use water.
SOLE – when living water merges with natural crystal salt = “liquid light energy.”
“When water and salt connect, the negative poles of the water molecules surround the positive ions in the salt and the negative ions in the salt are surrounded by the positive polarized particles of the water molecules. This changes the geometric structure of the water and the salt, and creates something entirely new, a third dimension [sole].” … The elements have “…reached a higher form of energy.”
-- Page 145, Water and Salt – The Essence of Life.
When these two elements merge, both become ionized, which releases their stored energy and information. Sole can give your body the vibration it is missing.
Quantity does not matter here, but quality of both the salt and the water absolutely does.
Drinking one teaspoon of sole in natural spring water every morning (on an empty stomach) and your stomach and intestinal activity will be stimulated within minutes. Sole can lower blood pressure within 15 minutes, and so therefore, is not off-limits for most with high blood pressure.
Sole is very harmonizing. It can balance blood pressure, balance our pH, and it can act a bit like homeopathy. Think of it as a ripple in a still pond. As the ripples spread out, it supports the necessary expression of symptoms and feelings that need to leave the body so it can restore itself to health.
For example, if your intestines are full of fermented and rotted substances (common with our typical diets), it can potentially cause diarrhea. While this isn’t pleasant, it is very beneficial in this case and is a sign that your intestines are being flushed out and cleansed.
How to make Sole:
Place several crystal salt stones in a glass jar (NOT metal). Cover the crystals with room temperature, pure, natural spring water (NOT tap, purified, or distilled water) – FIJI water works well.
After 24 hours check to see if the salt crystals have fully dissolved. If they have, add another crystal salt stone, and keep doing this into the salt no longer dissolves – leaving the crysal salt at the bottom of the jar. Once this happens, the solution is now at 26%, and this is where you want it to stay. Therefore, always check to make sure that there is still salt crystal at the bottom of the jar, and add more as needed.
How can sole be used?
You can drink it in the morning (on empty stomach) - dilute a teaspoon in approximately 8oz spring water (if too strong, lower the amount of sole you add, and work your way up).
Inhale it via steam (use a 1% solution for this; follow instructions in the book)
Flush sinuses with a neti pot (use a 1% solution for this; follow instructions in the book)
Eye bath using an eye cup
Sole Bath Soak (Instructions are in the book – but it requires about 2-3 pounds of salt crystals)
https://himalayancrystalsalt.com/products/himalayan-salt-stones
Honoring Biological Rhythms of nature
Our bodies, minds, and spirits are impacted by the rising and setting sun, the changing of the seasons, and of course, the cycles of the moon.
Reconnecting to this truth can be a source of peace and stability in a world that sometimes feels chaotic or overwhelming. When you begin consciously connecting to the cycles of nature and coming back into alignment with your natural rhythms, it can bring a feeling of certainty to your life.
Respecting our natural world
When we understand that we are not in any way separate from nature, and that we need it to know ourselves, and to maintain balance, then maybe we will be more willing to take care with it. Maybe we will be more able to live in harmony with it - live WITH it, versus on it. To be more conscious around our consumerism and the principle of 'leave no trace.'
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