Nature- The Perfect Prescription
A few years ago I was going through a very difficult break-up and at times I would find myself feeling so lost, lonely and down. Fortunately I live on the Central Coast of California which is one of the most beautiful places on the planet and is the location for many of the Healing Heart™ Original Films. There is one spot in particular on Highway 1, Estero Bay, which is just north of the quintessential beach town of Cayucos and South of the ever charming Cambria . It’s the kind of place that is easily accessible but very few people know about it so it is mostly empty and often I am the only one there.
When things would get exceptionally tough, and I would find myself distraught and in tears with pain in my stomach and chest, I would just get in my car and drive the scenic 30 minute route there, crying most of the way and trying to pull myself out of such a state. While the drive was beautiful, nothing compared to the way I felt as I did when I would begin to walk out the single track path through the coastal grass to the bluff just above the bay.
The wind would be going at a pretty good clip, the sky crystal clear, the ocean an intense blue and the rocks were a variety of earth tone colors from jade to rusty red. When I got myself down to the sand and felt the warmth of the sun and vast openness of the space I would melt into a peacefulness and calm the I had been craving but did not know how to access while back in town. Mother nature had done the work for me. All I had to do was show up. To me this felt like a miracle drug. The prescription was perfect. It was free, no negative side effects, I could take it as much or as little as I wanted and I never had to worry about running out of it.
When I began doing some in depth visualizations with my coach Bill and our Phoenix Rising team ( 4 of us who were going thru difficult break-ups of long term relationships) I chose this spot to be my sacred space to go to in my mind. It was perfect because in the visualization we had to choose a place in nature that we had been to before that had meaning to us and contained all the elements of nature which are Earth, Water, Fire and Wind. Because Estero Bay left such a physical and emotional impression on me this was easy to access and bring up at anytime in my mind. When I see it now in my mind my body automatically relaxes, my breathing slows down, there is a calmness to my mind and a slight smile on my face.
Of course, I still physically go there and I do get the same benefit from visiting it that I did in the past. I am also happy to report that I don’t have those feelings of despair, anxiety and depression that I did back in 2013 and am in a very loving and respectful relationship. This is now one of several sacred places that I get to choose from when doing visualization and meditation.
Do you have a place in nature that you have been to that may has done the same for you? If not, I suggest you find one. It could be some place close to home. Or perhaps it is a place you have always dreamed of going like one of our incredible National Parks, beaches or nearby mountains. If you are unable to physically get yourself there, watch one of the Healing Heart™ Original Films. This is why I am creating them. So you can get there…NOW.
In the book The Nature Principal, Richard Louv talks about a study that was done in a Pennsylvania suburban hospital. Researchers found that during a painful bronchial procedure patients either received sedation or received sedation with nature contact (in this case they were exposed to a mural of a mountain stream and meadow while sounds of nature were auditory). The patients who received the sedation along with the nature contact had substantially better pain control. Another study, that was done at the same hospital, revealed that patients whose rooms faced lush deciduous trees as opposed to rooms that faced brick walls had significantly shorter stays which averaged to nearly one full day. This shows that you can access something beautiful right now and have it make a significant, physical shift in your body. Just realize that it starts in your mind. How will you use your mind today to take the perfect prescription of nature?