Healing through Nature— Yoga,Trees, plants, Salt water + Sunlight
Stories of Healing through Nature, Yoga Outdoors, poems and plant medicine…
As the warm air arrives and the return of the light touches my skin, summer feels within reach and I long for salt water dips, beach yoga and moving my body under the sky and within the elements. Winter seems like a memory, those colder, darker days are now transformed and once again we get the opportunity to feel the medicine of the Sun, like a gift! —preparing our bodies for a storage of vital vitamins and minerals needed to take with us into the next phase of winter, where a different kind of beauty awaits!
My love of nature and my experiences of healing when immersed in it inspires me always, and from this I’ve created some really beautiful outdoor yoga classes, sanctuary sessions and mini retreat experiences and I continue to lean into nature to hold space for these practices.
As my personal yoga practicing got more serious in 2010 I took any opportunity I could to do a more regular outdoor yoga practice—with my own forest bathing and living a little off grid on my own in a converted barn I was able to practice in my garden underneath the big beech trees that grew there, then I started to gain confidence to enjoy yoga freely on the beach—It was an escape in a time of turbulence, grief and anxiety and with this personal experiences and love of healing through nature that ignited me to create outdoor sessions.
I started to teach yoga outdoors in 2012 with classes at the Japanese gardens in st Mawgan and hosted regular beach yoga classes shortly after, which really grew and I went onto setting up and being the founder of the beach yoga classes at Carlyon bay beach.
I’m proud of myself for encapsulating these practices that are still going strong, giving people the opportunity to escape from indoor jobs, stress and be part of nature and themselves again… Yoga in nature is immersive and deeply healing!
Taking my classes into the beauty of outdoor practices back then was a different experience for my students who were use to indoor studio sessions, opening up our bodies in a different way and creating a sense of connection gave them something different from the practice—something I knew and hoped it would!
My love of life on the beach and under the trees has been a healing experience through times of stress and struggle, even in the colder months taking any opportunity to eat tea on the beach or in the woods by a wild fire with my boys is a memory treasured—Embracing the elements and offering a connection to it for others was something I started to provide more, with the Salt water beach retreats that developed further into an infusion of elemental healing with a warm fire pit, bowls of soul food, Indian head massage feeling the warmth of the sun on your face and longer moments in relaxation underneath the sky—Right on our door step, retreats home from home. With these offerings theres always a piece of my own heart that I am sharing, from times of deep healing and finding moments of joy within a busy life! So I truly believe other people can take healing from time in nature and be inspired to live more closely to it in broader ways…
Living a life using plant medicine means I stay connected to nature even when I’m not outdoors and I’m always infusing my indoor yoga classes and retreats with the elements —of herbal sprays, hot stones and body cloths, essential oils, aloe, mint and cucumber mists, herbal teas, crystals and even shells and flowers for a different practice of object meditation in my pregnancy yoga sessions! there’s a consistent connection to the power of nature, plants and flowers and at home I love being surrounded by plants, cooking from scratch with spices and herbs! Every year i practice growing crops and herbs in pots in my small back yard and love experimenting with herbalism, plant make up, soul food ingredients, homemade salt scrubs, herbal hair rinses and I’m commited to using the sinergy of energy in plants, like batch flower remedies for healing in times of unwellness.
Practicing yoga outdoors has always been at the core of my personal practice, but it became even more important in the early weeks and months when my first born baby was still only months old …I’d embrace his early 5am wake ups, plan to wrap him up warm and pack up some breakfast, a flask of hot herbal tea and later head down to the beach for fresh salty air, move and stretch out my body slowly to the sound of the waves with my baby laying beside me on a warm blanket warmed by a heated wheat bag pillow.
He was a November baby and my body was stiff, broken and depleated, not by the cold but from a traumatic long birth, a broken pubis bone that put my body into shock, onset sleep deprivation and, postpartum depletion that all took over 2 years to recover and heal from.
Getting outside was my medicine and it gave me a sense of space in my body and mind, which was much needed through this time where I was also deep in sleep deprivation—It was the first time ( but not the last time) that I felt physically broken in my body!
I tuned to my yoga mat for reabiliation, to plant medicine, herbs, batch flower remedies, restorative yin practices, time in nature and had found sessions with an amazing osteopath and homeopathic doctor who really helped put me back together.
During this time my mind was a mixture of anxiety, shock, overwhelm, joy, deep protection, and love for my baby all mixed within a blurr of days that repeated itself with feeding, nappy changes, physical pain and survival mode with a baby who seemed to never need much sleep!
Being out in nature changed that and I found healing for myself during this time where all this was bypassed and there was no other support given—Nature was a nourishment that created a shift and a deep connection between my body and the elements that I related to. My experience of postpartum struggle and the aftermath of a traumatic birth made me realise that there was so much missing for women when journeying through postpartum care! And I am passionate about changing that.
I rehabilitated myself with yoga and time in nature and soon realised that nature was helping my baby with his sleep cycles too, as soon as I could walk fully again I took slow strolls with my baby in nature and as my physical strength came back I wore him in an ergo sling that is designed to support the hips and pelvis and I could gradually walk further and eventually go on hikes.
My yoga practices outside amplified my energy and consciousness, I felt the same balance of natures peace and wild states that could fluctuate and move through me as much as I could see it outside of me.
Long dark nights spent awake nursing were gladly welcomed with the invitation and freedom to be outside, where I noticed even my baby responded with awe, with his deep gaze at the trees gently moving, watching the moving shadows and light, the sounds and smells. He always took his longest naps when outside, which gave me the time to practice yoga, rest, gently, move again and reabilitate my body.
Nature did something to us both—the interaction and space needed for my self healing therapies alongside my baby, whilst he was being soothed and entertained by the gentle stimulation of nature that was all around us! When he slept longer I got more time to connect back to my body, without having to leave him or be away from him—Nature was a supportive vibration to be in. There’s a misconception that in order to heal from postpartum you “have to have breaks away from your baby” —what you actually need is to trust your intuition, true medicine is empowerment and knowledge, with people around you that support your choices and help you in any way that aligns with your needs.
I have such cherished memories walking in nature with my baby, resting together underneath the trees or on the beach sitting and playing in the sand by the sound of the waves, washing in as a reminder to breathe!
Ive turned some of my hardest experiences around by trusting in nature and healing from it; from what first felt like a shocking, debilitating beginning to postpartum; by connecting to nature it brought in magical moments together, healing together in nature and connecting back to a tangible sense of safety.
For me nature is the expression of the divine! I hear it as music in the sounds of the birds, breeze and trees or in the waves and I feel it as a presence that whispers “ I am here now”. Whenever im in nature I am given an essence of something greater than myself, tapping into the wilderness, the beauty and rawest parts of it beyond the ground of anything that is actually present or moving in my life and it gives me perspective! With that there comes this reminder of strength, perseverance and presence.
Being outdoors is quite simple, just see it, absorb it and it will be deeply nourishing for your soul, your body receives nutrients on a cellular level—it wakes up! …this is why you feel such a cleansing in the mind and body when you’ve been in it and yoga in nature amplifies this!
From my love of nature I continue to create yoga sanctuary sessions in beautiful outdoor locations and explore soul food recipes throughout the year, embracing the seasons and medicine that nature provides. I use plant make up, make my own herbal tea infusions and continue to self study herbalim and treat myself and my family through ailments, colds and flu.
One day I’d love to share my full stories of how Nature, plants and yoga have saved me on these deep journeys of healing with a part self help part memoir book and guide, to fully share it all… these stories are little miracles!
It’s everything I love and believe in!
—It’s all about nature and I trust how plant power and the elements bring in healing and renewal!
Ive repeatedly seen first hand the incredible healing that can be achieved through nature— I cured my son’s debilitating eczema using natural remedies, food, diet and herbs alone, by age 4 it had completely disappeared and our paediatric consultant was amazed! I never once used the steroid creams or chemical oilments they wanted to prescribed, I believed in nature, I trusted it and wanted to give this a chance before trying anything else first. As the consultants followed our journey and gave us time we still went to the check up appointments and I remember our very last visit to show them the eczema was healed and the consultant asked how I did it and began to write everything down!
I went through a big burn out in 2020 -2022 which led to me getting very sick with mold illness (mycotoxin poisoning) gut disbosis, adrenal fatigue and my body was completely broken for the 2nd time! This being an overwhelming illness and it very nearly completely destroyed me.
From the poisoning I couldn’t eat and lost over 2 stone and became a shell of myself! I didn’t even recognise myself when I looked in the mirror. It was the biggest breakdown I’ve been through in my body and hope to never experience again!
It started as weird body aches, debilitating fatigue and weird allergic reactions to so many foods, high histamine and damaged cut permeability meant that my blood stream was congested and it caused more reactios to pretty much everything! I even had reactions to cleaning products and beauty products! It was really frightening because at the time I didn’t know what it was and doctors didn’t either, I was made to feel I was going crazy! they couldn’t help me and the basic generic blood tests didn’t detect anything apart from nutritional deficiencies, so I was only offered a short but intense course of steroids and told to take 4 antihistamines a day and get on with it, in hope to suppress my immune response to all the reactions! —It didn’t work and by that time I was feeling worse! It was a very dark time and felt overwhelming sense of desperation.
I looked in every direction possible to find answers and I came across lots of information about the causes of multiple chemical sensitivity, gut health, burn out and what I learnt after about it’s connections to mold illness was life changing…but trying to self diagnose and study through illness was a living nightmare and caused even more stress and exhaustion! And it has taken me a very long time to come to terms with what happened and even be able talk about it! For a long time I had no support or understanding of any of it and was having to navigate it alone! Eventually though, I connected with an incredible functional medicine doctor who ran extensive blood tests and protocols for healing and in time I got answers and healed by using herbs and natural plant remedies and this honestly saved my life.
**Disclaimer: This information is based on my own personal experiences and use of plants, alternative therapies and traditional herbal medicine. It is of a general informational nature and does not constitute medical advice. It is not intended to diagnose or treat any health condition. Any health condition should be referred to your chosen health care practitioner. You can do your own research or check with your health care practitioner before commencing to use any herbal or plant product and be aware of any personal and family allergies**
If any of these topics interest you or you are inspired to connect to nature more deeply, respect it more lovingly and be in and around it more regularly, your welcome to follow my journey further on instagram or my blog here for more on yoga, life and offerings where I share personal experiences and soul recipes.
I’ll leave you with a poem I love by Ram Dass and a poem I wrote myself about nature 🤎
“When you explore the connection between nature and spiritual understanding, it emphasises the importance of appreciating the present moment and seeing the universe as a manifestation of love”— Ram Dass
🤎
Nature is my favourite Creator, Healer and Spirit Guide…
Nature responds to everything.
It’s not a system.
There are no straight lines or restrictions
It moves through seasons.
In spring it emerges. Everything opens.
In summer there’s productivity, its busy and blooming.
In the autumn and winter it sheds its layers, it let’s go and becomes still.
It is always moving yet knows stillness
Everything flows.
It’s not afraid to express or release.
It shows it’s beauty and it’s devastation
It works hard but rests harder because it values time and body
It does not rush
It has many layers
If it’s struggling it falls apart for a bit.
It breaks and re builds
It takes time to nourish and heal but it still re-grows and it still finds a way through all the grit.
It is it’s own medicine
It can transform
It’s energy is ever present
Nature reminds me of my body.
So here’s a reminder for you. Look at nature closer and you will see yourself, in all your seasons. In all your pain and glory days. What you need is never far away and where you need to be is right here.
You are nature.
🌿🤎♾🦋💚
