Nature and Happiness
A sunset on Cape Cod.
I started writing my book as a New Year’s resolution in 2018. One of the initial questions I had as I started my research was, “Why do some happiness precepts help some people to feel better but not others?” For me, the primary fallacy was that people should spend more time in nature to feel happier. This tip is pretty much in every article you’ll read about how to brighten your days, and every time I saw it I’d get annoyed because I’d feel like something was wrong with me for not enjoying nature the way everyone else apparently does (which wasn’t doing my esteem any good!). There’s a Calvin & Hobbes strip I often think of when I think of my relationship to nature: the family takes a trip to a beach. The sand is too hot, the water is too cold, and in the last panel the dad is grumbling about driving 90 minutes to spend 15 minutes at the beach!
Well, over the past seven years, I’ve changed, as people tend to do. I became resigned to the fact that I’d have to walk my dogs regularly in order to keep them healthy. Over the course of years walking them day in and day out, through all kinds of weather, I’ve actually grown to love my time outdoors. I’ve gotten to the point where I start to feel a bit of anxiety if I have to go more than a couple of days without a walk (I don’t even think I went a full two days after a C-section before I was up and walking with the pups, leaving my newborn baby to the nurses in the NICU!).
Another aspect of my life that has changed is my diet. I eat a lot more vegetables and much less sugar these days. Since the change in diet, I’ve noticed my seasonal allergies have all but disappeared. Mosquitos are also less of a problem (though this may have less to do with my diet and more to do with the aggressive use of pesticides in my area). Finally, I’ve gotten into the habit of applying sunblock before I leave my house. I can’t remember the last time I’ve suffered a sunburn.
So I’ve basically eliminated my complaints about an outdoor lifestyle, and I finally get it! I finally understand why time in nature is always listed as a method of improving happiness. Let’s think about the ways that time outdoors helps with the Right Hand of Long-Term Happiness:
The sunshine (Vitamin D) and fresh air (if you, indeed, have access to fresh air) are important to physiological well-being, and some, like me, love to get their exercise outdoors.
Many people associate the great outdoors with a sense of freedom (autonomy).
Some feel more peaceful and less stressful when they spend time outdoors (safety).
Many use time outdoors to strengthen their relationships, spending quality time with loved ones on outdoor activities, such as camping, hunting, fishing, hiking, etc. (social).
Whether training for a triathlon or working to save the environment, time in nature is often intrinsic to growth activities.
Spending time outdoors can also help boost esteem, especially if one encounters challenges and manages to overcome them. (Memoirs such as Wild by Cheryl Strayed and A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson come to mind.)
However, for the most part, I’ve always been a happy person. Through my research I realized I was finding other ways to fill my Six Needs even while preferring to spend my time indoors. This is the point I’ll continue to re-iterate: there are many paths one might take to fulfill the Six Needs. Is time in nature central to your happiness? If so, what activities do you most enjoy doing outdoors?
Notes:
Turns out the nutrients you find in vegetables help suppress inflammation, reducing allergy symptoms, while sugar exacerbates inflammation. Who knew!? The Role of Diet and Nutrition in Allergic Diseases.
Getting out for a walk may have been a big part of the reason of my nearly painless recovery from the C-section. The effect of exercise on post cesarean section pain, Impact of window views on recovery—an example of post-cesarean section women.
Autonomy in nature: Freedom of the Hills: an Exploration of the Nature of Freedom as it Is Experienced in Outdoor Environments, Freedom, joy and wonder as existential categories of childhood – reflections on experiences and memories of outdoor play.
Studies hint that there may be a correlation between time spent in nature and lower cortisol levels: Does spending time outdoors reduce stress? A review of real-time stress response to outdoor environments, Greenspace Interventions, Stress and Cortisol: A Scoping Review, Workplace greenery and perceived level of stress: Benefits of access to a green outdoor environment at the workplace.