What is Forest Therapy?
Forest Therapy and Shinrin-yoku
In the 1980s, Japan introduced Shinrin-yoku - Forest Bathing, as a national health practice in response to rising stress and illness. Backed by science, it showed that simply immersing in the forest could reduce stress, restore well-being, and renew our connection with nature, countering the disconnection caused by urban life.
Shinrin-yoku, or translated - Forest Bathing, is deeply rooted in traditional Japanese culture, where harmony with nature has long been a path to wellness and spiritual balance. Embraced as a healing practice, shinrin-yoku reflects Japan’s reverence for the natural world, drawing on centuries old beliefs that nature holds restorative powers for the mind, body, and soul. It’s a gentle, mindful way to reconnect with the essence of the forest, promoting health and tranquility through the simple act of immersing oneself in nature.
Forest Bathing is more than a walk in the woods - it’s a sensory immersion into nature and place. Imagine the many shades of green, the soft earth beneath your feet, birdsong carried on a breeze, and the grounding scent of moss and soil. Each moment draws you deeper into connection and relationship, rekindling peace, clarity, and a quiet sense of wonder often lost in the rush of daily life.
Shinrin-yoku demonstrates what science now confirms: nature directly benefits both mind and body. Biologist Edward O. Wilson’s biophilia theory explains why - humans carry an innate bond with nature, shaped by millions of years of evolution.
Why Forest Bathing Therapy?
Modern urban life keeps us indoors, glued to screens, and moving less. Combined with isolation and constant city pressures, this lifestyle heightens stress and steadily drains our attention, leaving us mentally fatigued.
Chronic stress and fatigue fuel serious health problems, from heart disease to depression. Shinrin-yoku or Forest Therapy as it is known in Australia, offers a natural antidote - time in nature restores calm, reduces stress, and leaves us feeling refreshed and revitalised.
Whether its Forest Bathing, Forest Therapy, Nature Connection, Nature Bathing, these therapeutic experiences help to rekindle the ancient bond we hold with nature. This experience helps to strengthen our connection and relationship with nature and forms the basis of our wellbeing. The action of Forest Therapy is to ‘bridge the gap between us and the natural world’ revealing we are not separate to nature, but that we too are nature.
Health Benefits
Forest Therapy offers powerful mental and physical health benefits. Scientific research demonstrates that a single Forest Therapy walk can immediately improve your body’s stress and wellness markers. These changes have a direct and positive impact on your overall well-being helping you to fee revitalised and balanced.
From a Forest Therapy Walks:
Anxiety and depression levels are lowered
Positive mood improvement in happiness levels
Improved cognition, attention and focus
Reduction in heart rate and blood pressure
Reduced cortisol levels indicating a reduction in our
stress hormone levels
Improved immune function as Natural Killer cells increase
in volume (anti-tumour)
Exposure to phytoncides which possess anti-bacterial,
anti-inflammatory, anti-fungal, anti-microbial and anti-viral properties
Why choose a Forest Therapy Guide?
A Forest Therapy guide helps you to slow down in this fast paced world, shifting your focus from the constant chatter of the mind to the calming rhythms of nature and the body, allowing you to move in harmony with the world.
A trained Forest Therapy guide helps you to connect deeply with nature in a way that resonates with you. The walk begins quietly and slowly, on a carefully chosen trail designed to align our biorhythms with the natural world. Along the way, you’ll be invited to engage in a blend of creative, physical, and sensory activities, all inspired by the landscape around us. These activities encourage you to be open, curious, and fully present
A Forest Therapy guide offers a sense of freedom and safety, making it easier to relax and let go. As your guide, I handle all the details, so you can simply be present, savouring the experience. It’s a chance to truly disconnect from the rush of everyday life and reconnect with yourself and the world around you.
By slowing down and immersing ourselves in nature, we allow it’s calming influence to reset our minds and bodies, helping us to find balance and peace, and therefore nature is the true therapist.
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Forest Therapy demonstrates nature’s ability to heal and rejuvenate us. It can lift our mood, ease our stresses, restore attention and vitality. By immersing ourselves in nature we nurture our mind, body, and spirit, returning to our lives with renewed energy and a deep sense of peace.
Your Guide
Alex became a certified Forest Therapy Guide out of a deep commitment to integrating nature and health into every aspect of her life. Driven by her passion for the outdoors and well-being, she dedicates herself to helping others experience the profound benefits of nature, making it a central part of their own lives as well.
Alex believes that health and nature are deeply intertwined, each enriching the other. With a lifelong passion for the outdoors, she finds that nature is the perfect antidote to the pressures of work and urban life.
Having made the Royal National Park her home, Alex draws inspiration from its beauty and tranquility daily. The park brings back cherished childhood memories of special trees, winding trails, and playful streams, reminding her of the joy and simplicity of nature.
Living in such a magnificent environment fills Alex with a profound sense of wonder and endless opportunities for connection. Becoming a qualified Forest Therapy guide has deepened her engagement with nature, and she now shares this connection with others through her guided walks, helping people rediscover their own bond with the natural world.
Qualifications
Bachelor of Art, Sociology
International Nature and Forest Therapy Alliance (INFTA) Certified Forest Therapy Guide
Nature Therapy Guide, Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney
Cert III Tourism Guide
Licensed ECOPass Tour Operator
Certified Qigong Instructor
Certified Mental Health First Aid
Certified First Aid
Infection Control Training
