Plant Care is Self Care isn’t just a hashtag or millennial trend, it’s an ongoing wellness program.
We have spent most of our human existence living outdoors, evolving in symbiosis with the Earth. The innate desire to surround ourselves with plant life in our homes isn't a silly obsession of acquiring more "stuff". Growing houseplants and caring for greenery indoors and out is tapping into the ancient wisdom and ongoing benefits of our interconnection with the natural world.
When we transform a sterile indoor space into a lush green oasis, our minds and bodies are able to relax and focus as subconsciously we feel safe and secure when plants are in our visual field. We are less distracted and more able to concentrate.
Let's dig into how that works:
OVERALL FEELING OF HAPPINESS
Love the smell of soil? Feel better after getting your hands in the garden or spending an afternoon repotting houseplants? Turns out there's a scientific reason for that feeling of quiet tranquility following your interaction with soil and plant life...Bacteria!
Bacteria are the most numerous life forms on our planet. One in particular is the superstar for mood elevation! Mycobacterium vaccae is a microbe found in soil proven to increase the release of serotonin into our bodies. Serotonin is the neurotransmitter responsible for sending and receiving messages throughout our nervous system and is a hormone responsible for mood, digestion, appetite and emotions and recent studies suggest that serotonin increases our ability to learn too! Although these studies show the effects are temporary, it's still lovely to consider how more exposure to M vaccae means a brighter mind too!
From personal experience, serotonin is my reset button. Whenever I need a break from stress or am craving a pick me up, I head for the soil! Stress melts away while walking through the forest, touching trees, petting moss, smelling the earth. Same goes for tending to my houseplants and garden, digging my hands into the soil has a powerful way of shifting my mood.
HEALTHIER MIND & BODY
Our daily lives are filled with subtle (and not so subtle) stressors from the alarm clock to traffic noise, to social media overload to trying to park at your local grocery store. We have a huge list of to do's between family and fur baby responsibilities, work deadlines, not to mention the state of our current global turmoil, vast human rights issues, climate change disasters, economical burdens, and the overall political climate. Combined, they are the silent but often harmful current flowing through our daily lives.
These stressors build up over time until our threshold for dealing with them (or anything for that matter) seems overwhelming. That's often due to our body being flooded with too much cortisol. Cortisol is the body's stress hormone. A wonderful thing for survival when running away from a tiger, not so lovely when we get small hits from it day after day, all day, everyday. Our brains continue to release small doses of cortisol to cope with fight or flight situations, regardless of severity.
When we have too much cortisol for long periods of time it leads to anxiety, heart disease, headaches, weight gain, sleep disorder, compromised immune system, and depression. Working with houseplants, going for a stroll among the trees, or working in the garden for just 30 minutes can drastically reduce cortisol levels and bring your body back into balance. When we emerge ourselves in the natural world, our minds become fully present and in the moment.
FOCUS
Plants allow us to focus. Let's try a simple imaginary exercise together.
Close your eyes. Imagine a typical office space complete with cubicles, desks, computers, and chairs. Take a deep breath and feel how the air in that environment hits your nose and how the space looks. Visualize yourself seated in one of those chairs. Remain there for a few seconds and just breathe. Now, begin working on your computer in that environment, really feel the keyboard beneath your fingertips and screen before your eyes.
Now try this: Close your eyes again and envision that same office space but begin to adding plants. Place a few ferns on top of file cabinets, visualize pothos and philodendron cascading from ceiling hooks, ficus and monstera standing tall in the corners. Now, take an imaginary seat and let your eye travel around the room again. Breathe in deeply and feel the atmosphere. Can you feel how vibrant the office space has become? Alive with color, texture and subtle scent of earth. How does it feel when you start to type on that computer now?
CONNECTION
Ancient wisdom. Humans now spend an estimated 85% of their lives indoors. When we surround ourselves with plant life, we are transforming a sterile environment into something reminiscent of what our ancestors experienced. To them, plants meant life, green was (and still is) the key to survival. Our minds and bodies are able to relax and focus more easily on the task at hand as subconsciously we feel safe and secure when plants are in our immediate surroundings.
Take more time to care for your plants and garden. Hug a tree, pet the moss. Allow the natural world to heal and nourish you from the inside out.
Hope this encourages you friends!
with love,
Karina and Team SE