While ecotherapy doesn’t have as much evidence supporting its effects on mental health as other therapies, you may still experience improvements in mood and mental well-being after spending a couple of hours outdoors each week.

Many people feel that spending time in nature helps improve low moods and promote relaxation and calm.

Ecotherapy is an approach that rests on the idea that people have a deep connection to their environment and to the earth itself.

Though using nature as a therapy is an emerging field, the consensus among experts remains consistent: Spending time outdoors can have a positive impact on your mental health.

Ecotherapy can involve loosely structured activities, such as taking a walk or a hike. You can also choose to participate in more formal approaches, often with guidance from a therapist.

Some of these approaches include:

  • Community gardening or farming: Gardening with neighbors offers the chance to grow your own produce, build relationships, and spend time working outdoors. Some programs may teach basic farming tasks like tending animals or crops.
  • Wilderness or adventure therapy: This approach helps teach coping techniques and therapeutic skills to teens and young adults as they camp and hike in the wilderness with peers.
  • Park “prescriptions”: Health professionals increasingly recommend that people spend a specific amount of time each week visiting a park or engaging in other outdoor activities. Research from 2019 suggests that 2 hours a week is the sweet spot.
  • Forest bathing: This practice encourages the mindful use of your five senses as you tread through tree-heavy settings.
  • Animal-assisted therapy: Petting, playing, or working with animals outdoors may offer another way to help manage stress.
  • Outdoor meditation and yoga: Yoga and meditation already offer well-established benefits, and they might prove even more rewarding outside.

Many ecotherapy practices prioritize building a two-way relationship with nature by giving something back to the area. You might choose to pick up litter or plant trees, for example.

Giving back to the environment may help with eco-anxiety, or anxiety related to concerns like environmental damage and degradation, climate change, or natural disasters.

Even small efforts to reduce your carbon footprint, such as recycling, composting, and limiting driving, may benefit both your health and the Earth’s.

One primary draw of ecotherapy is that, depending on the approach, it can be fairly inexpensive and easier to access nature.

More opportunities for social connection

Ecotherapy often takes place in group therapy settings, but you can connect with others outside of formal therapy.

Community gardening, for example, may help:

  • reduce loneliness
  • acquaint you with new people
  • increase feelings of community solidarity

Plenty of people who enjoy hiking and nature walks often go in groups. Sites like Meetup can help you find others interested in similar nature activities nearby.

Motivation to exercise

Many ecotherapy practices will get you out of the house and moving. Even gardening, which may not seem so strenuous at first, involves plenty of movement.

Exercise may help improve sleep and other aspects of physical health, and it may positively impact mental health by helping to improve your mood.

An hour and a half of daily sunshine may also help lower your risk for depression.

To do yourself and nature some good, you could even try plogging — the term for picking up trash while you jog.

Increased mindfulness

When you spend time in a natural environment, you’re more likely to use your senses to experience your surroundings.

Calming sounds, like birds chirping or the rustling of leaves, can help you detach from the stressors of everyday life.

Turning your attention toward the scenery may also help you practice focusing on the present instead of cycling through worrisome thoughts.

By spending more time in nature, you might even unintentionally build a mindfulness habit.

Other benefits

More existing evidence suggests a link between nature therapy and:

  • Resilience: According to a 2018 review of studies, children living in rural areas may be more resilient to stress, have higher levels of self-worth, and have improved concentration and thinking abilities. Time outdoors may also promote creativity and strengthen their sense of self, the review authors note.
  • Coping with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): A 2023 study emphasizes the potential benefits of nature therapy for veterans with PTSD, particularly when other treatment programs or trauma-focused therapies have not worked.
  • Nervous system recovery: Your autonomic nervous system is responsible for your body’s stress response, such as rapid breathing or heart rate and increased sweating. A 2019 research review suggests that nature may help soothe this system. This review, however, reviewed experiments performed with images of natural settings, not those performed in real natural settings.
  • Improved well-being. A 2020 review suggests that gardening at home may promote emotional well-being. Research from 2019 of people at a psychiatric hospital supports that gardening may help improve their mood, increase calm and feelings of belonging, and foster a deeper understanding of their mental health.

While these findings support ecotherapy as a helpful treatment approach, research still has a ways to go before nature-based treatments can join the ranks of evidence-based approaches like cognitive behavioral therapy.

True ecotherapy generally involves guidance from a trained therapist, but these strategies can help you create your own nature-based wellness practice.

A note on safety before spending time outdoors
  • Check trail warnings and read wildlife or weather advisories.
  • Stay only on marked paths.
  • Wear sunscreen and reapply every 2 hours, especially if you’ll be in direct sunlight.
  • Make sure you tell someone where you’re going and bring a map and a cellphone.

Most public parks have a website with safety information.

Start an informal trash pickup

Bring rubber gloves and a trash bag on a walk to collect litter in your neighborhood. Not only will you benefit from being outside, but you’ll also be cleaning up your community.

Bonus: You’ll probably attract the attention of some like-minded neighbors in the process.

Get digging

Mycobacterium vaccae, a healthy bacterium found in soil, may help trigger the release of serotonin, a hormone linked to positive moods, but this newer claim needs more supporting evidence.

As you work, use your senses to fully experience your garden:

  • How does the soil feel in your hands?
  • Breathe in the scent of the earth and the growing plants.
  • What emotions do you experience when watching your plants blossom?

Even if you don’t have the means to grow an outdoor garden, you can get started with some planters and a sunny spot indoors.

Explore nature’s darker side

A 2023 study citing older data suggests that “dark nature” activities like stargazing, nighttime walks, or moonlit hikes may offer similar benefits as some daytime nature therapy.

This may include feelings of calm and relaxation and a greater sense of connection to nature.

Spend a day among trees

You might not have a forest within an easily accessible distance, but you can still try forest bathing in any tree-rich area.

Set aside a couple of hours for a long wander so you can fully take in your surroundings:

  • Pay attention to what you see, smell, and hear.
  • Don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty touching trees, the ground, or leaves.
  • Let the natural sounds fill your ears.

Consider bringing a book to read or trying meditation. You might also consider journaling or drawing about your experience. Your goal is to immerse yourself in nature.

Try not to use your phone or other technology if you can avoid it. But keep it on you in case of emergencies.

Take your regular activities outside

It’s OK if you don’t have an abundance of time to dedicate to natural pursuits. You can still incorporate nature into your current schedule by moving some of your usual activities outside:

  • If you usually workout at home or in the gym, try riding a bike or walking along trails.
  • Take pleasure in reading or working outdoors.
  • Pack a picnic and practice mindfulness as you savor your meal in a natural setting. You can make it a social experience by inviting family or friends to join. Challenge each other to notice new things about the environment.

If you want to reap the full benefits of ecotherapy, it’s best to work with an experienced therapist.

Ecotherapy is a fairly new mental health approach, so you might have to do some exploration to find a therapist who offers it.

Start with a quick online search for nature therapists or ecotherapists in your area, or try a directory like:

Many therapists offer nature-based approaches without listing themselves as ecotherapists, so you’ll probably want to contact a few and ask.

If you have already found a therapist with whom you’re comfortable, mention your interest in nature therapy. They may be able to offer guidance on finding the right program.

Scientific evidence continues to explore the mental health benefits of ecotherapy, but it’s pretty safe to say that nature, while not a miracle cure, can help you heal.

In your own time, you can try taking regular activities outside, such as eating meals, enjoying hobbies, or engaging in physical activity.

You can also try guided ecotherapy, but you’ll need to find a qualified therapist who can help you learn more about this mental health approach.

Crystal Raypole has previously worked as a writer and editor for GoodTherapy. Her fields of interest include Asian languages and literature, Japanese translation, cooking, natural sciences, sex positivity, and mental health. In particular, she’s committed to helping decrease stigma around mental health issues.