This is episode 137 of the daily meditation podcast. I'm Mary Meckley, and I welcome you to the final

episode of our series we've been exploring this week. You've discovered a meditation technique

to help you manage a top stressor, And there are many these days of uncertainty during this

pandemic. In today's episode, you are going to be guided as you immerse yourself in the peace of nature. I encourage you to spend some time in nature this

weekend. As I record this, this is for a Saturday's episode and I just got back from a walk out in

the woods.

And when I immerse myself in nature, I really feel balanced.

I feel like I have a much better perspective on my life.

And there's a lot of research that shows that when you spend time in nature,

especially among tall green trees, you improve your health and your mental state. In Japan, where I had the chance to live, we often hiked. In fact,

it's a national pastime there. And there's a concept you may have heard about i've shared an

entire series on this before of shin ring yoku otherwise known as forest bathing there are forests

that are designated as being great to bathe in. That means not to actually take a bath in the

forest, but rather to walk among these trees and bathe yourself, or rather inhale phytonsides,

which are released by the trees. There's scientific evidence to support this type of

ecotherapy. It's proven to lower your heart rate, to reduce your stress hormone production,

to lower your blood pressure, and to boost your immune system. You emerge with an

overall feeling of well-being, and that's really how I feel now as I sit down to record this

for you. And I have a special gift for you. This is to celebrate the culmination of another series.

I know when you're experiencing a series where you're diving into your stress and noticing stress

triggers, the theme that we explored this week, you can feel like you're on

an emotional roller coaster.

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