3 Ways My Mental Health Significantly Improved During A Village Trip
Boosting mental health is easier than you think.
Recently, I went to my village where I was born 26 years ago. Soon after my birth, my parents moved to urban cities in search of better opportunities and so I was taken with them.
I have been to my village numerous times till now but this time it was different.
As soon as I entered the village, I sensed something strange. I can’t figure out what it was in the beginning but later it came up in my face like a strong breeze of air. Literally and metaphorically.
It was a sense of peacefulness. I felt something was missing and then I had a realization. All the chaos of an urban metropolitan was missing.
Today, I am going to share with you three different ways my mind rested, and my mental health significantly improved in a village that I was born in.
By the end of this story, you will know how you can take your mental health to another level.
Less Noise
As soon as I entered my village at around 5:30 in the morning, it was quiet. It was quieter than anywhere I have been in the past few months.
Vendors were setting up their vegetable stalls; others were walking and I was getting ready to reach my ancestral home.
Although a lot of activity was happening, the noise levels were relatively less than that of an urban city where I am living right now.
It was because of two primary factors:
- Less use of machines
- Fewer people
Peacefulness is so soothing. You can only know it by experience.
We are so much used to regular noises because we hear them daily and when we don’t hear those sounds, it feels strange and peaceful.
In urban areas, if you pay attention, you will listen to a sound of humming, buzzing, cutting, etc during almost the entire day.
Sounds of traffic, construction, elevators, notifications, etc all impact in more often negative than positive ways.
You can listen to them right now. Close your eyes and focus on the sounds happening in your surroundings.
These small sounds have an impact on us and our bodies. It can impact our behavior, emotions, response capability, and our wellbeing.
It was only when I entered my village, I felt a sense of calmness because there were way fewer sounds going through my body and I can actually feel it.
Once you go to a surrounding that is calmer in itself, you will feel much more relaxed and less stressed.
Your senses will have one less job to deal with and this directly results in your mental health improvement.
Walking and Walking
My village is so small that I can walk through it from one end to the other in less than 30 minutes.
When the entire habitat within which you live is this much small, you don’t really need a car or a vehicle to move around.
I can walk to get my groceries which is just a few steps away from my home.
Besides the grocery store, there is a shop where you can get ice-creams and chocolates and alongside it, there is a jewelry store where you can buy local traditional ornaments.
When you walk every day, it is beneficial not just for reducing weight but it’s also good for your eyes and heart.
Walking strengthens your immunity.
Combine other benefits like fewer chances of getting diabetes and cancer, walking can have a lot of positive effects on your body and therefore the mind.
As your body remains healthy, your mind benefits and rests in return. Your mental health will be on the uptick.
In a city, it is difficult to walk. We have cabs, trains and local transportation options which are created to reduce walking in the first place.
Villagers have altogether a different concept. They are ready to forgo a little comfort for health.
They like to walk more. It is in their DNA.
Abundant Nature
You and I both know that nature immensely benefits humans in many ways but I want to specifically focus on mental health.
I am talking about the effects of nature on our minds and hence mental health.
When the ratio of natural creations is more than the ratio of man-made creations in your surroundings, it will automatically help you to remain healthy.
Tress, grass, clean air, sunlight, rivers, lakes, different varieties of plants, and everything natural will help you both physically and mentally. You don’t even have to make an effort for that.
Some trees purify the air, some plants boost your immunity, some crops can be directly eaten for long healthy life.
The more they are, the more advantage you will have in terms of health and living longer.
In my village, you can see abundant varieties of trees, plants, farms. You can survive just feeding on them.
Many foods villagers consume regularly are not processed and therefore beneficial to health rather than being detrimental.
You will find everything essential for life through a short walk from my home to the main market which is less than 15 minutes.
The reason we are putting plants in homes and offices and sometimes right on the desk is that we want to become close to nature and benefit from it.
Nature gives unimaginable advantages to any life and not just human beings but only if we are closer to it.
From a mental health perspective — depression, anxiety disorders, ADHD can all be reduced with the help of a genuine nature experience.
Conclusion & Key Takeaway
If you have read this far, I am highly certain you must be thinking that urban life is not worth it as compared to the rural life of a village or the countryside.
I am not comparing two different lifestyles to see which is better and which isn’t.
I am comparing them so we can benefit from both of them. We can take what works for us and we can leave what works against us.
We cannot run against nature because we are nature.
A key takeaway from this story can be summed up in this single question — how can we be close to nature to improve our mental health?
I live in an urban city. If I can find ways to connect more with nature, so can you.
I have a few suggestions for you to get closer to nature.
- Go for a walk or run in a park or on a beach or near a river, etc. Don’t sweat yourself trapped on a treadmill.
- Take enough amount of direct sunlight in the early morning. It increases your Vitamin D and improves immunity.
- Get fresh natural air at least once a day. I call it the air wash. Your system will get a good amount of fresh oxygen among other benefits by breathing in fresh natural air.
- Visit a place filled with nature like a forest, mountain, or a village at least once a year. You can plan a trip around it like I did it to my village.
Even if you do one of the activities listed above, you will highly benefit from it and your mental health will be on a higher notch.
If you do it all of them, let me know and we will have a chat about your experiences.
I would also like you to share your experiences with nature or the countryside.
