Where are you thankful?

Take a look around you. What do you appreciate about your space and place?

Gratitude and positive mental states become easier with practiced meditation. Meditation and mindfulness provides innumerable benefits where ever you are.  In studies investigating benefits of mindfulness and meditation, the list continues to grow:

Lowered heart rate, lowered blood pressure, improved metabolism, improved respiration, improved cognitive functions, longer attention spans and improved perceptual ability, memory, intelligence and empathy 1.

Meditation also benefits children. Credit: ABCNews/Kelly
Meditation also benefits children. Credit: ABCNews/Kelly

Your surroundings, whether a matte white wall, a small urban park, or a few plants outside your window, aren’t just a backdrop for activities. The places and spaces we inhabit interact with our bodies and minds in amazing and sometimes imperceptible ways.

Finding a place you appreciate and feel comfortable in matters. What if that space has trees, cacti, water views, or other natural features special to your area?  Research continues to expand on the mental and physical health benefits of spending time in nature. We are less stressed, more focused, and generally happier when we spend time in the outdoors. Urban green spaces, especially those small pockets of green you find hidden among your neighborhood, can provide a moment of peace and quiet.

Amazing Grace Lutheran Church Labyrinth in Baltimore, supported by TKF
The Amazing Grace Lutheran Church Labyrinth in Baltimore, supported by TKF, provides opportunity for meditation.

Several studies report that exercise and meditative activities in green spaces are more effective than the same activities performed in areas without 2. For example, one study investigates levels of self-esteem, anxiety and happiness of women in forest or indoor settings. The participants walked in both settings with intent to meditate or increase their heart rate. Meditative walking in the forest was the most effective at increasing measures of “happiness” 3. And in an Edinburgh study, participants took a short walk in urban or green spaces while connected to a mobile EEG recorder 4. The recorder provided continuous data on states of arousal, frustration, engagement, and meditation. The Edinburgh walkers experienced lower frustration, engagement and arousal, and improved meditative states when in the green space zone.

Although the science is still working to understand the extent of measurable benefits, coupling mindfulness practices with time spent in nature does provide benefits most of us will notice in real-time. Finding or creating a space to breathe, pause, appreciate and express gratitude can be challenging but worth the effort. Practicing mindfulness in an indoor, perhaps uninspiring space is worthwhile on its own, but don’t discount trying it outside too.

1 PubMed result for systematic reviews and meta-analyses of meditation and health outcomes.
2 Sternberg, E.M. 2009. Healing Spaces: The Science of Place and Well-being. Belknap Press: Cambridge MA.
3 Shin, Y.K., K. Jung-Choi, Y.J. Son, J.W. Koo, J.A. Min, and J.H. Chae. 2013. Differences of psychological effects between meditative and athletic walking in a forest and gymnasium. Scandinavian Journal of Forest Research 28, 1: 64-72.
4 Aspinall, P., P. Mavros, R. Coyne, and J. Roe. 2013. The urban brain: Analysing outdoor physical activity with mobile EEG. British Journal of Sports Medicine. (Accessed Online)