What is Nature-Informed Therapy (NIT)?
What are Nature-Based Therapies?
Nature-based therapies are mental health interventions that use scientifically beneficial resources from the natural world as an integral part of healing and personal growth. Within Nature-based therapy, there are several modalities, including but not limited to Wilderness Therapy, Adventure Therapy, Ecotherapy, Ecopsychology, Horticultural Therapy, Animal-Assisted Therapy, Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy, Forest Bathing, and Nature-Informed Therapy (NIT).
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What Nature-Based Therapies are used at Outdoor Therapeutics?
Outdoor Therapeutics specializes in:
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Nature-Informed Therapy (NIT) emphasizes the importance of humans’ biological attachment to nature with a focus on increasing intimacy and a sense of stewardship of the natural world. This intervention can be used in-office, virtually, or in-nature and is often integrated with other evidence-based trauma treatments, such as EMDR, IFS, Somatic Experiencing, Transpersonal Therapy, and Mindfulness practices to enhance individual and group treatment outcomes.
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Horticultural Therapy (HT) is an ancient practice which focuses on interaction with plants and plant-based activities for mental and physical rehabilitation, skill building, and emotional health. This intervention is used in our outdoor garden-based programs and indoors with the help of our office-based horticulture station.
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Wilderness Therapy (WT) is a more immersive experience which highlights outdoor adventure pursuits with primitive or survival skills to enhance personal and interpersonal growth. This intervention is integrated with NIT as the foundation for our multi-day backpacking and hiking trips.
The science and philosophy of our approach
As western science has evolved its understanding of trauma, the role of human physiology as a central factor in mental health has emerged. Treatments that focus on reintegrating the mind-body connection, including EMDR and somatic therapies, have been beneficial to clients for whom talk therapy falls short. Despite these advances, many clients continue to struggle in office settings or find it difficult to experience safety, ground themselves, or to connect securely with their healthcare providers.
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At Outdoor Therapeutics, we believe a more effective and comprehensive way to build connections and address healing involves a relationship with the outdoors. This approach is supported by the concept of biophilia (humans’ innate desire to seek connection with nature). The Person-Nature connection is believed to be an intuitive and natural drive imprinted on our DNA. Studies have linked biophilic experiences with lower cortisol levels, lowered blood pressure and pulse rate, as well as increased creativity and focus, better sleep, reduced depression and anxiety, higher pain tolerance, faster recovery from surgery, and improvements in psychosomatic functioning. If we consider that mental illness is an adaptation to problematic environments, then increasing client access to restorative spaces (open fields, forest, gardens, and nature of the mind) holds an important key to improving human functioning.
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For these reasons, we work collaboratively with Nature as a Co-Therapist because of the experiences of metaphor, mirroring, mentorship, inspiration, and healthy attachment​ that nature provides our clients. Nature has an uncanny way of teaching us, reflecting back to us, role modeling for us, changing our perspective, enhancing our belonging, and wisely offering lessons about ourselves and the world if we are willing to listen and learn.