“Each morning we are born again. What we do today is what matters most.” – Buddha

At Andrea’s Healing & Wellbeing Centre, we believe nature is one of the greatest healers. Eco Therapy (nature therapy / Shinrin-Yoku) and Mindfulness help restore emotional, physical, and spiritual balance.

Please make time to watch this: Meditation and Mindfulness on the Brain

https://youtu.be/ww95eFM9L94 (copy and paste into your browser if needed)

Mindfulness is simply bringing your awareness to the present moment—without judgment. NICE recommends mindfulness to help prevent relapse in people with a history of recurrent depression. Benefits include reduced stress, better sleep, improved focus, and greater resilience.

Join our free gentle nature strolls—make friends, enjoy a cuppa (the only cost), and soak up the health benefits of walking mindfully. Wear comfy shoes and bring water. Dates are posted on our Facebook page. Please don’t be shy—everyone’s welcome.

Meditation might look simple, but it is a skill that grows with practice. Use these steps for a safe, gentle practice at home:

• Sit on a cushion, yoga mat, or upright chair with your spine tall but not tense.
   
• If sitting on the floor is uncomfortable, use a chair with feet flat on the ground.
   
• Support your back if you have hip, pelvic, or back pain.
   
• You can also lie down if sitting isn’t comfortable.
   

• Rest your eyes on the tip of your nose, or a still object in front of you.
   
• Keep them gently open, softly closed, or half-closed.
   
• If closed, imagine yourself in a safe, calm space—somewhere that brings peace.
   

• Place your palms on your thighs, thumb and forefinger lightly touching.
   
• Breathe naturally. Notice the rise and fall of your chest or the feeling at the tip of your nose.
   
• Pay attention to whatever arises—tightness, tingling, thoughts, or emotions.
   
• Don’t judge or analyse—just notice, accept, and let them drift by like clouds.
   

• After a few minutes (or longer if comfortable), take three deep breaths.
   
• Inhale slowly through the nose, exhale gently through the mouth.
   
• Rub your hands together until they are warm, place your palms over your eyes.
   
• Interlace your fingers, stretch arms overhead, and lean gently side to side.
   

💡  Practise before stressful situations—work meetings, tricky conversations, or even those everyday moments when frustration builds. Clients have shared examples as simple as “losing the TV remote” or “wanting to say no but not knowing how.”

Walking meditation combines movement with mindfulness, helping you become fully aware of body, mind, and surroundings.

• Stand still with feet hip-width apart, weight evenly balanced.
   
• Feel the ground beneath you, solid and supportive.
   
• Slowly scan your body from feet to head, noticing tension, stress, or pain.
   

• Choose a space where you can take 10–15 steps before turning around (a park, garden, or quiet path).
   
• Walk naturally—don’t force speed or slowness. The aim is awareness, not performance.
   

• Notice heel touching the ground, then the ball of the foot, then the toes.
   
• Be aware of ankles, shins, calves, knees, and hips moving with each step.
   
• Notice how one hip lifts while the other drops. Observe, don’t judge.
   

• Feel the air on your skin, the swing of your arms.
   
• Listen to sounds around you—birds, wind, traffic—without attaching to them.
   
• Notice your emotions and mental state: peace, joy, calm, or even irritation.
   

• After a few rounds, stop and stand still.
   
• Notice how your body balances and how your mind feels.
   
• Finish by naming 3 things you are grateful for in that moment.
   

💡 Write a Mindfulness Journal after your walks. Record thoughts, sensations, and emotions. Over weeks, you’ll see your inner world becoming calmer and clearer.

Eco Therapy is growing in popularity as a natural response to stress and health issues that mainstream medicine alone cannot fix.

Research shows:

• 🌱 Blood pressure lowers within 3 minutes of being in nature.
   
• 🌱 71% of regular nature walkers report less mental fatigue, depression, and anxiety.
   
• 🌱 Eco Therapy boosts immune system function, cognitive health, and resilience.
   
• 🌱 Children with ADHD show improved focus and reduced symptoms.
   

1. Place your hands on the bark of a tree (or lean gently).
    
2. Close your eyes and take 3 slow, deep breaths.
    
3. Inhale love, hold for 3, exhale negativity—repeat 3 times.
    
4. Silently say: “I release everything that no longer serves me, back to the universe with love.”
    
5. Breathe in love, exhale negativity again.
    
6. Open your eyes and notice 3 things you are grateful for with all your senses.
    
7. Walk away lighter, calmer, and filled with gratitude for life.