You thought they were “the one,” but they turned out to be the one who broke your heart. In the wake of a breakup, it’s natural to feel off-kilter. A part of your life has disappeared, after all, and you deserve to mourn it. Separations are challenging, whether they’re amicable or contentious. So how can you heal your wounded mind and soul after a split? Why not turn to the oldest healer of all — Mother Nature.
Embrace the Benefits
Even mutually-agreeable splits can create a ton of stress, and your adrenaline and cortisol levels might be off the charts if things got heated. It’s impossible to think clearly with that cocktail of tension hormones coursing through your veins. A getaway to a gorgeous natural spot can help you regain your sense of balance so that you wisely move forward instead of acting on emotion.
According to 2015 research out of the Netherlands, even looking at pictures of nature helped participants reduce their adverse reactions during a stress test. The same improvements didn’t occur when they gazed at city buildings. If you can head to the beach, even better. Many people associate even pool-based physical therapy with pleasant summer vacation memories, helping their muscles relax and recover from injury. If there’s a favorite spot at the shore you remember from your youth, perhaps a trip down memory lane can revive your spirits.
Have you ever noticed that you tend to get sick after an emotional shock? Sometimes, the illness is psychological — psychogenic fever can strike even without a viral cause. However, stress, particularly the chronic kind caused by months in a struggling relationship, can also prevent your body from regulating its inflammatory response. When this phenomenon occurs, it taxes your immune system. You become more prone to invading pathogens and often feel worse when you do get sick.
Once again, you can let Mother Nature heal your physical body from the pounding that psychological stress exerts on it. Research published in the National Institutes of Health indicates that those who participate in the Japanese practice of forest-bathing have higher numbers and activity in natural killer cells, a type of immune cell that seeks and destroys pathogens. The effects lasted for up to 30 days after a camping trip.
After a trying breakup, you need to soothe your mind and body. Mother Nature opens her loving arms to kiss away both pains.
Clear Your Mind From Connection Chatter
Today’s connected world can ironically make you feel more isolated than ever. Turning to social media to cope with your breakup could leave you with the impression that everyone is having more fun than you — and they’re experiencing it with that special someone. While you might feel happy for your friends under normal circumstances, now is the time to nurture yourself and avoid things that make you feel inadequate.
If you feel compelled to keep checking your notifications no matter how many times you tell yourself it’s a bad idea, why not remove temptation? Head to one of the world’s most remote glamping resorts where there’s no room for WiFi. The only thing you’ll need to use your phone for is taking photos to memorialize your journey.
Some people admittedly cope with breakups by throwing themselves into their work, but not everyone can function on-the-clock when their emotions are a mess. Unfortunately, over half of all U.S. laborers feel compelled to check in with work while on vacation. If your boss didn’t quite get the memo that you need healing, going off the grid is one way to keep them from contacting you during your downtime.
Heal Your Heart by Gaining Perspective
Nature has a way of putting things in perspective. When you stand on a mountain top overlooking the vista, you realize how small you and your problems are in the greater scheme of things. You need this outlook to help you heal.
When you feel pain, be it physical or emotional, it becomes your entire world. It’s natural to forget that the sun will indeed rise again tomorrow — it feels like everything is as over as your relationship. However, when you marvel at how 2,000-year-old redwoods can withstand a wildfire, you feel inspired to find a similar strength to endure in yourself.
This pain, too, shall pass — but it doesn’t feel that way in a breakup’s wake. Nature reminds you that no matter what, the world will keep turning.
Turn to Nature After a Breakup to Heal Your Heart and Soul
If you need to heal your mind and soul after a breakup, why not turn to nature? Doing so can help you recenter, accept the lessons you learned and move forward.
