Natural Healers

Damer

Administrator
DAREBEE Team
Warrior Monk from Terra
Pronouns: He/Him
Posts: 559
Social neuroscience and social psychology research, in general, support that what helps us heal physically and mentally are (in no specific order):

  1. Sunlight
  2. The support of friends
  3. Sleep
  4. Dance
  5. Intimacy
  6. Nature
  7. Nutritious food
  8. Fun
  9. Movement
  10. Boundaries
Which of these are working best for you?
 

Sólveig

Well-known member
Pirate from Cabudare - Venezuela
Pronouns: She/Her
Posts: 1,506
"Ars longa, vita brevis"
It's hard to say. Sleep, Dance, Sunlight, Fun and Movement work amazing for me, but I believe Nature is the best. I always had a respect for all things related to nature, from watching birds to smelling wild pennyroyals and basil, but it wasn't until the night I've seen an Epiphyllum Oxypetalum flower go through its entire blooming process that I became afan. Then, in 2018, when I joined the non-profit, I sometimes help with the garden, and spend some time with the plants, and as recent as last year, I started to grow my own crops. Whenever my mental health is suffering, I always go to where the plants are. Even staying under the shadow of a tree, and simply do nothing but enjoy the breeze is enough to mentally recover.
 

lofivelcro

Well-known member
Hunter from the sticks
Posts: 593
"Tomorrow do thy worst, for I have lived today"
Nature, The support of friends, and Movement. Definitely. Those three are the factors that keep me sane, functioning, and in very good condition.

Not all that related, but I got reminded of the three Russian doctors: Garlic, hot baths, and wodka :LOL:
 

Sif_Shepard

Well-known member
Fighter from the Normandy SR-2
Pronouns: she/her
Posts: 519
"ad astra per aspera"
Sleep, food, and music are big ones for me, while sunlight and nature really help my wife. For nature, blue therapy works best for me, being in and around water, and green therapy, sitting out in the grass or amongst the trees, works best for her.
 

Nevetharine

Well-known member
Viking from The Depths
Pronouns: She/her
Posts: 868
Social neuroscience and social psychology research, in general, support that what helps us heal physically and mentally are (in no specific order):

  1. Sunlight
  2. The support of friends
  3. Sleep
  4. Dance
  5. Intimacy
  6. Nature
  7. Nutritious food
  8. Fun
  9. Movement
  10. Boundaries
Which of these are working best for you?
In order of importance -

1. Sunlight, Warmth. Like, 100 Degree summer days. I literally feel depressed when it's cloudy. Every. Time. Also, I believe I'm distant relative to a snake...cold blooded. My husband is currently sleeping with the fan on at night, whereas I'm sleeping with long sleeve clothes...and I can't wait to get out into the warmth of the morning sun.

2. Nature - Nature walks, hearing the sound of birds, just being around greenery and living things.

2.1 Animals - Cats and cute naughty parrots.

3. Music - Especially calming music

4. Movement - Yoga in particular

5. Nutritious food - it does make me feel good just knowing that I'm eating something healthy and nourishing. Which is often why I eat some - not so delicious foods - purely for the sake of health. (Like maca powder - yuck. Do not ever add that stuff to coffee - it's yummy in a peanutbutter smoothie though)
 

TopNotch

Well-known member
Ranger from Australia
Posts: 1,610
"Motivation is temporary. Discipline is forever."
Nature. As far away from other people as I can get (support of friends not so big for me!).
And Fun. An absolute definite!
Boundaries are very good too, but as a neurodiverse individual, I find that my idea of boundaries and the ideas of neurotypical people are very different. I mean, why do so many people think that if they haven't seen you for a while, they absolutely must hug you? Personal space, people!!
So for me, having fun in the Great Outdoors (I'll allow a bit of sunshine but not too much - I burn), far from other humans, and I'm a pig in clover! :LOL:
 

Nevetharine

Well-known member
Viking from The Depths
Pronouns: She/her
Posts: 868
Nature. As far away from other people as I can get (support of friends not so big for me!).
And Fun. An absolute definite!
Boundaries are very good too, but as a neurodiverse individual, I find that my idea of boundaries and the ideas of neurotypical people are very different. I mean, why do so many people think that if they haven't seen you for a while, they absolutely must hug you? Personal space, people!!
So for me, having fun in the Great Outdoors (I'll allow a bit of sunshine but not too much - I burn), far from other humans, and I'm a pig in clover! :LOL:
I share your views on people and Nature
 

Anek

Well-known member
Sorceress from Bavaria, Germany
Pronouns: She/her
Posts: 2,170
"If the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right and what is easy, remember Cedric Diggory."
Sunlight and nature work best for me. If I'm feeling sad, going out in the woods on a sunny day turns everything around.

Funnily enough, music for me causes the opposite - I like some music sometimes, but 99% of the times I'll choose silence.

Of course, good food, movement, and sleep are basics to be healthy, but for happiness sunshine and chocolate work better for me :happy:
 

Sif_Shepard

Well-known member
Fighter from the Normandy SR-2
Pronouns: she/her
Posts: 519
"ad astra per aspera"
For you sunlight people, have you ever used those therapy lights? I want to get one for my wife because she definitely has seasonal affective disorder and grey days like today really bring her way down and we live in a state with grey skies for nearly half the year. I want to help her and I've heard good things about those lights. We did have daylight bulbs in our house for awhile but we swapped them out for a softer light because she thought the daylight ones were too harsh for night even though they were kind of nice and did help a bit.
 

Nevetharine

Well-known member
Viking from The Depths
Pronouns: She/her
Posts: 868
For you sunlight people, have you ever used those therapy lights? I want to get one for my wife because she definitely has seasonal affective disorder and grey days like today really bring her way down and we live in a state with grey skies for nearly half the year. I want to help her and I've heard good things about those lights. We did have daylight bulbs in our house for awhile but we swapped them out for a softer light because she thought the daylight ones were too harsh for night even though they were kind of nice and did help a bit.
I wouldn't know about those unfortunately, I live in sunny south Africa. And in the Northern Cape province which is a semi-dessert anyway, less than 200mm rain p/year. So mostly sunshine, and very hot days. Thank goodness because your wife and I sound like we have a lot in common with the SAD.

I've read about those lights helping though. Maybe someone else can help with experience?
 

Anek

Well-known member
Sorceress from Bavaria, Germany
Pronouns: She/her
Posts: 2,170
"If the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right and what is easy, remember Cedric Diggory."
@Sif_Shepard , my husband had lots of trouble being awake and active in the morning, and tends to be affected similarly to your wife by winters.
I got him one of those alarms that slowly light up to mimic dawn, so that by the time the alarm goes off it's daylight in the room, but it didn't work.
Recently we started leaving the curtains half open and that has made a big difference. Our bedroom curtains are fully light blocking, and now in the morning it's much lighter even on rainy days (and I need to use a sleep mask because I like it dark, but that's ok).

So... I can't recommend those morning lights, but maybe you can make some other changes?
 

Sif_Shepard

Well-known member
Fighter from the Normandy SR-2
Pronouns: she/her
Posts: 519
"ad astra per aspera"
@Anek That's a different thing than the SAD light therapy lights. We had one of those too because I hate alarms but yeah it didn't work for us either lol! The therapy lights are like big rectangular desk lights roughly the size of a hardcover book from what I can tell. From the Mayo Clinic website:

"Generally, the light box should:
  • Provide an exposure to 10,000 lux of light
  • Produce as little UV light as possible
Typical recommendations include using the light box:
  • Within the first hour of waking up in the morning
  • For about 20 to 30 minutes
  • About 16 to 24 inches (41 to 61 centimeters) from your face, but follow the manufacturer's instructions about distance
  • With eyes open, but not looking directly at the light"

I've also seen recommendations of using it every couple hours through the day for 10-20 minutes as well. Basically it's a little desk sun you 'bathe' in as often as needed.
 

lofivelcro

Well-known member
Hunter from the sticks
Posts: 593
"Tomorrow do thy worst, for I have lived today"
Reading abotu the problem of @Sif_Shepard's wife, and I don't want to downplay them, but I can't help but wonder:
What happened to humans in the past 50 or 100 years? I know life today is much different than in the past, but the grey and dark seasons existed back then and I wonder how people dealt with it then. Was it a problem? I can imagine. But what did they do? Did they just accepted it and went on with their lives? Did we, somehow, got detached from life as it should be led as a human being? I don't want to go full Ted Kaczynski, but I can't help and wonder if technology isn't the end to all there is. I'm reading about so many problems lately, mostly health and psyche related, it's worrying.
In that regard, I think natural healers are an interesting idea. But I guess I have our conversation topic for this Friday night.
 

JohnStrong

Well-known member
Guardian from Alberta
Posts: 458
"No man has the right to be an amateur in the matter of physical training. It is a shame for a man to grow old without seeing the beauty and strength of which his body is capable. -Socrates"
  1. Sunlight
  2. The support of friends
  3. Sleep
  4. Dance
  5. Intimacy
  6. Nature
  7. Nutritious food
  8. Fun
  9. Movement
  10. Boundaries
Which of these are working best for you?
It's interesting to consider them under the umbrella of "healers". In terms of effectiveness, definitely #1 The support of friends, followed by #2 Movement.

The support of friends - nothing helps me be more present and attuned to who I actually am as a person than the in-person company of others. And it doesn't have to be friends. Screen-time, chatting on Discord is not the same IMO. When I spend too much time on my own (which possibly the majority of people do nowadays) I can start thinking and believing all kinds of things about who I am, which may not be tied to reality, and may be detrimental to my well-being. Spending some extended time with another person, in-person, tends to set a lot of that straight without necessarily addressing it directly. Two people sharing reality together tends to get both attuned to what is real. That's really good :)

Movement - OK, I'm back in reality - for better or for worse! But at least I have a better sense of who I am and where I'm at. Maybe I'd like to be a better version of myself? That requires change. Changing is hard, but it's made easier when we feel self-empowered. The fastest route to self-empowerment, for me, is maintaining a habit of exercising. Moving my body and pushing through discomfort is IMO one of the most accessible methods of connecting with my power as a human being.
 

Nevetharine

Well-known member
Viking from The Depths
Pronouns: She/her
Posts: 868
I personally think technology has a LOT to do with humanity's declining mental health.

There's too much stimulation.

Edit to add - Me not liking the rainy dark days has everything to do with light. Not sure why. It might actually just be because I find the sun naturally "nourishing". I want a lot, A LOT of sunlight in my days.

This may also be because I didn't grow up in a dark rainy place. Maybe that plays a roll? Whether you are used to it or not?

Edit to add again - Oh, and one other thing that gets me down is the fact that, without the sun, I can't tell what time it is. Sure I can look at the phone but it's like my brain thinks time is standing still or something, or just stuck at 6am or something because of the lack of light.
 
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Sif_Shepard

Well-known member
Fighter from the Normandy SR-2
Pronouns: she/her
Posts: 519
"ad astra per aspera"
For you sunlight people, have you ever used those therapy lights? I want to get one for my wife because she definitely has seasonal affective disorder and grey days like today really bring her way down and we live in a state with grey skies for nearly half the year. I want to help her and I've heard good things about those lights. We did have daylight bulbs in our house for awhile but we swapped them out for a softer light because she thought the daylight ones were too harsh for night even though they were kind of nice and did help a bit.
We finally got a Happy Light for my wife's seasonal affective disorder, and I'm happy to say it seems to be working well so far! It's been quite overcast for a couple days in a row and she has had the light on right by her face in the morning while she eats breakfast and she says it's helping so far, and I've noticed that she's not talking about being lethargic like she usually does in this weather. Yay! Still early days, but I'm really excited to see this continue to help as we progress on to winter! We live in a state in the us that is quite grey a lot between now and May, so this will be a big help for her.

:LOL:
 
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