The nature of good mental health and wellbeing

Tomorrow sees the resumption of international travel. The UK government has released its list of places we can travel abroad to. There are 12 countries on the so-called Green List (where it’s possible to travel free from many Covid restrictions). Have you yet given any thought as to where you might want to go for your summer holiday? I’m thinking we might stay closer to home. Whilst the choice is limited, taking a decision will be based upon many factors – how much the holiday might cost, what weather you are looking to enjoy and the type of holiday that suits you.

I live near a beach but have never liked ‘beach holidays’. One of my best holidays was walking the Coast to Coast Walk, but of course, people have many different ideas as to what makes a good holiday. The German philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche, one of the most influential modern thinkers, wrote his book, the Twilight of the Idols in just one week while on holiday in Sils Maria, Switzerland. His philosophy was (and for some still is) radical. The book was to serve as an introduction to his thinking and writing. The alternative title for his book was: How to Philosophise with a Hammer. I have to say I have found his work hard going at times, but some of his thoughts and words have stuck with me and have helped shape my appreciation of the world.

In this book, Nietzsche make the bold claim that ‘all truly great thoughts are conceived while walking’. Now I can’t claim to have many great thoughts while walking, but I would agree that walking helps me think. Indeed, I often conceive my weekly blogs while out walking. However, these days I sometimes make a note of my thoughts, as occasionally I forget the flow by the time I finish my walk! I walk every day and most weeks will clock up 40 – 50 miles. It’s my way of keeping active, both in body and mind.

Today is the last day of this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week. It is the UK raising awareness week of mental health and mental health problems and a call to finding ways to promote good mental health for all. Every year there is a theme and this year it is ‘Nature’. There is much evidence that comprehensively links taking exercise and improving one’s mental health. Research undertaken by the Mental Health Foundation noted that during the pandemic one of the top coping strategies was being in green spaces. Some 45% of the people asked, reported that it had been vital to their mental health and wellbeing.

That was certainly true for me during the first lockdown. Good weather and being able to spend much time outside in our garden was a brilliant way of dealing with the fear and anxiety of the unknown and the challenging pandemic restrictions. Sadly some 13% of people in England have no access to a garden, and getting outside for others, was simply too difficult. Undoubtedly, this will have contributed to greater feelings of isolation, loneliness and anxiety. Thankfully, many people up and down the land volunteered to ‘be there’ for and with others, perhaps doing shopping for people unable to leave their homes, or finding ways to simply check on neighbours and so on. Zoom church services saw congregations swell in numbers. The Mental Health Foundation noted that websites with webcams showing what was going on in zoos or in the countryside saw a 2,000% rise in logons.  

Despite the enforced isolation of the lockdowns, J and I were able to both enjoy our garden and get out for our daily ‘Boris Walk’. Although we kept to the ‘6 mile limit’ we were able to both walk to our beach and in the surrounding countryside. I think like many others, the quietness and stillness brought about by the lockdowns and travel restrictions absolutely meant I was more aware of my surroundings than perhaps I might have been in the everyday busyness of our lives.

It was a form of mindfulness that allowed for a much greater sense of being fully present, to be more aware of where I was and what I was doing, and perhaps more importantly, not to be overwhelmed by what was going on around me. Walking, and being able to do so outside in the countryside or on the beach helped protect and nurture my mental wellbeing. During a time when we couldn’t mix with our neighbours in the ways familiar to us, for me it promoted a sense of connection with my community. Of course, it didn’t mean I was happy every single day. Like many other folk, there were days that were tough, where it felt we would never again be living a normal life. But it did help both J and I become more resilient, and that was an important achievement.

Nietzsche argued that we should all try to gain three critical life skills: seeing (the ability to think before acting), thinking (best learnt in the way dancing has to be learned) and speaking and writing (being able to dance with the pen). Whatever the activity we choose, walking, running or even dancing, there is always something we can do to improve our wellbeing and protect our natural world too. Increasingly more people are growing an awareness of the damage we continue to do to our environment. Let’s all make our pens dance and raise a voice to ensure access to nature that is protected and cared for, is a mental health and social justice issue, as much as it is a sustainable environmental issue.