Suzanne Askham

From stress to bliss, by stepping outdoors

Recently I returned home after a month of travelling through some quite extreme climates. North Wiltshire, in spring, struck me as the very nicest place to be: the woods were greening, and many of the flowering hedgerows were postcard-pretty. The air seemed fresh and sweet – the perfect temperature and humidity. I couldn’t help thinking that we’re lucky to be far from wars here; and the most dangerous creatures are probably the adders that live peacefully at the bottom of a neighbour’s garden. Why would anyone ever want to leave? 

Roll on a few weeks, and the demands of everyday life have started piling up, like they do. Every task demands time and energy, like attention-hungry children saying, “Look at me!” “No, look at mee.” 

How on earth can you continue to appreciate the beauty of your neighbourhood when you’re feeling completely stressed? One simple strategy that I’m trying at the moment is to do something physical every day, preferably outdoors. Walking or running, yoga or swimming, spring-cleaning or gardening… there’s plenty to choose from. Physical exercise can be as basic as taking one step at a time, or even a few stretches on a bench. The key thing is that it literally removes you from cycles of negative thinking, right into the actual, amazing landscape that stretches out all around us.