Described as ‘an emerging field’ in mental health, the reality is that Ecotherapy predates both psychotherapy and the medical model. Put simply, human beings are hard wired to affiliate with other-than- human nature. Our disconnection from the natural world is disconnection from ourselves and is emotionally hurting us. Whether dog walking in Donegal or forest bathing in Japan, an impressive and increasing body of scientific evidence proves that connecting with nature is good for our mental health. Science is catching up with what intuition always told us, but we were too busy to listen; that nature heals.
In this session Michaela will share her professional and personal experience of ecotherapy and invite participants to re-evaluate nature connection as necessary for human emotional health. In keeping with the conference theme, she will discuss the ‘outdoors’ as safe spaces because they are both neutral and shared, so naturally dismantle power dynamics and hierarchy to enhance communication. Although best delivered outside, this presentation has been adapted for ‘ZoomTown’, and promises to be thought provoking, interactive, uplifting, and good craic.
Course Content
Presenter
Michaela McDaid; Professionally, Michaela was never drawn to clinical, caring or counselling settings. Believing in the power of education and self-determination, she has spent 25 years designing and delivering mental health training programmes to the broadest cross section of society. This career is underlined by lived experience of a bipolar diagnosis and ‘treatments’ of copious amounts of medication, counselling, psychotherapy and hospitalisation. She now understands her emotional distress, suicidal ideation and ‘psychosis’ as responses to significant trauma. Before she knew it was a ‘discipline’, Michaela intuitively applied ecotherapy to her own ‘recovery’. Within 3 years she was entirely medication free and enjoying better mental and physical health than she had ever known. She now works part time for Solas Donegal, a recovery programme based on walking, talking, and listening in green spaces and also has her own flourishing Ecotherapy practice providing education and experiences to facilitate people deepening nature connection for better mental. Michaela maintains that she is not the therapist – nature is.
