As every therapist knows, addictive behavior cannot
be cured by shame, because addicts are already deeply ashamed. Something
affirmative and environmentally benign must be found to fill the inner void.
Some psychologists believe the joy and pleasure of the natural world can itself
provide that emotional gratification. Some therefore, use wilderness,
restoration projects, or gardens as a new “outdoor office.”
“Nature heals” is one of the oldest therapeutic
method. Psychologists are finding new ways to apply that ancient insight. Over
a century ago, Emerson lamented that “few adult persons can see nature.” If
they could, they would know that “in the woods, we return to reason and faith.
There I feel that nothing can befall me in life, no disgrace or calamity… which
nature cannot repair.”
Why have
therapists made so little of this obvious resource? When highly stressed people
are asked to visualize a soothing scene, nobody imagines a freeway or a
shopping mall. Rather, images of wilderness, forest, seascape, and starry skies
invariably emerge. In taking such experiences seriously, psychologists are
broadening the context of mental health to include the natural environment.
They are hastening the day when calling our bad environmental habits “crazy”
will be more than a rhetorical outburst. The word will have behind in the full
weight of considered professional consensus.