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GREEN THERAPY for Seniors ( and you !)

By Shana Jones

It ’ s 3:36pm and I trudge through the regular afternoon energy slump to squeeze out the last few words of my article . The words come laboriously and tagging along , the mistakes . My brain drifts off to Nowhere but is quickly called back by a small voice saying , “ Get out of here for a minute and then regroup .” Through the front door of the office building . The sunlight hits me and I pause for a minute , taking it in . The breeze charges at me and pretty soon I ’ m on a brisk walk around the property , drinking in the fresh air and fresh new ideas . It ’ s almost like a drug , this getting-outsidefor-a-minute thing . Twenty minutes later I ’ ve come alive and my fingers are flying across the keys with renewed vigor and a happy confidence . Not realizing it , I ’ ve just given myself a shot of ecotherapy and gotten back my mojo . Looking at the word “ ecotherapy ”, it ’ s easy to see that it involves the use of nature in the healing process . For Barbados-based neurologist Toni Nicholls , it ’ s “ where ecology meets psychology ”: it involves bringing a patient in contact with nature to foster positive feelings and behavioural changes in the patient . It can include anything from taking a walk on the beach to looking at pictures or videos of nature . Numerous studies