I have been getting terribly frustrated lately.
We live in a culture that is utterly obsessed with “wellness.” Our feeds are flooded with the latest exotic trends – from cacao ceremonies to intensive, tightly scheduled retreats. We are told we need a dozen different subscription apps just to breathe, tension-release programmes for every hour of the day, or specialised bio-hacks.
But have you noticed how stressful “wellness” has become?
We are “wellness hacking” our lives to a ridiculous degree. We’ve put telephones in hot tubs (as witnessed on a recent trip on a guest pass to David Lloyd – shame on you for allowing it! Thankfully no-one swam in the gorgeous open air pool with their phones) . We limit our sauna sessions to 30 minutes express wellbeing, thinking that’s enough to squeeze into our jam-packed schedules (I do love a sauna, but some sauna owners out there fall right into the wellness trap by offering short sessions, when we need longer sessions to properly relax and slow down!). We cram ourselves into packed yoga studios in noisy, frantic spaces (Hello, Tribe Yoga). We plug in our earphones, blocking out the world, completely disconnected from the sounds around us.
It’s a phenomenon known as wellness washing (or well-being washing). Much like greenwashing, it’s when the commercial wellness industry packages, markets, and sells us complex, expensive “solutions” to burnout, while completely obscuring the structural, simple truths of what our minds and bodies actually need.
Don’t fall into the trap. The true solution to burnout, stress, and overwhelm isn’t something you can buy. It is right here, on our very doorstep.
Look at the Weeds at Your Feet
In the rush for the exciting and the exotic, we’ve forgotten the local. Why are we chasing wellness trends from faraway lands (ie Cacao Ceremonies) when we haven’t even met the nature outside our own window?
Look at the weeds at your feet. Those are the local plants we should be connecting with. True grounding doesn’t require a plane ticket or an expensive imported powder. It requires looking down, slowing down, and noticing.
Academic institutions and environmental psychologists have long studied what happens when we strip away the commercial fluff and just head outside. Research shows that higher exposure to basic neighbourhood greenspace is directly linked to significantly lower levels of depression, anxiety, and stress. It isn’t about luxury eco-resorts; it’s about the trees on your street.
Furthermore, a study exploring the mental health benefits of public green spaces found that simple, purposeful activities like walking, local conservation, or just sitting in a public park significantly improve mood and reduce neural activity associated with acute stress.
The science mirrors what our intuition already knows: wellbeing thrives on simplicity.
How to Reclaim Your Peace (For Free)
If you are feeling burnt out, let’s stop the noise. Just stop.
Here is your permission slip to rebel against the wellness industry this weekend:
- Ditch the Schedule: Take time to aimlessly wander without a schedule, without expectations, and without doing chores at the same time!
- Leave the Phone Behind: Our phones are certainly one of our biggest modern stressors. Enjoy a green space or a “blue space” (by a river, loch, or the sea) and leave the screen at home.
- Get Comfortable with the Silence: Listen to the sounds in your local park. Listen to the wind, the stories of the trees and their leaves, the whisper of a nearby stream or the waves at the beach.
- Connect Properly: Skip the superficial online wellness communities. Seek out real, like-minded company. Connect with friends, family, or make new connections with like-minded people!
- Find Wonder in the Small Things: Sit still in the woods and see what happens. Sometimes wildlife will approach you. Maybe take time to learn about a local plant.
Don’t Believe Everything You Think
When you are trapped in a cycle of overwork and anxiety, your mind will tell you that your problems are massive, complex, and require massive, complex solutions.
But you aren’t actually that permanently stressed-out person. Don’t believe everything you think.
Sometimes, a shift in perspective requires nothing more than movement, sunshine, stillness, and maybe a little bit of good company. Move your body, let your mind quieten, and find yourself again. Remind yourself of who you are.
True wellness isn’t a product to be bought. It’s a relationship to be reclaimed – with nature, with silence, and with yourself. Find wonder today, right where your feet are planted.
If you want guidance – book your WanderWomen experience today!
