Birding for Mental Wellness

Birding your way to well-being, article in Psychology Today

The year was 2015, I was working in a high stress job where I had little sense of agency as I worked within a public school setting with not enough resources and therapists to serve the needs of students in five high schools. It was starting to impact my mood, my outlook on life, and I knew I needed to make a change. I started looking for community education courses that might bring a spark back, get me more engaged in my life and out in nature. I found a course at my local community college called "Meet the Birds of the Sierra Nevada." I signed up, went to the class, and the following weekend I joined a bird walk as a follow up to the class. I ended that walk feeling optimistic, calm, as if my soul was smiling. I purchased my first pair of birding binoculars from our local Wild Birds Unlimited shop and that was the beginning of my journey as a birder. It wasn't until weeks later that I really took the time to reflect on how birding was affecting me, what it was about the activity and the experience that brought about such a positive shift. It was mindfulness, which is by definition "maintaining a moment-by-moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, and surrounding environment, through a gentle, nurturing lens." Observing and learning about the birds around me helped me to become more mindful, not only when I was out on a hiking trail intentionally looking for birds, but throughout my day, every day. For me, birding was the gateway toward leading a more mindful existence, one which has brought so much peace, stillness and joy to my life.