Many books and articles have been written about the benefits of gardening. I am a constant gardener myself having inherited the gardening bug from my parents. Gardening, however, has shown to be very good for us, if we ignore the sore back and the poison ivy. There are studies that show that a short time in the garden lowers our blood pressure and helps manage stress. Gardening is also a cardio and strength activity, as we move between shrubs and flowers, dig to plant new and move old shrubs. My husband can attest to this as I ask him to move some plants each spring and make room for new ones. We live on a hill so our garden is on a slope, making it an opportunity for good cardio. My mother who is 80, remains an active gardener (she even mows the lawn) still and is in excellent health.
I recently came across a book about Gardening Therapy – Receiving help from nature to heal stress and exhaustion (my translation, the original title in Swedish is: Trädgårds-terapi. Att ta hjälp från naturen vid stress och utmattning) by Patrik Grahn and Åsa Ottoson.
The book is a fascinating and detailed story of how gardening can be used as therapy for those suffering from burnout and exhaustion. It describes how the Alnarpsmethod (Alnarpsmetoden) was developed and studied at the Swedish University of Agriculture in Alnarp by Professors Patrik Grahn and Peter Wahrborg together with professionals in rehabilitation. The results of their study are very interesting. Most of the clients at the Therapy Garden had been on sick leave or disability on average for four years. After 12 weeks of Gardening Therapy and rehabilitation they were able to return to an active life, either for further studies, reskilling or work.
Gardening can help us recover from burnout and exhaustion as it is life affirming, creative, physical, and social. Perhaps our large corporate campuses could include therapy gardens where staff can garden to prevent stress related illnesses and burnout? Urban corporate campuses could build therapy gardens on rooftops, terrasses and perhaps indoors?
Time for me to water my tomato plants.
As a coach who supports leaders in challenging situations I am always looking for simple ways to help my clients thrive, stay mentally and physically resilient and succeed. This is the third blog in a series of blog posts where I share insights into how nature, plants, gardening, the sea and, mountains can help us stay resilient and thrive. And how it is not always necessary to leave your office to do so.
Follow my blog here:
