Exploring the benefits of outdoor therapy

Feeling Stuck in Therapy? Why a Change of Scenery Might Help

If you’ve ever felt like therapy isn’t quite “working” for you, you’re not alone. Many people reach a point where talking about their struggles in a traditional office setting starts to feel repetitive or even stagnant. You might leave a session with insight but struggle to feel real shifts in your body and emotions.

That’s because healing isn’t just about what we say, it’s also about what we experience. Our surroundings deeply influence our nervous systems, and sometimes, the four walls of a therapy room can feel limiting.

The Therapy Environment Shapes Healing

Imagine the difference between processing a difficult emotion while sitting in a chair under artificial lights versus exploring that same feeling while walking through the trees, with fresh air filling your lungs and birds chirping away. I knew that my conversation would feel different depending on the setting, whether chatting with a friend in a cosy café, walking together through the woods, or sipping tea by the shores of my local loch.

Psychogeography is the study of how places shape our thoughts, emotions, and behaviours. It can offer a fascinating lens through which to view therapy and understand how the environment shapes healing. 

In the field of psychogeography, the spaces we inhabit aren’t neutral: they hold meaning, memory, and psychological weight. A traditional therapy office, with its familiar walls, furniture, and structured sessions, becomes more than just a room: it transforms into a container for suffering and introspection. Over time, stepping into that space can prime the nervous system for deep emotional work. Still, there’s a risk it can also create an unconscious rigidity, reinforcing the idea that healing only happens in that designated setting.

Outdoor therapy disrupts this paradigm. Instead of engaging with emotions in a fixed, enclosed environment, therapy unfolds in a landscape that is open, dynamic, and unpredictable. Walking along a forest path, sitting by a river, or feeling the wind shift can introduce new sensory and psychological experiences that invite change in a way that static environments cannot. As clients move through different spaces, they may find their internal landscape shifting as well.

In Psychogeography and Psychotherapy: Connecting Pathways, different authors explore how movement through space impacts mental states, suggesting that changing location can change perspective, both physically and psychologically. The natural world, in this sense, isn’t just a backdrop for therapy; it’s an active participant in the healing process. A winding path might mirror uncertainty, an open meadow may evoke a sense of possibility, and sheltering under a tree during the rain could symbolise resilience. Nature provides metaphors, moments of unexpected insight, and a sense of agency that a fixed room cannot. 

Nature doesn’t label you as “broken” or “in need of fixing” 

In a therapy office, it’s easy to feel like you’re entering a space dedicated entirely to addressing your struggles. And to be clear, this can be incredibly valuable: the structured environment provides a sense of containment, offering a place where emotions can be safely unpacked, processed, and left behind as you continue your day. The predictability and clear boundaries of this setting can be deeply therapeutic for many.

While this structure can be beneficial for some, others may feel an unspoken pressure—the expectation that stepping into the therapy space means focusing primarily on what’s not working. Of course, this isn’t entirely reflective of how I work, as I also emphasise celebrating growth, achievements, and self-discovery. But unlike any therapist’s office, nature imposes no such expectations; it doesn’t assign meaning to your emotions—it simply holds space for whatever arises. This can be freeing, allowing you to explore emotions without the weight of expectation.

There’s no clear threshold between “therapy space” and “the rest of life”

Traditional therapy often happens in a contained environment, separate from daily life. The moment you step outside the office, there can be a sense of “leaving therapy behind.” With outdoor therapy, there are no strict boundaries: sessions unfold in places you could visit again on your own. This makes it easier to integrate what’s explored in therapy into everyday life. A walking path where a deep insight emerges can become a place of reflection, and a particular tree where grounding exercises were practised might later serve as a personal anchor in moments of distress.

Being outdoors invites more agency

In a therapy room, clients typically sit in a chair, facing the therapist, in a setting that remains the same session after session (or if you work with me from my office space in Glasgow, Scotland, we may move a bit around the room, too). In nature, therapy becomes more dynamic. Clients can choose where to walk, whether to sit or stand, how fast or slow to move. The environment itself offers choices: do we pause by the river, take a new trail, or stop to notice something in our surroundings? This engagement with the physical world mirrors emotional agency. Instead of feeling like therapy is something being done to them, clients are active participants, shaping their own process in real time.

What Is Outdoor Therapy (and How Is It Different from therapy in an office space)?

Outdoor therapy, also known as nature-based therapy, takes the principles of traditional talk therapy and brings them into the natural world. Instead of sitting in a structured office setting, sessions unfold in forests, parks, along riverbanks, or other outdoor spaces. This approach blends psychological support with the therapeutic benefits of nature, offering a dynamic alternative to conventional therapy.

While traditional talk therapy focuses primarily on verbal processing, outdoor therapy integrates movement, environment, and sensory experience into the healing process.

Therapy Beyond Four Walls – Why the Outdoors Matters

The environment where therapy takes place plays a significant role in the healing process. In a conventional therapy room, the structured setting provides containment and predictability, which can be valuable for many. However, for some, it may feel limiting, a place that primarily holds struggle and pain.

Nature, in contrast, is open, dynamic, and ever-changing. There are no fixed walls, no desk between therapist and client, just the shared experience of moving through a landscape together. This sense of openness and fluidity can create a profound shift in the therapeutic process. Walking side by side, for instance, can reduce the intensity of face-to-face conversations, making it easier to discuss difficult emotions. Being in a natural space also provides a sense of expansion and possibility, helping clients access new perspectives that may feel out of reach in a static indoor setting.

Outdoor therapy also fosters a greater sense of agency. Unlike an office, where the environment remains the same session after session, nature invites active participation: clients may choose where to walk, whether to sit and how to interact with the space. This mirrors the therapeutic journey in itself, reinforcing a sense of control and self-direction in the healing process.

The Role of Nature in Healing the Nervous System

One of the most powerful aspects of outdoor therapy is its ability to calm and regulate the nervous system. The natural world is inherently soothing. Research shows that spending time in nature can lower cortisol levels (the stress hormone) and activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for calming the body and promoting relaxation. Nature can invite a sense of openness and safety. Walking, breathing fresh air, and engaging with the environment provide a grounding experience, helping clients feel more centred and present. This physiological shift makes it easier to process emotions, gain clarity, and reconnect with one’s sense of agency—transforming the therapy experience into something that not only engages the mind but also nurtures the body and spirit.

Movement naturally supports emotional processing

When we move, we activate different areas of the brain that help integrate thoughts and feelings. In the brain, movement engages the motor cortex, which is responsible for voluntary movement, but also stimulates other brain regions involved in emotion regulation, like the limbic system (where emotional processing happens) and the prefrontal cortex (which helps with executive functioning and decision-making). As we move, whether walking, stretching or just shifting positions, our body helps us process emotions more fluidly. This is particularly important in trauma recovery, where the body often holds onto emotions in ways the mind cannot easily articulate.

Being outdoors amplifies this process. The natural environment provides an additional layer of support, where elements like wind, water, and trees work in tandem with physical movement to engage the body’s natural rhythms further. Just as we don’t typically remain motionless in the wilderness, our emotional states don’t stay fixed either.

As we engage with nature’s changes, our emotions are free to evolve, flow, and find new ways of expression, allowing for deeper integration and healing.

Outdoor therapy is about reciprocity

Outdoor therapy is not just therapy in nature: it is therapy with nature. By stepping beyond the walls of a traditional office, clients engage in a healing process that is embodied, expansive, and deeply connected to the world around them. Nature is not simply a backdrop for therapy, nor is it something to be exploited for our benefit. Instead, it is a partner in the healing journey, an active, dynamic force that offers insights, reflection, and growth. In outdoor therapy, we don’t extract or manipulate nature for our purposes; we learn to exist alongside it, respecting its rhythms and cycles.

The Gift Economy and the concept of mutual care

This concept is deeply aligned with the idea of the gift economy, where the exchange is not transactional but based on mutual care and respect. Nature, in this context, does not exist to serve us but rather to offer its presence, its beauty, and its wisdom in a reciprocal relationship. As Robin Wall Kimmerer beautifully writes in her piece “The Serviceberry – An Economy of Abundance” for Emergence Magazine, when we learn from nature, we are called to honour and care for it in return, recognising that true abundance comes from a relationship based on gratitude, stewardship, and mutual support.

Giving back to nature through connection

As we spend time in nature, we come to see that the act of getting to know nature is, in itself, a way of giving back. We begin to understand that, just as nature nourishes us by offering calm, clarity, and restoration, it is our responsibility to care for it in return. This isn’t a simple transaction; it’s a deeply ingrained respect for the environment’s intrinsic value and ability to heal and support life. By immersing ourselves in nature’s presence, we grow more attuned to the interconnectedness between our well-being and the health of the natural world.

As we nurture our mental and physical health through nature, we are invited to take concrete steps toward its protection and preservation. Working outdoors not only teaches us about the earth’s healing power but deepens our understanding of how caring for nature, whether through sustainable practices, supporting conservation efforts, or simply cultivating mindful appreciation, becomes part of our own healing journey. When we treat nature as a partner in our health, we naturally feel a responsibility to protect it, just as we would protect our own well-being.

Fostering Social Cohesion Through Outdoor Therapy

In addition to personal healing, outdoor therapy fosters social cohesion. When we engage with nature, we also engage with each other in a shared, collective experience. Whether in individual or group settings, being outdoors encourages connection, not just with the environment, but with fellow human beings. The natural world acts as a unifying space where differences fade, and the focus becomes shared wellness, respect, and a more profound sense of belonging. In this way, outdoor therapy helps create communities that are not only more connected to the earth but also to each other. By fostering social bonds through shared outdoor experiences, we contribute to a stronger sense of social responsibility and collective well-being.

Conclusion: Is Outdoor Therapy Right for You?

Outdoor therapy offers a unique opportunity to engage in healing that goes beyond the confines of a traditional therapy setting. By stepping outside the four walls of a therapy office and into nature, clients are invited to experience a process that is dynamic, embodied, and deeply connected to the world around them. The therapeutic journey becomes more than just a conversation; it’s an interaction with nature, where the physical environment plays an active role in the healing process. Nature does not exist to serve us, but instead, when we engage with it, we come to care for it more deeply, cultivating a reciprocal relationship that benefits both ourselves and the world we inhabit.

The benefits of outdoor therapy extend beyond mental well-being. Movement, coupled with nature’s grounding presence, helps to integrate thoughts and emotions, supporting emotional processing in a way that stationary settings simply cannot. This integration of body and mind creates a therapeutic experience that engages all of us—our emotions, our thoughts, and our physical being.

So, is outdoor therapy the right fit for you? While I may not have a definitive answer, I hope this blog has provided you with valuable insights into what outdoor therapy can offer, encouraging you to explore your inner landscape through a deeper connection with nature.