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Uncovering The Science: How Green Spaces Reduce Stress

 “HEART! If you’ve a sorrow. Take it to the hills”

 Will H Ogilvie


 I love this quote (from the poem “The Comfort of the Hills”), because it encapsulates why our cottage provides so much more than a place to stay. There is a “je ne sais quoi” about driving through the Yorkshire countryside and up through the hills, where views stretch far beyond your capacity for sight, and leaves you wondering what other beauty lies just over the next valley and hill. 

You start to breathing differently. Deeper, longer, with a physical and mental release that only being close to nature can provide. It’s an environment untainted by commuting, pollution, noise and eternal ‘busy’ness’ of our (evermore) hectic lives. It is a world away from enslaving technology, and that is why it’s so cathartic and healthy. 

 




Why nature reduces stress


Forest bathing, or Shinrin-yoku, as known in Japan, is a famous way of spending time in nature. Research has shown that people who practice forest bathing optimise nervous system functions, well-balanced heart function, lower blood pressure, and reduction in bowel disorders. Walking in nature decreases stress and anxiety by reducing the cortisol in your body.



Why taking a break in nature is good for your wellbeing


Taking a break has never been more important for our well-being and health. Booking time away is a great way of ensuring you get that ‘me time’ that your brain and body so desperately needs. Our cottage will always remain an experience that improves people’s lives and is so much more than a ‘place to stay’. Whether that’s outside or inside we have provided everything you need (including all the small things that make a difference to your stay). Letting go of busy living and allowing the cottage and hills to look after you, will enable recharge and rejuvenation for body and soul. 

 And, for those that enjoy and understand the power of the Yorkshire landscape, here is the poem

“The Comfort of the Hills”


 HEART! If you’ve a sorrow

Take it to the hills!

Lay it where the sunshineCups of colour spills!

Hide it in the shadow

Of the folding fern;

Bathe it in the coolness

Of the brown hill burn;

Give it to the west wind

Blowing where it wills;

Heart! If you’ve a sorrow

Take it to the hills!

Heart! If you’ve a sorrow

Take it to the hills,

Where pity crowns the silence

And love the loneness fills!

Bury it in bracken

Waving green and high;

O’er it let the heather’s

Peaceful purple lie!

Trust it to the healing

Heaven itself distils;

Heart! If you’ve a sorrow

Take it to the hills!

 

Will H Ogilvie

 

For details on how you can book your breaks at The Hideaway click here

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