Emotional Regulation through Nature

Thoughts or comments? Send us a text!City life can be brutally loud, and sometimes the stress isn’t a personality flaw, it’s a nervous system response to an environment that never powers down. After a weekend at BookFest and a bunch of conversations with readers, we keep coming back to one practical question: how do you access the benefits of nature when you don’t live next to a forest or have time for big adventures?We tell a simple story about our puppy, Alfie, who struggles with the sounds of the city. On a trail at the edge of town, with trees, trails, and a sensory garden nearby, his body language changes even when the same motorcycle noise shows up. That shift becomes a clear reminder of what research keeps finding about nature therapy and ecopsychology: green space supports stress reduction, grounding, and better emotional regulation, often in small, repeatable moments.Then we get concrete. If you have houseplants, you already practice need-based care without judgment: light, water, soil, and the right spot. We borrow that logic for people and call it your “plant tag” a way to name what you need to grow and thrive. If you do not have plants, we share easy ways to start outside with a single tree, a park bench, a patch of flowers, or ten quiet minutes in the stillness.If this resonates, subscribe, share with a friend who feels overwhelmed, and leave a review so more people can find the show.Support the showBUY ME A COFFEE or SUPPORT ALFIE'S TREAT STASHLearn more about my book, Nature Knows: Grow and Thrive through the Wisdom of Plants HERE.Comments about this episode? Suggestions for a future episode? Email me directly at [email protected]. Want to be a guest on No Shrinking Violets Podcast for Women? Send Mary Rothwell a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/noshrinkingvioletsFollow me on Facebook and Instagram, and check out my website!