Instead of ruminating on pandemic and lockdown, bringing nature-related topics in your talks, may it be a story, poem or your own experiences in nature, will help to reduce anxiety.
The adoring videos of little ones crying to let them out to parks during the lockdown days remind us of ‘Heidi’, a child fiction by Johanna Spyri. Heidi, the girl of Alms, who spent her joyous childhood in the green lap of Alms, started to display tantrums when taken away from her beloved beautiful hills to the city. Roving in her white gown in the nights, she often appeared as if she were a wanton ghost. Realizing the root cause of her unusual behavior, she was finally taken back to her beloved meadow in the Alms where Heidi bounced back to that cute lovely girl. The author also portrays Clara- a girl who couldn’t walk, starting to walk as she re-joins with Heidi to enjoy the fresh air of the mountains. Johanna Spyri has depicted how nature and humans are innately connected and how nature can soothe our minds. ‘Heidi syndrome’- the behavioral problems that Heidi manifested in the absence of nature is synonymous with ‘Nature deficit disorder’ as Richard Louv termed it in his work ‘Last child in the woods’. Both the terms grab attention during these lockdown days.
Being conquered and devastated by a very minute biological unit, humanity is facing a pathetic situation where the race, thought to be at the top of the hierarchy, has been in dismay for past seven months. Irrespective of caste and creed, it escalated dread all over the world. Apart from taking the lives of lakhs, this pandemic hampers mental health as well. While the uncertainties about the pandemic ignited anxiety, the enforced lockdown has catalyzed other mental health issues too. The majorly reported are changes in circadian rhythm, feeling of being secluded, increased use of substances (withdrawal symptoms for those who are not availed of) and the resulting aggression and cracks in relationships. Domestic violence, as reported by studies, shows an upsurge during the lockdown period. Failure to persevere in studies or any other activity is mostly reported among students. The current picture prefigures suicidal tendencies as an aftermath of the recession in all the spheres of life including unemployment, financial hardship and mental health issues like depression and post-traumatic stress disorders.
Though smartphones and other gadgets helped to be in touch with those far apart, being wired within the virtual world has furthered the frustration of youth during these lockdown days. Spending the lion’s share of our time indoors, we gradually get detached from nature. Many of the behavioral irregularities and the stress we deal with can be related to Heidi syndrome. Here the significance of nature (Vitamin ‘N’ as Richard Louv called it) comes to the fore. Nature according to environmentalists Ulrich and Kaplan, is a milieu to reduce stress and reinstate attention. Like Heidi, children love nature more than adults. Engaging them in activities like gardening will help them and adults as well to get relaxed. Lockdown has never, but technology, detained us from going out to nearby nature. Watching the break of dawn, its golden rays piercing deep into the eyes, with the playback music of cuckoo and an evening walk out through the hissing withered leaves feeling the breeze (which our industry has let free) will help to refresh ourselves. Instead of ruminating on pandemic and lockdown, bringing nature-related topics in your talks, may it be a story, poem or your own experiences in nature, will help to reduce anxiety. From the spider web to the prismatic view of dusk, the mystery of the natural world abounds to reflect on.
About the Author
Nature never betrays those who love her 💚
By the way excellent writing 👌