Head outside on this live nature experience, led by Forest Therapy Guide Alyssa Benjamin.
When was the last time you felt truly embodied and present in the natural world? Forest therapy—a simple but powerful practice featuring a series of guided invitations in the outdoors—can help you experience yourself not just in nature, but as nature.
Join ANFT-Certified Forest Therapy Guide Alyssa Benjamin for a virtual forest therapy walk in partnership with Sister Seasons. You’ll be invited to take your phone to a natural space near you and be guided through a series of sensory invitations that will help you deepen your intimacy with natural spaces around you and within you.
Along the way, you'll learn intriguing insights about the history of forest therapy, why we feel better when we're in nature, and how to let your intuition lead the way. Best of all, this practice will invite you to engage with the living world with greater awareness, curiosity and presence, and will leave you feeling lighter and more connected to nature.
HOW TO PARTICIPATE
To experience this practice, you will join from a natural space near you. This can be your backyard, a local park, or even from inside of your home (though it's preferable that you're outside). After you register, you will receive a link to join a Zoom call via your phone so that you can be mobile during the walk, yet still supported by your guide and connected to the rest of the participants. You’ll have the option to join either through the Zoom app or simply by dialing into the call.
You’re welcome to invite friends along, just make sure that each of you registers individually and joins from your own device. This is important to enable you to participate fully as invitations are done on your own, and there will be moments where we will pause for group sharing.
THE BENEFITS
By immersing you in natural spaces, forest therapy can help you feel better—physically, emotionally, and spiritually. More specifically, the benefits can include: boosted immune function, improved cardiovascular and respiratory health, attention restoration, and a reduction in stress and depression. While spending time outdoors consistently leads to the greatest benefits, studies have found that just looking at forest scenery for 20 minutes can lower the amount of cortisol in your saliva by 13.4 percent compared to being in an urban area. So imagine what is possible even in just our 90 minutes outside together!
TIPS FOR A GREAT EXPERIENCE
Pick an outdoor location with good cell service
Have your phone fully charged before we begin
Bring headphones that connect to your phone
Make sure to bring water, sun protection, and something to sit on if you’d like
Registration Details
Date: July 30, 2023
Time: 1:00 - 2:30pm ET (10:00 - 11:30am PT)
Cost: $40
Who: This event is open to all who identify as women and/or menstruators, 18 years and older.
Experiencing financial hardship? Use code FT50 to receive 50% off your ticket–no questions asked.
Limited spots available. All participants are required to agree to a liability waiver and release prior to participation.
YOUR GUIDE
Alyssa Benjamin (she/her)
Alyssa Benjamin is a writer, intuitive coach and certified forest therapy guide. As the founder of Our Nature Studio, Alyssa leads workshops, courses and retreats that invite people to build deeper relationships with natural spaces around them and within them so that they can become agents of change for themselves, their communities, and the planet. She also hosts a bi-weekly podcast called Our Nature, now in its fifth season and among the top 10% of podcasts on Spotify. Through Our Nature Studio, she’s collaborated with a number of organizations including: Usal Project, Good Move, the Center for Humans and Nature, Surfrider Foundation and Nowadays on Earth. She was recently featured in Vogue for an article about forest therapy and how it can help us heal.
FAQ + Disclaimers
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First, here’s what forest therapy is not: It’s not a hike, exercise or even your normal walk. Instead, your forest therapy guide will offer you an invitation, i.e. a prompt for interacting with the natural world around you. After each invitation, the group will reconvene to share out as they feel comfortable. Each invitation truly is just that: an invitation. They are not assignments. You are always encouraged to listen to your body first and foremost and do what feels right for you in the moment.
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You will need a device–ideally a cell phone–you can use to join the Zoom call from the natural space of your choosing, headphones, comfortable shoes + clothing, sun protection, water, and finally—your imagination and openness!
If you’d like to, you are also invited to bring tea (iced or hot) to drink and a notebook and pen to journal after the walk.
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There are a few factors to consider when choosing where to do your walk. It is best to join from a natural space where you’ll feel safe enough to close your eyes (we will be doing a 20-minute meditation) and explore the area. Please also make sure that you’ll have good cell reception.
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If your local weather prevents you from going outside at our scheduled time, you can absolutely still participate, even if you’re stuck indoors. We recommend finding a quiet spot near a window or having a few houseplants or natural elements nearby. Once you hear the invitations, trust your instincts on how to adapt them for your surroundings.
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Yes! We have automated captioning enabled for the live session. If there’s anything else we can do to support your participation, please contact hello@sisterseasons.com.
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You may request a full refund up to 24 hours prior to the start of the live session by emailing hello@sisterseasons.com. No refunds are available after that time.
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You are responsible for choosing your own location from which to join our call. Therefore, all participants agree and promise to accept responsibility for their own safety and well-being during this event. You may at any time opt to not participate in any part of the event should you feel that it is not safe, or simply that you do not want to participate for any reason.
In addition, our live gatherings are intended to be a safe space for learning and sharing. By signing up, participants agree to abide by our Community Agreements.
We reserve the right to immediately remove any participant from the Zoom room without refund for any behavior we deem to be unsafe, harmful, or disruptive to other participants.
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This offering is for educational and entertainment purposes only, and none of the information provided should be construed as medical advice. If you have concerns related to your physical or mental health, please consult a licensed care provider.