Nature Wellness Group Creates Healthy Connections

CRIS Health and Wellness team members host group focused on connecting with nature

This fall, CRIS Refugee Health Specialist Melissa Miller, Health & Wellness caseworker Zach Haldeman, and intern Krista Smith hosted a unique small group focused on pursuing well-being through connection with nature for recently arrived Spanish-speaking clients. Krista explains the inspiration for creating this group, “I come to CRIS with a background in education and emotional intelligence research as well as a passion for environmental justice. Together, these interests informed the creation of our interdisciplinary nature wellness group. From research, we know that simply being outside in nature can inspire more pleasant feelings, lessen anxiety, and improve overall well-being. For navigating the challenges and trauma of immigration and resettlement, nature can offer a calm and safe setting.”

The group’s overall objectives were:

• Reduce stress and cultivate well-being: facilitate immersive experiences in local parks to evoke feelings of awe, decompression, and socioemotional relief.

• Promote physical health: empower clients to engage in physical activity such as hiking to improve physical health and subsequent mental well-being.

• Foster connection and belonging: focus on the interconnectedness of nature that can help refugees build a new sense of belonging in their resettled communities, reducing feelings of isolation and displacement.

As the group recently completed its final session, Krista reflects, “Through education and vulnerable conversations facilitated during groups, we witnessed the restorative power of nature for clients and ourselves.”