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Images of nature, videos, and sound of nature have a positive effect on wellbeing - increasing relaxation, boosting mood, and improving nervous system regulation .

Use this activity when you are indoors, or on commute, or recommend it to your clients as a do anywhere activity. This routine is best enjoyed with headphones.

Reduce Stress: Viewing repeated patterns (fractals) of moving water increases brain alpha wave activity [1] which promotes relaxation, a sense of wellbeing increased concentration and decreased mental fatigue. Using fMRI and other physiological stress measurements, researchers found that looking at fractals can reduce stress levels by 60%. It’s best if the fractal pattern is moving slightly, such as with water.

Increase creativity: Viewing fractal patterns is linked to divergent thinking, a key foundation of creativity. [5]  

Become community minded: Experiencing awe and noticing the beauty of nature increases self-transcendence, improving pro-community behaviours such as agreeableness, friendship and helping behaviours. [6] [7]

Blue care boost: Science is beginning to learn that our brains are hardwired to react positively to water. The sight and sound of water can induce a flood of neurochemicals that, increase blood flow to the brain and heart and induce relaxation. [8] [9]   

Decrease depression and anxiety: Increasing psychological measures of nature connectedness is associated with lower levels of poor mental health; in particular depression and anxiety. [10] [11] For example, a 2017 meta-review found that ‘noticing the beauty of nature’ (including water) is a key moderator in increasing connectedness and wellbeing. At Naturefix we use awe and beauty as one of our 12 gateways to increase connectedness. Other gateways used in ‘feel the flow’ include quiet mind, sensory awareness, meaning making, optimal nature and positive emotions.

Restore attention: Listening to nature sounds restores attention and reduces muscle tension faster and more effectively than listening to urban sounds. [13] [14]  

Increase eudemonic wellbeing: Breaking sensory ruts by listening to new sounds is a reliable way to increase connection with nature. A recent meta-analysis found that physiological measures of nature connectedness are strongly linked with eudemonic wellbeing (life satisfaction). [15]
 
Reduce mental fatigue: Gazing at the moving water reduces mental fatigue and increases soft fascination - key component of the attention restoration theory. [16]  

Boost immunity: Inhaling negative ions from running water and sunlight improves relaxation, boosts immunity and metabolism.[17]


References
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[1] Rawls E, White R, Kane S, Stevens CE Jr, Zabelina DL. (2021) Parametric Cortical Representations of Complexity and Preference for Artistic and Computer-Generated Fractal Patterns Revealed by Single-Trial EEG Power Spectral Analysis. Neuroimage. 2021 Aug 

[2] Taylor, R. P., Spehar, B., Wise, J. A.,Clifford, C. W. G., Newell, B. R., Hagerhall, C. M., Purcell, T., & Martin, T. P. (2005). Perceptual and Physiological Responses to the Visual Complexity of Fractal Patterns. Nonlinear Dynamics, Psychology, and Life Sciences, 9(1),89–114. 
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[3] Berman, M. G., Jonides, J., & Kaplan, S.(2008). The cognitive benefits of interacting with nature. Psychological Science, 19(12), 1207–1212. 

[4] Hägerhäll, C. M., Laike, T., Küller, M.,Marcheschi, E., Boydston, C., & Taylor, R. P. (2015). Human physiological benefits of viewing nature: EEG responses to exact and statistical fractal patterns. Nonlinear Dynamics, Psychology, and Life Sciences, 19(1), 1–12. 

[5] Antoine Bellemare Pepin, Yann Harel, Jordan O’Byrne, Geneviève Mageau, Arne Dietrich, Karim Jerbi, (2022) Processing visual ambiguity in fractal patterns: Pareidolia as a sign of creativity, iScience, Volume 25, Issue 10, 2022 

[6] Zhang, J. W., Piff, P. K., Iyer, R., Koleva,S. & Keltner, D. An occasion for unselfing: Beautiful nature leads to prosociality. Journal of Environmental Psychology 37, 61–72 (2014).   

[7] Greater Good Science Centre. The Science of Awe. 50 https://www.templeton.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Awe-White-Paper_distribution.pdf(2018). 

[8] Nichols, Wallace J., author. Blue Mind : the Surprising Science That Shows How Being near, in, on, or under Water Can Make You Happier, Healthier, More Connected and Better at What You Do. New York :Little ,Brown and Company, 2014.   

[9] Easkey Britton, Gesche Kindermann, Christine Domegan, Caitriona Carlin, Blue care: a systematic review of blue space interventions for health and wellbeing, Health Promotion International, Volume35, Issue 1, February 2020, Pages 50–69 

[10] Capaldi A., C. A., Dopko L., R. L., & Zelenski, J. M. (2014). The relationship between nature connectedness and happiness: A meta-analysis. Frontiers in Psychology, 5(AUG).                    

[11]  Richardson, Miles, Passmore, H.-A., Lumber,R., Thomas, R., & Hunt, A. (2021). Moments, not minutes: Thenature-wellbeing relationship. International Journal of Wellbeing, 11(1), 8–33. 

[12]  Zhang, J. W., Howell, R. T. & Iyer, R.Engagement with natural beauty moderates the positive relation betweenconnectedness with nature and psychological well-being. Journal ofEnvironmental Psychology 38, 55–63 (2014). 

[13] Gould van Praag, C. D. et al. Mind-wanderingand alterations to default mode network connectivity when listening to naturalisticversus artificial sounds. Sci Rep 7, 45273 (2017). 

[14]  Van Hedger, S. C., Nusbaum, H. C., Clohisy,L., Jaeggi, S. M., Buschkuehl, M., & Berman, M. G. (2018). Of cricketchirps and car horns: The effect of nature sounds on cognitive performance. PsychonomicBulletin & Review.  

[15] Pritchard, A., Richardson, M., Sheffield, D.et al. The Relationship Between Nature Connectedness and Eudemonic Well-Being: A Meta-analysis. J Happiness Stud 21, 1145–1167 (2020) 

[16]   Basu, A., Duvall, J. & Kaplan, R. Attention Restoration Theory: Exploring the Role of Soft Fascination and Mental Bandwidth. Environment and Behaviour 51, 1055–1081 (2019).

[17] Jiang, S.-Y., Ma, A. & Ramachandran, S.Negative Air Ions and Their Effects on Human Health and Air QualityImprovement. IJMS 19, 2966 (2018).