How Gardening Can Help This Mental Health Awareness Week

Mental health is connected to every part of life, which is why mental wellbeing is more important than ever.

Being part of a strong community adds meaning to life, making it more enjoyable. Having like-minded people around you can help you feel happier and safer. This year, The Mental Health Foundation are placing an emphasis on ‘community’ to remind people that they are not alone. Communities present a strong feeling of belonging, providing a sense of purpose as well as safety and support in harder times. Connections help us to thrive, so finding the right ones can be essential in maintaining mental wellbeing.

Everyone is part of a community in one way or another, and so this year the focus is to help people realise the benefits communities can have on our mental health. There are many ways you can get involved with communities and ultimately boost your wellbeing: 

Enjoy your outdoor space -

Invite your nearest and dearest over to enjoy your garden in the summer months. Make your space relaxing and homely, play some garden games to get moving, light the barbecue and enjoy some good food together.

Grow your own –

Get your hands dirty and grow your own. Growing your own plants and flowers can be rewarding in many ways, being focused helps you to be present in the moment and pushes any stress to the side. Spending time outside in the sunshine will also boost your serotonin levels plus, any extra movement will get those endorphins going! Ultimately, gardening helps bring people together, chat to your neighbours and swap some tips and tricks. Further your connection with your community by complimenting their gardens, showing both kindness and appreciation to others.

You may take this to the next level, renting an allotment space where you can spend dedicated time on your plants and flowers as well as time with those who are also directly interested in gardening.

Community Garden Projects -

Alternatively, if you don’t have the space at home or want to take your skills further, there is always the option to join a community garden project. These projects will see benefits for you as an individual as well as your community. Benefits for the community include having a sense of ownership over your favourite public space because you helped to improve it, as well as creating a healthier environment for you and others. Transforming community gardens helps give run-down areas a new lease of life and in some cases, cleaner, greener environments can create safer streets.

Individual benefits, similar to those when growing your own include reductions in stress levels, as well as the ability to boost your strength, stamina and flexibility. Communities will form from the new people you meet, and you will learn new skills whilst improving your local area.

Visit Gardens –

Finding and discovering beautiful spaces and places can also see major benefits to your mental wellbeing. Spending time amongst the beauty of nature and wildlife, allows you to switch off from everyday stresses and relax. This can be as easy as visiting your local garden centre, and spending some time looking at the plants, you’ll probably even find some you want to take home.

Overall, spending time outdoors will clearly reap positive benefits for your mental wellbeing, and in some cases physical too – which is always a bonus! Through connecting with nature, you are also connecting with those around you whilst providing yourself with the ability to improve your mood, reducing stress, anxiety and loneliness. So, spend some time outdoors today, breathe, interact with your communities and let nature help increase your mood.