Health & Wellness

Feeling Disconnected From Everything? ‘The Art of Being Well’ Says This 20-Minute Practice Changes Your Brain Chemistry

October 30, 2025

If your brain’s been living on iced coffee and push-alerts, you’re not alone. According to the American Psychological Association, nearly three in four Gen Z adults say they feel so stressed they can’t function, and more than half of millennials report being burned out on a typical day.

Modern life feels like one long group chat that never stops buzzing. You doom-scroll to “unwind,” overthink rest days, and convince yourself another productivity hack will finally fix it. But what if the solution isn’t another app or supplement—what if it’s slowing down on purpose?

That’s the idea behind forest bathing, the Japanese practice The Art of Being Well explores in a recent episode. At Ireland’s Dromoland Castle, host Dr. Will Cole sits down with yoga teacher and forest-bathing guide Caroline Rouine to talk about how a simple, phone-free stroll through the trees can calm anxiety, reset your nervous system, and help you breathe like a human again.

What forest bathing actually is

Forest bathing isn’t a hike or a workout. You’re not tracking steps, chasing calorie burn, or catching up on a true crime podcast while power-walking through the woods. “It’s called shinrin-yoku, translates as forest bathing,” Rouine explains. “People think ‘Oh, you’re bathing in a forest,’ but it’s like a nature walk. It’s walking in a forest and one thing you don’t do is you don’t run. You don’t have earphones on.”

The practice originated in 1980s Japan when doctors noticed something alarming: Tokyo’s overworked, overstimulated population was getting seriously sick. Anxiety, depression, heart disease, and suicide rates were all climbing. “They were like something has to give this concrete jungle,” Rouine says. Researchers started studying what happened when people simply walked slowly through forests, and the results were so compelling that Japan now prescribes it as actual medicine.

“They take twice a week a 20-minute break and they go out to the gardens, they go out to forest, they take a walk,” Rouine says. Not optional wellness fluff, but mandatory medical intervention. “Seventy-five percent of Japan is covered in forests,” she explains, and the government has designated official forest therapy bases where doctors send patients before reaching for prescription pads.

“There’s no distractions, meaning no phones,” Rouine emphasizes. “It’s so tempting to take a picture, but that’s like take a picture with your eyes.” You’re supposed to smell things, touch bark, listen to birds, feel the temperature shift under a canopy. The slower, the better. If you’re thinking about your to-do list or mentally composing an Instagram caption, you’re doing it wrong.

The science that’ll make you want to hug a tree

“The trees bring out these essential oils called phytoncides,” Rouine explains. They’re natural compounds trees release to protect themselves—and apparently, they’re pretty great for us too. When you breathe them in during a slow walk through the woods, studies show your stress levels drop and your immune system perks up in response.

Cole points out that nature even changes what’s happening in your gut. “I saw a study on kids, forest bathing classes, and it’s shifting their microbiome and actually raising certain bacteria in their gut that are better at releasing and stimulating serotonin production,” he says. Basically, spending time outside helps your body regulate mood and stress the way it’s supposed to.

And that calming effect kicks in fast. “Your heart rate starts to slow down, your breathing starts to slow down, you start to see colors that you didn’t see before.” She’s not exaggerating—studies consistently find that time in nature lowers cortisol, eases blood pressure, and improves heart rate variability, all signs of your body moving from fight-or-flight into rest-and-recover mode.

No forest? No problem

Most of us don’t live near a serene Japanese forest—and that’s fine. Maybe your “green space” is a city park with two trees and a squirrel. Maybe it’s a windowsill plant that’s hanging on for dear life. Doesn’t matter. You can still get the benefits.

If you have any access to the outdoors

Leave your phone at home or switch it to airplane mode. Walk slowly. Touch things. “The power of a tree, the texture of a tree, holding a tree, hugging a tree, because I do hug trees,” Rouine says. Close your eyes. Listen. Smell the air. If there’s dirt, get your hands in it. “That soil microbiome is a powerful medicine,” Cole points out. In other words, the dirt’s alive, and a little exposure helps your immune system thrive.

If you’re stuck inside

Essential oils are your forest in a bottle. “Definitely essential oils number one,” Rouine says. “Like pine or lavender is an obvious one for everybody.” Her DIY hack is to pour a little oil into a tall glass, drop in bamboo or twigs, add a splash of vodka (it helps it diffuse), and flip the sticks weekly. Instant forest vibes for under ten bucks.

Houseplants count too. “Loads of plants in the home like peace plant, spider plant, bamboo,” Rouine says. NASA even studied which plants clean the air best, so you can turn your apartment into a tiny rainforest with scientific backing.

No greenery? No problem

Even pictures work. “I’ve seen studies where even pictures of nature can have a similar effect,” Cole says. Rouine agrees: “A picture on a wall and greens and blues are quite calming.” Your nervous system reads green as safety, even if it’s just your phone wallpaper.

The mindset shift

Treat this like brushing your teeth—daily, non-negotiable maintenance. “You have to give yourself five to 20 minutes a day and it seems impossible for anybody to do it, but it’s for you,” Rouine says. “It helps you be a better person and it helps you talk to people a different way.”

Find one spot that feels good: a corner in your apartment, a bench, a patch of grass. Make it your decompression zone. No multitasking. No background noise. Just sit, notice what your senses pick up, and remember: your body knows how to rest if you give it the space to.

For more insights, tune into The Art of Being Well with Dr. Will Cole, streaming now on all major podcast platforms.