Spending time near bodies of water can reduce anxiety, ease mental fatigue and rejuvenate us. Here are some ways to soak it in.
“Water meditates us by taking away all the noise,” says Wallace J. Nichols, a marine scientist, whose work focuses on how blue spaces affect our well-being. “All we have to do is show up.”
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Remember that all water counts.
You likely have some close by, even if it is just a creek alongside the road. Start there.
Then branch out to water you can visit on the weekend or on a trip. Urban water such as rivers, canals and fountains counts. So do pools, bathtubs and sprinklers.
If you can’t get to the water, paintings, photographs, videos and movies can produce some of the same benefits. Choose locations that represent positive memories for you.
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Go often.
A little bit makes a big difference.
A recent study found that it takes about two hours a week near water to improve our well-being, which can be broken into smaller stretches. Scientists also have found that people who peered into aquariums had lower heart rates and better moods after just 15 minutes.
Try a water sport.
And get good at it.
This will help you experience a flow state where time, and your worries, fall away as you become fully engaged in what you are doing.
When you become proficient at an activity, your brain forms new neural pathways that become faster and stronger. This makes it even easier in the future to enter a state of flow while doing this same activity.
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Listen.
One of the most calming properties of water is its sound.
The water sounds people find most restorative are a rainforest with rain, a beach and a babbling brook, according to a study published in May by Mathew White, an environmental psychologist at the University of Vienna.
When the researchers added biotic sounds from living beings to the water sounds, people liked them even more. Make an audio recording of your favorite water. It will trigger happy memories.
Use your imagination.
You can spend time on the water anywhere, anytime in your mind. And when the water you imagine is water you have enjoyed in real life, the positive effect will be even stronger.
Produced by Leah Latella and Sam Kelly