What Is Forest Bathing? A Gentle Guide to Shinrin-Yoku

A quieter way of being in nature

There is a particular quiet that exists in forests. The air often feels different, and the pace of attention begins to shift. Many people notice themselves breathing more slowly without quite realizing why.

This change can happen quickly. After a few minutes among trees, the sounds of daily life fade and other details begin to appear. Wind moving through branches, birds calling across distance, light filtering through leaves.

In Japan, this experience became the foundation of a practice known as shinrin-yoku, often translated as forest bathing.

Forest bathing is not about exercise or reaching a destination. It is simply the practice of spending time among trees with gentle attention, noticing the atmosphere of the forest and allowing the body and mind to settle into a quieter rhythm.

Over the past several decades, researchers have begun studying this experience more closely. The state-of-the-art review of forest bathing research suggests that time spent in forest environments may support both mental and physical well-being.

The meaning of shinrin-yoku

The Japanese phrase shinrin-yoku roughly translates to “taking in the forest atmosphere.”

The term was introduced in the early 1980s by the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries as part of a public health initiative encouraging people to spend more time in forests. At the time, rapid urbanization had changed daily life for many people in Japan, and policymakers were looking for simple ways to support well-being.

Rather than promoting hiking or outdoor recreation, shinrin-yoku emphasized slowing down and engaging the senses.

Participants were encouraged to notice things that might normally be overlooked, such as the sound of wind in the canopy, the scent of leaves and soil, the shifting patterns of light across the forest floor.

The practice invited people to experience the forest with presence rather than moving quickly through it.

Over time, this idea developed into what is now often called forest therapy, and guided forest walks began appearing in different regions of Japan. Today the practice has spread widely and is explored in many cultures as a way of reconnecting with nature.

A shift in attention

At first, a forest may seem quiet. But if you remain still for a few minutes, more begins to appear. Birds move through branches overhead, wind travels across the canopy, and subtle patterns of light and shadow change as clouds pass.

The longer someone remains in the forest, the more these small details become visible. Anyone who has spent time observing trees closely knows how much structure and variation is present once attention slows. Even in bonsai, where trees are studied carefully in miniature, subtle changes in branch structure or seasonal growth reveal themselves gradually.

Forests invite the same kind of observation, simply on a larger scale.

Why forests help us slow down

Modern life places constant demands on attention. Many people spend much of their day moving quickly from one task to another, often focusing on screens, messages, and deadlines.

Forests offer a very different kind of environment.

The atmosphere of the forest contains rich but gentle sensory patterns. Moving leaves, distant bird calls, shifting light. These elements hold attention without requiring effortful concentration.

Psychologists Rachel and Stephen Kaplan described this process as Attention Restoration Theory, suggesting that natural environments help the mind recover from mental fatigue (The Experience of Nature).

When people spend time in forests, attention gradually shifts from focused effort toward quiet observation. This shift may help explain why time in nature often feels restorative.

What research suggests about forest environments

Scientific research on shinrin-yoku has expanded steadily over the past several decades. Researchers studying forest environments have explored how time spent among trees influences several systems in the body, including the stress response, cardiovascular health, and immune function.

Studies have observed associations between forest exposure and:

• reduced levels of the stress hormone cortisol
• improved mood and emotional balance
• lower blood pressure
• increased activity of natural killer cells in the immune system (Li, 2010)

While research continues to develop, many people recognize the effects of forest environments without needing scientific explanation. The slower pace, quieter atmosphere, and presence of trees naturally create conditions where the body can begin to relax.

Forest bathing does not require wilderness

A common assumption is that forest bathing must take place in remote forests. In practice, the experience is often much more accessible.

Forest bathing can take place anywhere trees are present, in a neighborhood park, along a wooded trail, or in a quiet botanical garden. Even small green spaces can provide opportunities to slow down and reconnect with nature.

Research on urban green spaces suggests that time spent in natural environments, even in cities, can support mental restoration and stress reduction.

What matters most is not the size of the forest, but our willingness to pause and notice the natural world.

Beginning the practice

Forest bathing does not require special training.

For many people, the practice begins simply by spending time in a place where trees are present and allowing their pace to slow. Walking more slowly, pausing occasionally, and noticing sensory details in the environment often leads naturally to a more attentive experience.

Some people find themselves listening more closely to birds or wind in the branches. Others pause beside a tree long enough to notice its shape, texture, or patterns of growth.

These small observations are often the beginning of a deeper relationship with the natural world.

Returning to a slower rhythm

At its heart, forest bathing is a practice of reconnection.

Spending time among trees reminds us that the natural world moves at a different pace than modern life. Branches grow slowly. Seasons change gradually. When people spend time in these environments, even briefly, they often find it easier to follow that slower rhythm. In that quiet attention, many people discover a sense of calm that is increasingly rare in everyday life.

About the author

Dory Schrader is a Certified Forest Therapy Guide, bonsai practitioner, and co-founder of Bonsaify. Her work is rooted in the belief that trees have much to teach us about patience, attention, and connection. Through bonsai, guided experiences, and writing, she explores ways people can build deeper relationships with the natural world.

photos by She Buckley