The Healing is Happening: Woods, Words, and the Power of Story

Naazh
8 hours ago
3 min read

Something shifted in me recently. My time in the woods offered the kind of healing that hospitals can’t. Don’t get me wrong — I’m grateful for the antibiotics that helped me fight a stubborn elbow infection. But the real healing didn’t begin until I was outside. Under the sky. In the company of trees and birds and still water.

Hospitals are sterile, structured, and necessary in moments of crisis. But they can’t match the kind of deep, integrative healing that happens when you’re barefoot on the earth, wrapped in the wind, surrounded by a world that remembers how to breathe.

I believe nature heals in ways we still don’t fully understand — but our bodies do. And it turns out: there’s science behind that, too.

Biophysical Benefits of Nature

Your intuition — that nature might be more healing than a hospital in some cases — is backed by both biology and spirit.

Lower cortisol: Time in natural environments lowers stress hormone levels.
Increased immune function: Exposure to phytoncides (antimicrobial compounds from plants) can boost natural killer (NK) cell activity.
Inflammation reduction: Studies show that nature immersion (even forest bathing in Japan, or shinrin-yoku) reduces pro-inflammatory cytokines.
Improved vagal tone: Being in nature supports parasympathetic activation — the “rest and digest” system necessary for healing.

🌿 Emotional and Spiritual Healing

The land holds you: Nature doesn’t ask questions, assign blame, or judge. It simply receives you.
Symbolism and synchronicity: The dragonflies, the hawk nest — these are more than observations; they are messages and mirrors.
Reclamation of power: Field-dressing a bear in sandals? That was no small act. Healing requires empowerment. You’re proving to your nervous system: I am capable.

Your Hope is Medicine

Hope is not naive — it’s actually a neurological and physiological tool. Positive expectation can literally accelerate healing. It affects neurotransmitters, immune function, even cell regeneration. So if I believe my elbow can heal without surgery — and I’m supporting it with rest, movement, smudging, herbs, prayer — why not?

Integrated Healing = Both/And

This isn’t about rejecting Western medicine. I took the antibiotics. I was hospitalized. But now? I’m giving my body a chance to catch up. To heal with me, not just be managed by others. I’m listening. I’m trusting. And I am co-creating my own recovery.

And Then There’s Voice

Another powerful medicine: being heard.

My Storyteller episode was just released, and I’m genuinely proud of how it turned out. For so long, I’ve been the one listening, holding space for others. This time, I let myself be seen. Fully. Not just the polished parts — but the whole, complex, gritty, holy mess of it all. Here's the link if you missed it!

If it resonates, share it. If it stirs something in you, I’d love to hear what comes up.

In case you didn't hear the original story, here's a link to that, too.

Trigger warning!!! There are sensitive topics including sexual assault and a suicide attempt, so listener discretion is advised!!!

Words Are Growing, Too

I’ve been writing. A lot. The book I’ve been working on — the one that braids generational trauma, personal healing, cultural reclamation, and the journey back to self — will be finished by the end of this summer. That’s a promise I’ve made to myself and to the ones who never got to tell their story.

And yes — a podcast is coming. A space for voices like mine. And maybe like yours. As a matter of fact, if you have ideas about something you'd like to hear, to be involved in, to share your own story, please reach out. This is about connecting. Let's connect. Raw. Rooted. Real.

This is what healing looks like right now:

☑️ Stepping out of the hospital and into the woods

☑️ Trusting my body and the land to lead the way

☑️ Sharing my story, unfiltered and unedited

☑️ Writing the damn book

☑️ Building something new — with voice, with vision, with heart

The healing is happening. In the woods. In the words. In the willingness to believe that I’m not just surviving anymore — I’m healing.

I'm glad we're sharing this healing journey together. Till next time...

Sending Good Vibes!

Naazh