World Mental Health Day

World Mental Health Day 2019: Can caravanning help with mental health?

We all know the calming effect getting back to nature can have. The fresh air, switching off from technology, spending time with loved ones. As today is World Mental Health Day, we decided to do some research to find out if there is a link between getting back to nature and better mental health. We surveyed 1,000 Brits and found that a third of us feel that camping or caravanning has had a very positive impact on our mental health. Also, 22% of us believe nature holidays have a positive effect on our physical health, and 12% of us believe it has helped us to become closer to our family.

How can being in nature help with mental health?

Our research also showed that 70% of people believe “outside therapy” should be prescribed on the NHS to people suffering from depression or anxiety. Sometimes called “forest bathing”, outside therapy is the practice of spending time in nature and practicing mindfulness in the great outdoors. Research suggests that this could calm those who feel stressed or anxious and help people (especially children) fight the “always-on” culture promoted by social media.

A recent government study found that people who spend more time in nature are significantly more likely to report good health and higher psychological wellbeing than those who don’t visit nature at all. Places like The Woodland Trust are now campaigning for the NHS to encourage more patients to spend prolonged periods of time outdoors.

Our research found that those based in London and Manchester were most enthusiastic about outside therapy (82% and 80% respectively) perhaps showing that those in larger cities crave the calming effects of prolonged time in nature more than others. Only 54% of people in Southampton thought prescribing outdoor therapy was a good thing, alongside 57% of people in Norwich.

The healing powers of caravanning

When it comes to experiencing nature, the UK public agree that camping and caravanning is one of the best ways to do it. 93% of people believe that a caravanning holiday is “calming”, 44% think its “family-friendly” and 93% think its “affordable”. However, only 8% of the UK public would call it “glamorous”, and only 14% would describe caravan holidays as “modern”.

Those aged between 35-44 seem to believe in the healing powers of caravanning the most (44%), with those aged 65+ the most sceptical (20%). Surprisingly, the younger generation (18-24) are very enthusiastic about spending time in nature, with 27% believing a caravan holiday has helped them become closer to their family, 31% believing it has had a positive effect on their physical health, with 40% wishing they could caravan more often.

Mental and Physical effects

Fitness Coach Amy Elisabeth believes in the physical benefits of prolonged periods of time outside.

She says: “Spending time outside increases our Vitamin D levels and balances our Melatonin levels. Vitamin D helps regulate the calcium and phosphate in our bodies and melatonin regulates our sleeping cycle, so both are very important when it comes to the feeling of well-being. “With fewer modern-day distractions (such as watching tv just before bed), people get better sleep as well, helping with their overall health.”

Our Managing Director, Katie Fishwick, can see why so many people find being in nature relaxing:

“We all feel the benefits of relaxing outdoors when we do it, but it’s often hard to make time in our busy schedules to really get immersed in nature.

“It’s great to see how many people are getting behind the healing benefits of outdoor therapy, and perhaps if it was prescribed, people would take more time to connect with the outdoors.

“Caravanning and camping are shedding their out-dated reputations and rightfully being seen as a wonderful way of relaxing, switching off, and connecting with ourselves and our families.”

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