Book SummaryThe Nature Fix, by Florence Williams

1-Page Summary1-Page Book Summary of The Nature Fix

Feeling stressed, depressed, or just generally unhealthy? Consider the last time you went outside. In The Nature Fix, Florence Williams contends that humans have an innate affinity for nature, and thus the antidote to many of our physical and mental ailments is a good dose of the outdoors. From the practice of forest bathing in Japan to horticulture therapy in Sweden and river rafting in Idaho, Williams explores how researchers are tapping into the healing power of nature—and what those of us living in the urban jungle can do to reap its benefits.

Williams is a journalist, speaker, and contributing editor at _Outside...

The Nature Fix Summary Humans Are Now an Urban Species

Williams explains that humans are losing touch with nature because we’re now predominantly city-dwellers, and this has impacted our health and well-being. In this section, we’ll discuss the change in our environment and how this has affected us, for better and for worse.

Humans Are Drawn to Nature

Williams explains the theory of biophilia, which is the idea that humans are innately drawn to nature. The theory posits that for most of human history, we depended on nature for food, shelter, and survival. Thus, our ancestors developed a deep understanding of the natural world, and our brains evolved to give us an instinctual need to interact with nature.

(Shortform note: The term biophilia is often associated with biologist E.O. Wilson. Williams explains in the book that though Wilson didn’t come up with the term, he did bring attention to the idea that we’re instinctively attuned to nature. Wilson lays out this theory in Biophilia, published in 1984. When asked in a [2015...

The Nature Fix Summary The Benefits of Being Surrounded by Nature

Now that we’ve discussed the detrimental effects of urban living, we’ll explore what the research says about how nature can improve our health and well-being.

Nature Reduces Stress

Williams writes that spending time in nature can reduce stress. Research in Japan supports this: In response to the high levels of stress and burnout in the country’s workforce, it has included the practice of shinrin-yoku (forest bathing, or immersing yourself in the forest) in its national health program, offering a network of forest therapy trails and facilities to its citizens. Walking through forests has been found to lower levels of cortisol (a stress hormone), heart rates, and blood pressure, and it also reduces anxiety.

(Shortform note: Despite facing various issues at different times and places, people seem to find the antidote in nature. While the Japanese introduced forest bathing in the 1980s as a response to its workforce’s mounting stress, the European Romantic movement advocated going back to nature in the 18th century as a response to capitalism and urbanization. Whereas forest bathing is meant to address ailments...

The Nature Fix Summary How to Improve Our Health and Well-Being Through Nature

Given nature’s many benefits, what’s a city dweller to do? Simply spend more time in it: Williams says the longer we spend outdoors, the more we’re mentally, physically, and emotionally restored. She recommends aiming for at least five hours a month, with small daily doses of nature at a city park. Spend weekends away from the cacophony of the city, and once a year (or every other year) take an immersive trip out to the wilderness for a few days.

(Shortform note: Williams recommends regular daily doses of nature and days-long wilderness trips, but more than 160 years ago, one writer took the more extreme step of moving to the woods for two years to connect with nature. In Walden, Henry David Thoreau details his time living in a cabin he built by Walden Pond, away from industrialized society. He describes how he paid attention to the natural world without an ulterior motive and was awakened, inspired, and sustained by nature’s cycle of seasonal change and growth—never mind that he was also sustained by the [dinners he often had in town at his mother’s...

Shortform Exercise: Spend More Time in Nature

According to Williams, we’re more stressed, mentally exhausted, and less empathetic because we’re not surrounded by nature. Come up with a plan to experience more of the outdoors.

When did you last spend time in nature? How did you feel before, during, and after your time outdoors?