[Matthew Nannis]

HEY EVERYBODY! I have been jammed up with my IRS response letter for nonprofit status and abruptly following/amidst that, find myself with no internet connection up at a post-conference-much-needed decompression session in VA where I was told there would be some access…so far have had to drive out a ways from this cabin to get this message up!

I am working thru some business/work/life balance (what else is new! haha!!) and will be able to catch up with my work for this program by the end of this week. I feel I owe an apology to you all for my inconsistency of late with fully showing up for myself, this work, and you all. I appreciate your inspiration and hope for your patience with me, too. As I ask for this of you, I ask it of myself as well.

I look forward to catching some momentum as I return to Asheville from VA and to showing up more consistently for myself and all of you! So excited to see everyone next month and get back on track with my focus/dedication to this specific portion of my journey–of our journey. Much love to you all and I will see y’all soon!

[Matthew Nannis]

I think the 8th principle, as presented in Theodore Roszack’s “Ecopsychology – The Principals. The Voice of the Earth: An Exploration of Ecopsychology,” best answers where Ecopsychology and Coaching come together for me:

Ecopsychology holds that there is a synergistic interplay between planetary and personal well-being. The term “synergy” is chosen deliberately for its traditional theological connotation, which once taught that the human and divine are cooperatively linked in the quest for salvation. The contemporary ecological translation of the term might be: the needs of the planet are the needs of the person, the rights of the person are the rights of the planet.

This synergy, this collaboration, this 50/50 lens which Michael introduced us to during our first intensive sums up so much of the content of my experience working with groups thus far. That the natural surroundings reflect what I am bringing with me as I enter into the baseline of the environment, that the symbolism and metaphor within the environment where my session is taking place, that the organisms within that environment are aware of and in dialog with my intention, my energy, my baseline, all speaks to the inherent collaboration between person and environment. This lens of connection, of healing/respecting/protecting/loving one being the healing/respecting/protecting/loving of the other, is the space in which the growth and development takes place during a nature centered coaching session, from what I have seen and experienced already in the program.

In reading further, “Where Psyche Meets Gaia,” perhaps Coaching is an intentional application of this dualism between the planet and the person, to stimulate an awareness of this connection for the purpose of goal-oriented growth. There is an underlying current throughout these readings that this connection, this synergy leads to environmentalist protection and support. While I do not disagree with this chasm of a need in our culture, I had not anticipated it as a central part of coaching (or of Ecopsychology for that matter). Possibly, my surprise and lack of this intention is why it feels somewhat prolific in the excerpts of our readings for this post; however, it is an eye-opening angle and has sparked an interest in re-establishing my personal collaborations with a local environmental protection nonprofit in the hopes of getting my groups involved with the protection and care of our natural environment. While this is a cause and necessary role for, in my opinion, us all to take on, I had not considered its direct correlation and relationship to Ecopsychology and Coaching as it is presented in these readings.

I have been so fascinated by the benefits of the environment on individuals such as those covered in Florence Williams’ Nature First that I had blinders on to what a symbiotic relationship actually means! I have been more interested in findings such as those by Yoshifumi Miyazaki (physical anthropologist and vice director of the Center for Environment, Health, and Field Sciences at Chiba University) finding that “leisurely forest walks, compared to urban walks, deliver a 12 percent decrease in cortisol levels…they recorded a 7 percent decrease in sympathetic nerve activity, a 1.4 percent decrease in blood pressure, and a 6 percent decrease in heart rate.” (Williams 23). I have been so focused on bringing my clients into their natural environment to promote connection and healing, that I have paid little mind/attention to the need for these same clients—and all of us at large—to become advocates for this source of healing and balance and grace! This call for advocacy is part of the picture as much as anything else.

[Matthew Nannis]

Hey Everyone! Have been in the weeds a touch with the busiest month to date for PIVOTPoint WNC! I will be finishing up my readings and engagement with this set of the work by Thursday! Love y’all!

[Matthew Nannis]

Hey Michael, Mandy, Ivy, Cohort (Carebears!) 18:

Y’all mind sharing what’s in your pack when you lead outings? From First Aid to snacks to cordage/tarps? Cheers!

[Matthew Nannis]

Melody’s words resonate strongly with me. I have been given words and other wonderful humans to reflect the interconnected state of nature and all of us that I was not aware existed. I had shared with the group upon arriving in CO that I was, in the context of my growing business, rather disenchanted with the human spirit, the drive to connect, to heal, to work in community. This foundation has rekindled my faith, drive, and focus!
From a practical standpoint, the information covered in the readings provide so much fodder for the conversations that I have on a daily basis surrounding the efficacy of the work that I am doing, that I know we are all stewards of. I cannot tell you how many times someone has replied in their “fascination with this so-called science…”!! It is empowering, comforting and exciting to have so many strong pieces of research to draw from.
I appreciate Kim reminding me of what Michael said up on the ridge, too! I also am seeing the nature connection in all things. When my parents visit; when I got to a book club discussion on Nature Fix (read that book, y’all!!); when engaging in introductory check-ins with the groups I am facilitating; everywhere!
The Foundations modules have supplied me with reinvigorated drive and passion to bring the healing powers of our natural environment, that sense of belonging and embrace, to what I believe in my heart to be a population desperately in need of not only hearing that they are seen, welcomed, and loved–but also feeling it…knowing it through experiencing it.
Let that m___er f____ng FIRE ROAR!

[Matthew Nannis]

Being connected to nature is about embracing the “Awe”. It is a phenomenon centered around feeling around knowing.

I was recently reminded of this fact, of experiencing this sense of Awe, while reading a local article in a regional magazine (Blue Ridge Outdoors) sighting the benefits of the natural environment and the impact on that connection on a biological level. The implications of which lead to strong signs of benefits to those struggling with traumatic pasts. The combination of nature as the healing container of this Awe, coupled with introductory exploration of mindfulness can have fantastic effects on the overall growth of clients I have the privilege to work with in my area:

“Most of our population lives in cities, and more and more we’re spending all of our time in front of screens,” says Craig Anderson, a postdoctoral fellow at U.C.-San Francisco and formerly a graduate student at U.C.-Berkeley. “Awe is an emotion that we feel in the presence of vast things that take us out of the context that we’re used to, and nature is really good at both of those things.”
Anderson and colleagues tested that ability in research published this past summer, examining diaries kept by whitewater rafters including college students and military veterans. Their results were striking: more awe-inspiring experiences outdoors can lead to improvements in well-being and stress responses, including those tied to PTSD.”

I feel that the benefits of this connection is further amplified by the readings from this assignment. In “Wilderness As Healing Place,” John Miles speaks to the most impactful benefits of the connection to nature—this resonating with the Awe provided by nature’s 50% (of the 50/50 we discussed in our initial intensive):

People experience an increase in self-confidence and tranquility. They come to feel that they can deal with whatever challenges the environment may offer them. [It is suggested] that these benefits are in part attributable to the realization that one cannot control the wilderness environment. (pg 45)

Kaplan and Talbot’s article referenced throughout this chapter by John Miles, PhD, speaks to the same powers of metaphor and reflection that we discussed during our intensive. That the natural environment feels real. That nature presents how the universe “ought to be, of the way things really are beneath the surface layers of culture and civilization.” (pg 52).
These notions help support why things simply “make sense” when out in the wilderness. Some magical combination of the physical distance from otherwise incessant distraction; the healing properties of actual protective odors, called phytoncides, exuded by the trees which speak to the legitimacy of Shinrin-yoku (Forest Bathing); and the ceremony of the nature-centered coaching process allow for establishing severance, space for experimenting with intention, and ultimately, incorporation in the client’s daily life.
As a nature-centered coach—as a guide—I have the responsibility and honor to support someone’s navigation of that. And, as I continue to work on my trust in the process that is before me, I even have the freedom to dance and play among the Awe and allow that with which I am seeking connection to heal us both in the process.

[Matthew Nannis]

Hey All, I’m getting in to this this afternoon! I have had a bit of a time playing catch up after travel. You’re all amazing. Check in quick in line with responses/reflections/contributions! ✌🏼❤️🙏🏼

[Matthew Nannis]

NADINE!!! 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻 Thank you for your words! I found your summary of takeaways powerfully reflective of my own. “Coaching is about drawing out intrinsic human resourcefulness”. Boom! (Not exactly a thoughtful reply/response/interaction, I know…I just had to give a shoutout!)

Navigating the chart of awareness between need and motivation and landing on a degree of commitment is the low-hanging fruit of active listening. I find this foundation has created a fascinating Venn Diagram of my own hats in working with clients. Prior to stepping away to VA for my first 2.5 sequential days of downtime in 2+ years, I was ready to sign up for Ecopsychology courses wherever I could find them. In fact, the readings for this foundation have inspired me to contact 4 nonprofit, conservation and environmental protection organizations in my area to discuss collaboration with my program’s participants. I am excited to explore leveraging my participants’ restorative experience in nature into some solid stewardship work–a direct result of the symbiotic presentation presented in our readings!

Now, having checked in with the video chat from this foundation, I am more acutely aware of my own need vs motivation in pursuing this work. I have one hat that is a Certified Substance Abuse Counselor. I have one hat that is an intern/student as a Nature-Centered Coach. I wear another, slightly more anonymous hat, in the recovery community in my home area. There are instances when I am approached specifically because I offer up work in the woods on the trails AND have other letters after my name. Perhaps potential clients are not quite ready to pursue therapy in an office setting and that my CSAC credential is as far as they are willing to go to seek out what was covered in the video chat as their current state of awareness. That, as Kim mentioned in the chat, there is a solid awareness of a lacking of some sort, and some considerable resistance or aversion to formal therapy. In that sense, I am thrilled to provide a safe landing space for individuals who may otherwise resist exploring that deeper need altogether. That said, I find it a genuine challenge to navigate, at times, a session where we both (client and coach) begin to drift out of nature-centered coaching lane and into CSAC lane. It is a situation that has presented itself with some consistency thus far and my current approach in addressing it is that of genuine, upfront, honest communication with the client. “We are veering out of our nature-centered coaching intentions here and I want to invite us back into that realm…”
The reflective listening, summarization, motivational interviewing…it all feeds and supports each modality I am now in the process of cultivating. I anticipate that, with time and experience, this navigation will become more comfortable and smooth. I keep hearing about the mentioning of clunkiness when we all began our dive into severance work in Gunnison. I am getting so jazzed with the content of this work, with the implications of how expansive the access points become when working with my clients as a result of engaging this material that I sometimes get overwhelmed with it all.
I know that it will all land where it is meant to and have set some intentions to apply some of the discussion questions that arose during this foundation’s video call to myself to truly assess where my need and motivation levels are at. That I might lean into this work with you all with increased dedication and drive.

[Matthew Nannis]

I appreciate your continued openness and honesty, Sheri! Always! I find that I have a similar reaction to some of the elements in the established/establishing validation of the work we do/are doing/are setting out to do. I recall being in a conversation with a gentleman here in Asheville who responded to a comment I made about forest bathing and the government-supported studies behind its benefits with something akin to, “Oooh, I will be interested to hear more about the so-called science behind what you are doing.” I found the response to be an honest perspective on his part, perceiving no malice. That said, I provided him with a page of studies from Korea, Japan, and more locally the work on biophilia and topophilia that I found through a super quick search through some journals. He later asked if I could dive into them to elaborate and validate some statements I had made through my own personal experience. Similarly to what I am taking away from some of your comments, Sheri, I simply told him that he was welcome to read the science/studies/stats behind these scientific, peer-reviewed journals, that I was too busy being out in nature experiencing it first hand and hoping to share the opportunity to experience these benefits with others to sift through all those words!!

All that to say: I feel ya, fellow hippie! ✌🏼❤️ 🙏🏼

[Matthew Nannis]

thanks for that idea, Ivy! I am ALWAYS on the lookout for Pro Deals!!! Good call! Anyone else wanna chime in on what y’all bring with you? Maybe it is a region specific question in that I have to present to the USFS what I have in the 1st aid kids? Dunno. I can provide a great list that I was able to gather from a well-established adolescent wilderness therapeutic program here in WNC if anyone is interested. Again, it’s a little more on the intensive side than the work that we have been experiencing thus far in this program; however, still valuable info to consider, I think.

Lemme know if y’all are interested and I’ll forward the list!

[Matthew Nannis]

Kim, I felt strong connection to the parallels you drew between our activities in the first Intensive and some of the content we are reading now. To me, it brings up a sense of appreciation as a result of having a personal experience with the natural environment. While I love that simple exposure to images of nature have calming, healing effects on individuals, I find that, through Nature-Centered Coaching, we have the unique gift of guiding an individual through an actual, tangible experience with nature. And, from there, can begin to cultivate and build upon a personalized appreciation. That, in turn, can help fan the embers of change, advocacy, and healing of our natural environment. It’s all about love. Respect. Empathy. That begins with connection. The spruce tea was TOTALLY an image that came to mind for me when reading these excerpts, too! And I feel that is largely due to having had that tangible, visceral experience with the activity. That engagement imprinted the messages that Mandy shared with us on a deeper level, one that I carry with me now. In many things.

[Matthew Nannis]

Melody. It is amazing! and terrifying! and satisfying! all the feels!