Men's Health - UK (2019-07)

68 MEN’S HEALTH

06

WTF Is

Wilderness Therapy?

Swapping a session on the therapist’s couch for time in the great

outdoors is gaining traction as a tonic for poor mental health. Jo Roberts,

CEO of the Wilderness Foundation, explains

Spending time among
nature has an immediately
beneficial effect on your brain.
It calms you and can take you
out of a defensive position.
When we’re away from our
homes, away from our routines
and responsibilities, it’s easier
to find a new perspective
on issues that you might have
felt were too overwhelming
to address before.
People attend our camps
for all sorts of reasons, from
depression and anxiety to
addiction. Each day starts with
a group check-in, in which
people have a chance to discuss
how they’re doing, followed by
the day’s activities. We make

a point of choosing the most

beautiful locations: Dartmoor,

Scotland, north Wales.

One simple thing that can

be great for the mind is half

an hour of silent walking. It

offers an opportunity for quiet

reflection, which we rarely get

in our ordinary lives.

However, wilderness

therapy isn’t all meditative.

It can be uncomfortable, too.

Trekking, climbing, canoeing

• it’s all part of the therapeutic
  process. You can learn to love
  something that is challenging,
  or love the feeling of relief
  afterwards. It’s those moments
  when you push yourself
  harder than you thought
  you could that are the most
  transformative.

There are benefits to

“safe” fear. If you’re climbing

a rock face but you’re strapped

into a harness, you’re very

unlikely to come to any harm.

But the experience gives you

a chance to confront feelings

of anxiety in an ultimately

non-threatening context.

Something happens to

people in the wild. They

rediscover their sense of

fun – their sense of play.

It’s very levelling.

Roberts is a psychotherapeutic

counsellor with a background

in anthropology. For more

info and course dates, visit:

wildernessfoundation.org.uk/

wilderness-therapy

07

Can I Eat It?

The trend towards a natural,

hunter-gatherer diet has brought

foraging back to the fore. Wild cookery

tutor Stuart Woodman gives you

a firm grounding in the subject

01\ Wild Garlic

Spring is the peak season

for wild garlic, so forage

for it while you can. You’ll

find this common plant

in shady hedgerows and

woodland throughout

the UK from March

to June. It tends to be

milder than shop-bought

varieties, though you

can still differentiate it

from lookalikes by its

pungent smell. It’s great

in pesto. Look for its

broad, pointed leaves that

grow in large clusters with

small, white, star-shaped

flowers. Those are also

edible, by the way.

02\ Common Sorrel

This is easy to find at any

time of year, but it’s at

its best in spring and

autumn. You’ll locate it in

open pasture, hedgerows

and woodland, and the

flavour is bright, fresh and

sour, like green apple peel,

or rhubarb. It works in

both sweet and savoury

dishes, particularly soups

and sauces, but is best

used fairly sparingly –

large portions can cause

stomach upsets. The

leaves are arrow-shaped

with pointed lobes. A word

of warning: they look

very similar to the young

leaves of Lords and Ladies

(see right), so be certain to

identify them carefully.

03\ Wild

Strawberries

These may be smaller

than what you’d pick up

at your local supermarket,

but what they lack in size,

they more than make

up for in flavour. Wild

strawberries are intense,

fragrant and fruity. Look

for them from June

to August. I use them

alongside other summer

hedgerow fruits in one

of the beers I produce

(woodmanswildale.co.uk),

but they’re just as good

eaten with a splash of

fresh cream.