Walking & Talking Therapy

I offer ‘Walk & Talk’ sessions in the beautiful Kent countryside – a pathway enabling you to focus on your physical, mental and emotional well-being by combining the benefits of talking therapy with the well-evidenced healing powers of nature and movement.

Taking therapy outside and into a natural setting offers a unique and dynamic experience that can be helpful for all – especially those who feel confined, distracted or uncomfortable within the typical therapy room, those who feel they do not get enough time outside or incorporating movement into their busy lives, or those who simply feel most at peace and themselves in natural environments.

Many clients find that being in nature or moving around makes it easier to open up and discuss difficult topics. The movement and natural surroundings can help reduce anxiety, improve focus, and encourage a sense of calm, supporting you to think more clearly and gain new perspectives. Being outdoors can also enhance creativity, boost mood, and promote physical well-being, all of which can support emotional healing. Additionally, active movement stimulates the body, releasing endorphins and improving energy and state of mind.

A Therapeutic Approach

Research suggests that time in nature lowers cortisol levels (the stress hormone), reduces anxiety and depression, promotes relaxation, improves mood, helps with concentration, reduces mental fatigue, and supports better cognitive function. Studies also suggest that it enhances the immune system, lowers blood pressure, and reduces heart rate and inflammation, whilst increasing energy levels. So taking therapy sessions into the natural world has multiple benefits, and can deepen your therapeutic experience whilst improving your ability to reconnect with your true self.

All therapeutic approaches I offer can be incorporated into Walk & Talk sessions, which can also provide different stimuli to support practices such as mindfulness, meditation, and hypnotherapy. I can also integrate Forest Bathing, or Shinrin-Yoku – a practice originating from Japan that involves immersing in the sights, sounds, and smells of a forest environment, supporting you to slow down and reconnect with the natural world in ways that research has linked to improved physical, emotional and mental well-being.

I liaise with you to tailor sessions to your specific therapeutic goals and what you find most beneficial – but also in consideration of your physical, practical, and neurological needs. For example, you might require wheelchair accessibility, struggle with anxiety in wide open spaces, or find particular environments overstimulating, impacting your capacity to engage, feel safe, or focus. We will discuss any such factors together in advance to ensure sessions are supportive of you as a unique individual.

You are responsible for your health and well-being whilst outside. Although I do assess routes and spaces with due consideration of risks, I cannot control the environment or the dynamic factors that might impact upon it and your experience within it. On occasions when the weather is too poor to be outside, we will agree an alternative plan together, e.g., transferring to an online or telephone session, or rearranging to another day.

A client’s sense of confidentiality can be enhanced by being outside rather than in a therapy room or online but there can be additional factors to consider. For example, the potential that other people might walk past. I ensure I discuss with you in advance how we might best manage such elements, so we have an agreed plan to maximise your confidentiality and sense of emotional safety within sessions.