Wild Wellbeing Nature Natal and Little Hummingbird Forest School

I took part in ‘Whatever the Weather’ walking challenge November 2022, and loved it!

I have been fascinated by the comfort of trees, wild wellbeing and forest bathing (Shinrin-Yoku) since I started training to become a wild wellbeing practitioner in 2020. It has been an interesting journey and one that was sparked by my clinical fertility practice. I was asked by one of my fertility clients what I did I do for babies, it got me thinking and ‘Little Hummingbird’ was born as I studied my first wild wellbeing course.

It had a clear correlation with touch therapy, baby wearing, meditation and aromatherapy.

Trees produce a botanical cocktail of compounds that soothe our autonomic nervous system. These compounds are a blend of essential oils called phytoncides and aromatic terpenes, the trees diffuse it between each other to attract pollinators and to defend against fungi, insects and bacteria. As we walk through the woods and forests, we breath these in and absorb them throughout our pores. It is this phytocide absorption and the soothing sights and sounds that send electromagnetic signals to our brain particularly the hypothalamus.

This reduces the stress response that adrenaline and cortisol produces and encourages the rest and digest response instead. This produces dopamine and serotonin a neurotransmitter that is reasonable for regulating a good mood. Perfect to extend my practice into supporting my clients after conception, right up to the 4th trimester and into infancy for parent and child.

The whatever the weather outside challenge was ideal to give me a deeper understanding of how I can lead a group no matter the time of year and helped me consider how to make adaptions for each season. I am pleased to say I am launching Little Hummingbird the littlest forest school in spring 2023 and it will have classes through each season, as I experienced a magical time in November with my infant granddaughter and husband!

I will be introducing nature natal wellbeing classes, tree babies and little growers and farmyard classes.

Jane Connor, MFHT and Joint Coordinator of the Wigan and Leigh Local support Group was featured in the SPRING 2023 International therapist (FHT.ORG.UK) in the member spotlight as 'going above and

beyond in the industry' and her article was published in members news.

Find Out More About Little Hummingbird!

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Jane Connor MFHT is the founding director of Hummingbird Holistics and Little Hummingbird. She has a background as a Complementary Therapy lecturer, Resilience wellbeing coach in private healthcare and has a clinical private practice.