Six fears distracting you from a deeper nature connection

Six fears distracting you from a deeper nature connection.

How to acknowledge your fears and keep present for a transformative nature connection.

We hold a treasure chest of internal programming that propels us to connect with the Natural World. Reminders pop up daily with things we know we love: waves on a sandy beach, waterfalls, the colors of autumn leaves, and baby animals.

Everyone nods in conversations about my mission to help humans reunite with the land. Grounding in nature in ways that empower a renaissance of self-clarity resonates because we hold an ancestral urge to reattach our sense of belonging to our environment.

Even self-proclaimed nature cynics — the ones that joke about how everyone says they love hiking in Seattle — have their weakness for sunsets over their city, stargazing, or tending to a beloved shelf of houseplants.

And yet — as evidenced by a spiritual & emotional dearth of epic proportions — it’s still a struggle for many of us to find an earnest nature connection that grounds us toward healing, wellness, and awakening. If more of us were connected to our wild nature, the world would be different today.

A boardwalk is a great place to have a nature connection. In this case, there is new water on the cedar planks leading into a magic forest filled with fir trees, ferns, and abundant green shrubs and covering on the forest floor.

A practical mystic since age six,

I’ve experienced the divine sense of belonging and transformation from deepened connections with the Natural World. And I lead others into the wildness of their own lives to experience the magic of nature’s intelligence.

When my clients engage in a more profound nature connection, they change. Everybody changes. For some, this is subtle or delayed. For others, it can be a profound transformation. Although every experience is unique, the outcomes are derived from three core concepts:

A divine sense of belonging to something larger than ourselves.
Feeling the power of resilience — or empowerment to change.
Understanding a purpose that begets meaning and then joy.

Then why doesn’t it happen more often?

One doesn’t have to look very far to see the emotional, mental, and spiritual suffering in modern culture. This comes from generations of gradual separation from priorities that empower soulful nature connections.

And all of this sounds great, doesn’t it?

Who doesn’t want to break out of the status quo to realize empowerment, change, and purpose? Whether looking for healing, wellness, or awakening, at our core, we each yearn to reclaim our “essence” or “nature.”

A women who is part of a nature meditation retreat on the Olympic Peninsula walks on a trail while the sun shines down from above, catching light on a gentle green hemlock branch. She's facing her fears while working on a mystic nature connections. She's wearing an orange backpack and dark hiking clothing.

I lead 3-day nature meditation retreats on Washington State’s Olympic Peninsula.

They are a unique opportunity for people with busy daily lives to detach, restore, and transform — then return with new tools for finding nature connection more regularly back home.

The curriculum for this nature immersion retreat is built on six fundamentals developed over my life, leading myself and others into nature. Number three of the six steps is: “Keep present.”

Spending so much time in nature with myself and others, I’ve noticed some common fears that emerge to block the journey to nature’s magical realm. I’ve narrowed them down to six key distractions that prevent people from being present in nature.

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The Olympic Peninsula is a great place to immerse into nature, and in this scene there are thick green ferns next to a fallen Douglas fir tree among a forest of giant beauties.

It is natural to have fears.

After all, our hunter-gatherer ancestors were fearful of many natural hazards. So it isn’t adequate to say, “Just don’t be afraid.” In my work, we discuss fears openly to begin awareness, which usually immediately diffuses the power of said fear. So this article is about:

Accepting that fear is part of ancient human DNA. It is in our nature.
Acknowledging fear begins to release the power it holds over you.
Engaging nature’s intelligence for guidance and information about said fear equips you with mental, emotional, and spiritual tools to accept, acknowledge, and manage fear. And avoid moving where fear wants you to go.

Finally, before I go into the six common fears that prevent you from being present in nature’s intelligence, I want to mention that fear is fluid.

You may never experience some of these, or they may change depending on the day’s circumstances.

The point is not to dwell on your fears but to be aware enough to avoid moving where fear wants you to go — to a place of distraction where you are not present in nature. This is a constant practice, and I challenge you to look deeper into your wild nature to identify potential distractions.

This image captures three women on a nature meditation retreat finding stillness in the forest. Sometimes fear of stillness prevents people from keeping present while finding a nature connection. The middle aged trees are surrounded by green moss and there is a view in the distance of a creek bed.

1. Fear of stillness

This includes fear of silence and fear of being alone. Also, it can appear as a fear of not experiencing stillness (being distracted by others sharing the same space.)

This might look like someone using a smartphone while walking on a forest path. Or a person hiking in a city park with a Bose speaker blasting music. Some who feel too vulnerable and alone in the outdoors, might not even venture into nature.

The fear of stillness leads to a need to find or accept distractions in nature. For example, walking a pet can have many outcomes for a natural connection. The pet owner can focus on every stick the dog runs toward or be mindful of the stick and take action without allowing it to monopolize the walk in the park.

Many distractions come from external things that can be left at home or switched off and placed in a backpack. So do that. If you want to create media, wait thirty minutes or more so you can make a bond with the environment. Those uncomfortable alone in a forest might go with a friend but agree to keep silent while hiking. Or ease into the stillness by visiting a city park with a forested area that isn’t too much. For example, Seattle’s Washington Park Arboretum is well suited to throttle up or down seclusion.

Fear of stillness remedy

2. Fear of brain inaction

Also known as “monkey brain” or the need for the brain to constantly have a job to do. This is a close cousin to #1 — for people who claim they cannot shut down their brain. I’ve had my challenges with this, too.

Obsessing over something like buying a gallon of milk at the store after a hike can derail a deeper connection to nature’s intelligence. Probably due to constant daily life stimulation, your brain craves action. It wants a job to do.

Mindfulness. Which is much easier said than done. But here are several techniques that seem to work with clients:

1. Engage in active negotiation with your brain to be included in the activity but “on break” from the duty to perform. Ask your heart to take center stage.

2. Imagine the monkey brain item (like the gallon of milk example) as a tightly wound spring in your brain. Then, allow the spring to slowly unravel until there is no resistance and it just sits there.

3. Let the gallon of milk float through your brain like a cloud in the sky. Acknowledge it as a cloud and gently move it along the sky until it’s out of the picture.

4. When you start out in your nature experience, make an organic friend. Perhaps a tree with specially decorated bark or a bright new flower. Spend a few minutes with this item and create an impression in your mind. When you encounter fear of mental inaction, go back to this friend and allow the impression to fill your brain.

Fear of brain inaction remedy

Red berries cling to a bush on a hike on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State. The leaves around the red berries have large droplets clinging to them.

A bridge made from a fallen fir tree crosses a weakly moving creek on medium sized river rocks. There are cedar and other vegetation on the other side of this creek.

3. Fear of not knowing

This includes fear of not seeing or doing it all. Or fear of missing out. Or checklists and fitness goals.

This might look like someone rushing to see the waterfall because they want to go for the three-mile hike and then explore another corner of the park, all by 5pm so they can drive to another place to look at a renowned elm tree.

It can also resemble insisting on getting out a smartphone and looking up the type of tree because you need to know this now. If you’re trying to deepen a connection, why must you know what kind of tree? How does that help you form a tighter bond with the tree?

While curiosity and personal fitness goals can be beneficial in isolated instances, the fear of not knowing or the need to know is a common behemoth distraction from forming a deeper nature connection.

Select short trails or small parks to practice nature connection. For example, my nature experiences occur on trails shorter than two miles. In Olympic National Park, one critical experience takes place on a .75/mile loop, so there isn’t any incentive to speed up for the need to know what lies ahead.

Avoid interactive trails with placards because those may seduce you into feeling like you need to read the information to avoid missing out on something. Or, go to a place you’ve already explored and know the trails.

Fear of not knowing remedy

4. Fear of the present

Time travel to the past:

“This lake looks like that one at xxx National Park last summer.” or “I remember finishing that mountain climb back in 2015; it wasn’t that great.”

Time travel to the future:

I was on a trip once with a group of good friends. We were sitting on the porch of a rustic cabin overlooking an idyllic lake. And then, the conversation shifted to, “Where should we go next? What about next summer?” The phones came out, and distraction from any semblance of a deeper nature connection took hold.

Time travel to a different circumstance:

“Someday I’ll be happy,”
“When I win the lottery, I will buy a house on a lake like this.”
“This summer, when I have more time… I want to…”

Time travel can result from not feeling grounded enough in the natural world. So, work to get a solid grounding to be present in your natural environment. Pick up a rock or find a stick as a walking support, and when you notice time travel creeping in, feel the surface of the rock or the stick to remind you of the present moment. Work to remind yourself of the present scenario.

Fear of the present remedy

A woman walks between two large Douglas fir trees in a Pacific Northwest forest. She's wearing a black puffy jacket and light blue sneakers and an orange hat. The walking path is covered in fir needles.

Tiny mushrooms pop from a fallen log on a trail in the Olympic Peninsula. Focusing on nature's beauty is an important way to push away fear of perfection. Instead celebrating the imperfections of the dried up cedar needle and uneven lime green moss.

5. Fear of not being good enough

Also, the desire for external affirmation, the need for perfection, or wanting to look good.

In the modern day, social media drives a lot of this fear. We’re constantly marketed that we can’t achieve happiness unless we’re at a lake that looks idyllic, like [______]. Or the perfect beach. Or the need to have our friends and family see us in a particular light.

This fear is very distracting in nature because when the filter for beauty in nature is narrowed into a definition determined by the external world, you will miss countless opportunities for a magical connection to nature.

For example, by only looking at the “perfect” rose blossom, you might miss the slightly faded neighbor, who has an important lesson to show you about the beauty of aging.

Striving to find our pre-determined view of perfection in nature is a massive distraction from experiencing nature’s perfection… which is actually perfect imperfection.

Begin a nature immersion by forging a nature connection with the most imperfect organic item you can find. Perhaps a pile of decaying leaves on the forest floor or a shriveled-up sword fern with brown spots. Spend five minutes with this item, developing a better appreciation for the beauty in the imperfection.

Fear of not being good enough remedy

6. Fear of the self

Also, fear of examining your shadow: perceived weakness, failures, and challenges in daily life. It can conversely be fear of examining perceived success — usually for fear it will all be taken away if you’re too confident or ungrateful.

The journey to the liminal space in the natural world — where a powerful intelligence can transform you — requires seeing yourself clearly enough to be open to helpful guidance and information.

This is very fertile but incredibly tender work.

Fear of the self can rear its head as any distractions already on this list. Because they all block the ability to exist in your true nature. In addition, it might appear as a fierce desire to keep the internal conversation casual and non-confrontational. Or, conversely, as a punitive drive of self-doubt. Avoiding self-clarity is the most dangerous distraction at either end of the spectrum.

Engage the natural world for help. My remedy may seem simplistic compared to the volumes of self-help books, gurus, podcasts, and much more designed to give you the desired answers. But the reality is that transformation to joy from purpose and meaning only comes from venturing into the wilderness of your own life. Regularly practicing deeper nature connection is accessible, safe, and reliable.

You can read more about a framework I’ve developed to practice deepening your connection to nature by going HERE. If you’d like my help adventuring into the self-clarity of your wild nature, consider mystic coaching sessions or giving yourself the gift of a one-of-a-kind nature meditation retreat on the Olympic Peninsula.

Fear of the self remedy

Matthew Kessi stands for a selfie while facilitating a nature immersion retreat on the Olympic Peninsula. He's smiling, wearing a green hat and rain jacket, and there is a bridge crossing a babbling creek in the background.

This tile shows a historic lodge on Lake Crescent on the Olympic Peninsula with creme colored eaves holding flower baskets. The text offers a pacific northwest expert to help you with travel planning by booking a zoom travel counseling session. The lake is visible in the background.

Keep present to your nature connection while traveling the Pacific Northwest.

A lifetime of wandering about Oregon and Washington State gives me powerful practical wisdom to share about travel. And you receive the bonus of my unique mystic connection to the land. I can show you how and where to deepen in nature. This is perfect for:

First time visitors to the Pacific Northwest.
Locals hosting out-of-town visitors.
Those wanting to experience travel + nature + spirit in new ways.

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Learn what impedes, supports, and transforms you through Nature Meditation.

Are you stuck in the hamster wheel of daily life, yearning for change but unsure where to start? Are life circumstances overwhelming you, leaving you feeling lost and anxious? Is there a background static of uncertainty holding you back? Welcome to a transformative nature immersion retreat and guided mindfulness experience that will empower you to see your wild nature. You will forever be changed.

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Six fears distracting you from a deeper nature connection