Marin County Outdoor Therapy
Wise Psychology is headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area and our clinician's have access to some of the most beautiful and accessible outdoor space in the world.
If you live in the area, Wise Psychology offers an option for Outdoor Therapy, a very popular way to combine in person treatment, safe social distancing, and increase your exercise and body health.
How it works
Each of our therapists at Wise Psychology Incorporated have days and times set aside for doing Outdoor therapy.
Let us know during your initial consultation if this is a type of therapy you would like to have and we will see if any of our therapists have availability.
You and your therapist will determine if Nature Therapy is right for you, and discuss locations that the therapist works at.
Because therapy involves talking, no locations that require strenuous activity will be chosen.
What are the Benefits?
Research has shown how important getting exercise and having contact with Nature is in improving and maintaining a person's mental health.
Reduced Depression, Anxiety, Stress, Aggression, and Irritability, are all benefits of spending time in nature.
People also report that doing therapy in Nature can make it easier to talk and make the experience more meaningful.
Check out the link to articles in the research section.
Where is it offered?
Each therapist has a list of locations that they have explored and do outdoor therapy at.
Some Examples Include:
Rodeo Beach and surrounding trails
Ring Mountain and surrounding trails
Tiburon Historical Trail
Dawn Falls Trail in Larkspur (A favorite because the trailhead has coffee and lunch spots.)
Phoenix Lake
Bon Tempe Lake (stay for the fishing.)
Cascade Falls Trail in Fairfax
China Camp State Park and trails
Costs
The cost for doing outdoor therapy is the same as in-person or remote therapy. The therapist's office is just an address in nature for the day. Most people find that a 50 minute session outdoors is too short. For this reason, most people choose a 90 minute session and your therapist will talk with you about their rates for doing therapy for different lengths of time.
Please note, that our therapists do not do any transporting to the outdoor sites. You will need to assure you have the ability to get yourself to the outdoor site and cover any costs for doing so.
It is also important to give yourself plenty of time to navigate, manage traffic, and park at the site so that you can start your session on time. If you are late, your therapists may not be able to extend the session.
Important Responsibilities and Considerations
Outdoor therapy, while potentially very helpful, is not without some risk.
Confidentiality:
Your therapist will talk with you about the difficulties in assuring absolute privacy while talking outdoors in a public setting and will get your consent before doing this type of therapy.
Injury:
While only easy to reach and walkable locations for outdoor therapy will be chosen, it is always possible to trip or fall, or get hurt. Please make sure that you talk with your therapist about your physical ability and any limitations that you have. Don't participate if you feel in any way uncomfortable, ultimately you assume the risks.
Research
People Are Taking Therapy Outside—Here's Why Mental Health Pros Love Outdoor Therapy
https://www.realsimple.com/health/mind-mood/outdoor-therapy
Nature Contact and Human Health: A Research Agenda