Spending Time in Nature May Lower Stress

Managing stress often focuses on what you do, such as exercise, sleep hygiene and relaxation techniques. But where you spend your time may matter just as much. A growing body of research suggests that nature-based environments can support measurable changes in how your brain and body respond to stress.

Compared with time spent in more built or screen-heavy settings, spending time outdoors, particularly in greener spaces, has been linked with lower stress-related brain activity, reduced stress hormones and improved attention. These effects do not require a wilderness retreat. Even brief, routine exposure to natural surroundings may help your body shift out of high-alert mode and recover more efficiently from daily demands.

Here’s what experts say about why time outdoors may lower stress levels and how to make it work in your everyday routine.

Why Being Outside Can Lower Stress

It Can Decrease Stress-Related Brain Activity

When you feel stressed, your amygdala is often more active. This is the part of the brain that helps detect and respond to potential threats.

To study this, researchers had healthy adults take a one-hour walk either in a forest or along a busy urban route, then measured their brain activity during a stress-related task. Participants who walked in nature showed reduced amygdala activation afterward, while those who walked in the urban setting did not. This difference suggests that natural environments may help lower baseline threat reactivity, even after a relatively short exposure.

“Activation of the amygdala is closely tied to stress and trauma responses. When we see reduced amygdala activity after time in nature, it suggests the brain is operating from a less reactive state,” says Sid Khurana, M.D., DFAPA, DFAACAP, a board-certified psychiatrist.

Khurana adds that many people under chronic stress function in a persistent state of vigilance. “Natural environments promote attentional restoration and reduce that sense of ongoing threat monitoring,” he says. “That shift can support a calmer mood and better emotional regulation.”

This does not mean a walk in the park replaces therapy or psychiatric care. It suggests that even a relatively brief exposure to a natural setting can help your brain shift out of high-alert mode and return to a more regulated baseline.

It Can Shift Your Body Out of Fight-or-Flight Mode

When stress becomes chronic, your nervous system may spend more time in a heightened state of activation. This means that heart rate and blood pressure rise more easily, and stress hormones like cortisol remain elevated longer than they typically would.

Research suggests that exposure to natural environments is associated with measurable shifts in these physiological markers. A large meta-analysis found that spending time in nature was associated with reductions in cortisol, heart rate and blood pressure compared with time spent in more built environments. In practical terms, choosing a greener setting for a walk or break may give your body a stronger physiological reset than staying indoors.

Lindsey Paoli, LMFT/LCPC, a therapist and mental performance strategist, says spending more time in nature often translates into practical benefits. “Time outdoors helps the nervous system regulate more effectively than it does indoors,” she explains. “When people spend more consistent time outside, they often notice improvements in sleep, clearer thinking and less reactivity to everyday stress.”

Paoli emphasizes that time outside works best as a foundation rather than a standalone solution. A more regulated nervous system can make other support tools like therapy and lifestyle changes more effective. Paoli suggests that even short daily walks, sitting outside for part of your lunch break or spending a few minutes on a porch can serve as a reliable cue that signals safety and recovery to your body.

It Can Lower Stress Hormones

Research suggests that relatively short exposures to natural settings can influence cortisol, one of the body’s primary stress hormones. A study comparing walks in greener environments with walks along more urban routes found that cortisol levels declined after both walks, but the reduction was greater following the greener route. This suggests that while movement alone can help relieve tension, movement in a nature-rich environment may lead to an enhanced cortisol-lowering effect.

Khurana notes that short outdoor breaks can be particularly helpful when stress is building in real time. “Even brief exposure to a natural environment can help shift physiological stress markers in a more adaptive direction,” he says. In everyday life, this may look like a short walk in a nearby park or on a tree-lined street during a busy day.

It Can Help Restore Attention

Many people think of stress as an emotional experience, but it can also influence your ability to concentrate. When you are constantly switching between emails, meetings and notifications, your attention system stays engaged for long stretches of time. That sustained demand can reduce your ability to focus clearly later in the day.

Researchers describe one benefit of natural environments as “attention restoration,” meaning your brain can recover from directed, effortful focus. In natural settings, attention tends to shift into a less demanding mode. This can lead to reduced mental fatigue and support improved concentration afterward.

Khurana explains that this contrasts with many common indoor leisure activities. Even when you feel relaxed while scrolling or streaming, screens typically require sustained, narrow visual focus.

For someone who feels mentally drained after a day of multitasking, stepping outside may help reset attention more effectively than staying indoors. Even a short walk in nature can create space for your focus to recover, making it easier to return to work or daily responsibilities with clearer concentration.

How to Spend More Time in Nature

Schedule it like any other health habit. Choose a specific time of day for a short walk or outdoor break, such as after lunch or before dinner. Putting it on your calendar can make it more likely to happen consistently.

Keep it short and repeatable. Just 10 to 20 minutes outside can be enough to support stress recovery and attention. A daily, manageable routine is more sustainable than an occasional long outing.

Choose the greenest option available. A park, tree-lined street or waterfront may offer more benefits than a heavily urban environment. If those are not accessible, any outdoor time is still likely to be more restorative than staying inside all day.

Limit screen use during outdoor time. Putting your phone away for part of your walk or break can be beneficial for stress reduction. Even a few minutes of device-free time can change the quality of the experience.

Make it social. Invite a friend or family member to join you for a walk or outdoor coffee. Pairing time outside with social connection can make the habit easier to maintain.

Our Expert Take

Spending time in nature is not a cure for chronic stress, but research suggests it can meaningfully influence how your brain and body respond to daily demands. Time outdoors has been linked with lower stress-related brain activity, measurable reductions in cortisol and improvements in attention, even after relatively short exposures. Taken together, these findings suggest that environment plays a role in stress reduction. 

Both Khurana and Paoli emphasize that nature works best as part of a broader stress-management plan. Therapy, sleep, physical activity and social connection all matter. Consistent time outside may help create a more regulated baseline, which can make those other support systems more effective. If you are looking for a realistic starting point, begin with something small and repeatable. A brief walk in a nearby green space or a few minutes outside during the day may be enough to help your body shift out of high-alert mode and recover more efficiently from stress.