For the past several years, a collaboration between the Sierra Club and researchers at the University of California at Berkeley has explored the potential for awe to decrease symptoms associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
This research doesn’t mean that nature, by itself, is an effective treatment for anxiety disorders such as PTSD. Other treatments – especially behavioral exposure – have been shown to be effective non-medicinal treatments for such conditions. However, it does suggest, at least, a useful supplement to conventional treatments for problems related to stress and anxiety.
More information can be found at this press release from Berekely.
