The Medicine Beneath Our Feet: Healing with Dirt through Sylvotherapy

When we think of healing in nature, we often imagine towering trees, crisp air, and the soothing sound of leaves rustling in the wind. But what many overlook is the power held beneath our very feet—dirt. In sylvotherapy (forest therapy), we don’t just connect with the trees above us—we root down and remember the medicine in the earth below.

Dirt is alive.
It holds microbial life that communicates with our immune system, supports serotonin production, and invites a calming sense of belonging. Simply walking barefoot, kneeling in the soil, or sitting close to the ground can help regulate the nervous system, ground anxious energy, and remind us that we are part of something ancient, alive, and wise.

Have you ever noticed how animals instinctively roll in the dirt, or how children love to dig their hands into the soil and play? They know.
Their bodies remember something we’ve forgotten—that the earth is not dirty, but divine. It's medicine in its rawest, most accessible form.

When was the last time you made a mud pie, a mud mask, or simply let your hands sink deep into the earth?
The smell of fresh soil after a rainstorm has a way of softening the edges of our day. It invites us to take a long, deep breath… and exhale. In that moment, our bodies realign with Mother Earth—steady, safe, and sacred.

In every Hikes to Heal journey, we honor the ground.
We pause. We kneel. We touch the dirt with intention. Because in that sacred act of stillness, we’re not just walking on the Earth—we’re letting her hold us, cleanse us, and remind us who we are.

Look down. Get low. Touch the soil. Smell the soil. Let it love you back.