Awe Walks

I read a study completed with older adults where two groups were instructed to go on a weekly 15 minute walk and record their experiences. One of the groups, the “control group” received no further instruction. The other group was asked to take photographs of themselves, and how to have a sense of awe by tapping into their sense on wonder on their walks.

Those on the awe walks experienced greater joy and a much greater sense of connectivity than those in the control group.They also reported significant decreases in daily stress and what the researchers called a smaller sense of self and part of a something larger in the world.

I was reminded of this study and developing my sense of awe by this post-it as I headed out for a walk.