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The 3-Day Effect

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The 3-Day Effect

By: Florence Williams
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About this listen

The 3-Day Effect is a look at the science behind why being in the wild for a minimum of three days can make us happier, healthier and more creative. Whether it's rafting down Utah's Green River, backpacking in Colorado wilderness or strolling through Rock Creek Park in Washington, D.C., scientists are finding that immersions in nature can reduce anxiety, enhance creativity and boost overall well-being.

Join science journalist Florence Williams in an immersive audio exploration of the mind and outdoors in six chapters following former Iraqi war veterans, sex trafficking survivors, and even a bookish nature hater journeying to the wild. Meet the innovative field researchers working to strengthen the science for a nature cure through real-time physiological, psychological and cognitive measures over three days outside.

When you add The 3-Day Effect to your library you will receive all 6 episodes, each with a runtime of approximately 25 minutes. To hear more great podcasts and short listens, visit Audible.com/AudioShows.

©2018 Audible Originals, LLC (P)2018 Audible Originals, LLC Mental Health Psychology Psychology & Mental Health
Episodes
  • Ep. 1: A Wild Antidote

    Ep. 1: A Wild Antidote
    Sep 27 2018

    David Strayer, a cognitive neuroscientist at the University of Utah, noticed he gets his best ideas when he’s in the wilderness for three days, so he decided to study what he calls the Three Day Effect. Florence Williams, author of The Nature Fix, takes him on a hike to learn more about what this research shows. She meets up with others who we’ll be following in this series, including veteran and activist Stacy Bare and writer Eric Weiner, who would much rather be darting in and out of cafes than river canyons. Florence, herself going through a divorce, signs on for a three-day research trip in the wilderness, hoping the emotional benefits will rub off.
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    21 mins
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  • Ep. 2: Floating Through PTSD

    Ep. 2: Floating Through PTSD
    Sep 27 2018

    Can three days on a wild river help cure veterans with PTSD? In this chapter, Florence Williams alights on Utah's Green River with a group of veterans and the scientists who are studying their brains outside, including Stacy Bare from chapter one and researchers from the lab of David Strayer, cognitive neuroscientist at the University of Utah. Florence and the veterans talk about trauma and resilience while rafting, hiking and undergoing a series of experiments. They look at their brain waves over time and also test their cognitive performance.
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    28 mins
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  • Ep. 3: A Place of Comfort

    Ep. 3: A Place of Comfort
    Sep 27 2018
    What if a lot of what we’ve heard about wilderness therapy is wrong? That it shouldn’t be about finding oneself through hardship and challenge, but about finding a place of comfort instead? Florence goes backpacking in Colorado with an all-women’s group of sex-trafficking survivors through She Is Able, a nonprofit based in Atlanta, Georgia. The women and their guides, along with therapists who specialize in trauma and wilderness therapy, upend everything she thought she knew.
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    35 mins
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All stars
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Awesome.. I just knew camping was magic! Now there's proof.. Well worth a listen to.

Awesome thank you! I really need to get camping...

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I can see how listening to this set help you to relax about your life

relaxing

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an enjoyable listen about the benefits of being outdoors for 3 days, from an American perspective. personally I am a believer in being outdoors but not sure if it is the physical exercise, the comradeship, clean air, the mindfulness exercises of looking and appreciating as well as being in nature.

good.

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Great to know how powerful nature is on our minds and thoughts...if only we would let it in...

Interesting

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I enjoyed it and I feel inspired to go hiking! It's made me aware that I spend too much time online!

Getting back to nature

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