June book club pick…

For June I was looking to focus on men’s health and nothing comes to mind more in this area than mental health.

Mental health is a huge issue in male health; with men presenting much later to healthcare professionals and having much higher suicide rates than their female counterparts.

For this reason I picked a book focussed on practical approaches to mental wellbeing, specifically using something called walking therapy. The book is called “Walking With Your Wolf” by Jonathan Hoban.

The description of the book really drew my interest: “When we walk we find the space to process our feelings and we begin to have the courage to be vulnerable and honest with ourselves. Walking awakens the intuition that helps us face up to our difficulties and walk alongside them, enabling us to find positive solutions to our problems. Our ancestors knew all about movement - they walked across the planet, understanding nature and learning to respect and work in harmony with it”.

The author, a London based therapist, uses a mix of very practical exercises interspersed with relatable personal and patient stories. I personally found it easy to read, highly applicable to my own life as well as my patients and has encouraged me to reconnect with nature. I hope you follow along this month as I pick out some of my favourite quotations and insights from the book.