How trekking changes an individual over time?
The fact that nowadays all of us are a part of the hustle culture, makes it almost inevitable for us to feel burnt out at some point or the other. According to Millennials and Gen Z, the best way to tackle this burnout is for people to take a ‘break’ from the routine humdrums of life. ‘Taking a break’ is mostly associated with going on a short vacation or a trip to some place which is peaceful and away from the ongoing rat race. Thus, people often resort to traveling to mountains and valleys in search of solace. Spending our days surrounded by the chilled air as the warm rays of sunlight plays hide and seek with the clouds while we trek through the lap of mountains not only makes us feel refreshed and recharged but also brings us close to our inner selves. This is often considered to be nature’s very own prescription for enhancing one’s well being.
Trekking through mountains is no less than achieving liberation for our souls. Experiencing a trek is equivalent to witnessing an eternal love story between nature and its beauty. The charm of the glassy river stream along the deep valleys offer a sense of tranquility. Such a fusion generates an everlasting impression on our mind and soul. It often has a deeper impact on us than we can perceive. Time spent in nature can improve our health and well-being in many ways, including interaction with natural elements, increased physical activity, along with restoration of our mental and emotional well being. Spending time in the wilderness and experiencing the cold silence of the mountains exhibits a sense of liberation in our minds.
For centuries now, mountains have been called out for being our old friends. They have been there for people before us, they are for us now and they will be there for people after us. Mountains give out a sense of consistency to our being when we need it the most. The longing for the need to have people in our lives who makes us feel heard and calms us is more than we say out loud.. The thirst for a mental support is something which we all humans have deeply craved for once in our life. However, sometimes, it is mother nature in the form of hills and mountains that quenches this thirst and fulfills our longing. By the time we reach the end of our Summit we often realize the importance of old connections and the significance of being consistent in our lives. It shapes and stretches our thought process to new dimensions making us feel relaxed and comforted just as we would feel like if and when we are in the company of an old friend.
Once an individual acquires a taste of going on treks, it becomes a part of life. The charms of the peaks have enough power to make an individual feel intoxicated. Once a trekker achieves this feeling of ecstasy, there is no going back. It cannot be denied that completion of a summit has an irreversible psychological impact on the trekkers’ life ahead of them. The course of a trek has the ability to reform the ways in which we think and perceive others. Trekking helps an individual to inculcate the following values in one’s life over time:
PERSEVERANCE: The day we decide to go on a trek for the first time is the very day we challenge ourselves to achieve something we haven’t before. We set our eyes on a goal which is the completion of the Summit. While on a trek, it is more than often that we face several hindrances and come across moments of self doubt questioning our ability to carry on with our journey. However, as days pass by and we move closer to our goal, our mind mirrors our true potential and the physical fatigue gets washed away. Despite being aware of the hardships that we may face the next morning as we once again set out on our path of reaching the peak, it is our perseverance that helps us to move forward.
DISCIPLINE: Although youngsters often consider trekking as a way to break free from their routined life, it is not actually an entirely carefree exercise in reality. Trekking can be considered as a creative and relaxed way of incorporating discipline in our life. A person who is a repetitive trekker eventually gets more equipped when it comes to leading a disciplined lifestyle beyond the lap of the mountains. The routine of waking up at the same time each day, choosing a safe place to stay for the night before the sun sets, brings consistency and thereby helps in the creation of a disciplined lifestyle.
TEAM WORK: Since ancient times, teamwork has remained an irreplaceable skill among living beings. A fun and relaxing way to easily inculcate and/or enhance this quality is by going on treks. The hardships that one may have to face during trekking are many which thereby, makes bonding with the group members or that one co-trekker (in case of solo treks) very significant. Such difficult times make people appreciate the support they receive from their teammates. Trekking makes us understand that the needs of every single person in the group is of equal importance. During our journey we learn to keep aside our differences and work together as a team towards achieving our common goal.
INTROSPECTION: Being caught up in the race of earning a living invariably prohibits us from securing enough time and space to think. More than often trekking is considered as the therapeutic exercise which provides us with this safe space. Being close to nature inescapably helps us to feel calm and at peace. The silence borne by the mountains and valleys, creates an environment suitable for us to get into the headspace where we can look back into the lives we have led in the past. It helps us to confront ourselves with questions that we have not had the chance to ask ourselves or questions that we were too afraid to ask ourselves. Sometimes, by the time we reach the end of our journey, we are capable of finding clear answers to our clouded questions through introspection.
FIGHTING INHIBITIONS: Fighting against our own inhibitions and prejudices is one of the most challenging tasks that we undergo in our life. Time and again we challenge ourselves to step out of our comfort zone so that we can embrace life anew. A decision to go trekking is one such activity for beginners. Although trekking can bestow us with immense positivity, it can be both mentally and physically demanding and a very exhausting activity. Trekking can put individuals in situational crises which can force them to tackle their issues thereby helping people to break free from shackles that are either self constructed or constructed by the society. Gradually, with time an avid trekker is found to be more courageous and confident when it comes to making decisions that have the potential to bring huge change in one’s life.
STRENGTH OF RELATIONSHIPS: Along with the many other benefits of trekking, creation of new bonds is one of the most exciting ones. The common goal of the trekkers generates a sense of unity among them. Trekking allows us to spend our days and nights with the same people for a certain period of time. This span of numbered days can sometimes prove to be more than enough to create eternal connections. The minimum usage of gadgets (due to connectivity and electricity issues), lack of other sources of distractions makes it obligatory for the trekkers to rely on one another in time of need. This ends with beginnings of new relationships or strengthening of the old ones.
The advantage of long lasting bonds in our lives is incomprehensible. Eventually, we realize how these associations have helped us tread through rough paths in our life. Gradually, trekking helps us to build and deepen our faith in ourselves. The perks of this exercise are ascertained more genuinely after we have returned to our daily lives. The moments of self realization that nature gifts us on our journey helps us to build an indestructible mind and molds humbleness within. It makes us come head to head with the potential instilled in us which helps to cultivate the zeal required to follow our heart and passion. Over time, trekking helps us to become a better version of ourselves, helping us to go after our goals fearlessly.