Recreation Therapy New Zealand

14/07/2023

Some information on Matariki, which begins today and is into its second year as a public holiday in Aotearoa:

Hana-Rawhiti Kareariki Maipi says giving back is important during Matariki.

02/06/2023

Good long-form interview on the therapeutic ɓenefits of forest bathing. People will be familiar with the quote of John Muir (1838-1914) that "in every walk with nature, òne receives more than they seek" (paraphrased).
The therapeutic benefits of forest bathing

Shinrin yoku is the Japanese practice of 'forest bathing', which is growing in popularity around the world for its therapeutic benefits, both physiological and psychological. Forest bathing engages the parasympathetic nervous system, known as the 'rest-and-digest' system. It's the opposite to our 'f...

14/05/2023

From Richard Louv. JFK said "a child miseducated is a child lost"" which aligns with the adage about prevention and cure (dating from the days of Hippocrates).
https://www.facebook.com/100050253949391/posts/777549297263528/?mibextid=Nif5oz

“When children play in natural spaces, they’re far more likely to invent their own games than in more structured settings – a key factor in becoming self-directed and inventive adults later in life.' Richard Louv

This is so true and definitely the case with my children. This is a photo of my son and niece deeply absorbed in making a cake from elderflowers, grass and sand.

16/03/2023

Happy St Patrick's Day, btw.
Green space getting the red light as demand for housing rises

Analysis - Recent extreme weather events have provided a foretaste of how supercharged storms might threaten our future, Timothy Welch writes.

04/03/2023

From RNZ Saturday morning today. The book 📙 is recommended reading and the author advocates recreation-based practices as therapy:
Dr Bessel van der Kolk: how to heal trauma

Traumatic experiences get lodged in people's brains and bodies as a sense of threat and to heal they must rediscover a sense of safety, says psychiatrist Bessel van der Kolk.

06/02/2023

Today's Waitangi Day event:

Thousands at Waitangi dawn powhiri as country welcomes national day.

26/01/2023

Aotearoa NZ is 18 hours ahead of NY, making this a convenient event (10.45am-12.00pm). Who knows what they'll discuss, but perhaps the talk will mention UDHR Art #25, Josef Pieper, Sebastian de Grazia, Aristotle, Labour history, and perhaps even something about Basic Income?
https://www.facebook.com/100064652801295/posts/552611506903938/?sfnsn=mo&mibextid=6aamW6

Register and join us for the World Leisure Organization - UN side event!

61st Session of the United Nations Commission for Social Development

"Just and Favorable Conditions for Work: The Leisure Dimension"

Date: February, Thursday 9th 2023
Time: 4:45 - 6:00PM (New York Time)
Virtual Platform registration: https://bit.ly/3iVDU4n
Website https://www.worldleisure.org

You are invited to register to attend the UN Virtual Side Event that World Leisure Organization (WLO) is organizing in the framework of the 61st Session of the United Nations Commission for Social Development (CSocD61), under the main theme “Creating full and productive employment and decent work for all as a way of overcoming inequalities to accelerate the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”.

Through this virtual event, Prof. Atara Sivan and Prof. Tony Veal will examine and discuss, among the rights to “just and favorable conditions of work”, the implications of the right to “rest, leisure and reasonable limitation of working hours” set out in Article 7 of the UN International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). This right should be taken into account in considering the constitution of “decent work for all”.

Virtual Platform Link https://bit.ly/3iVDU4n
Website https://www.worldleisure.org

21/01/2023

This concept has the potential to transform how we conceptualize health, and its promotion:

This section aims to describe the salutogenic construct of the sense of coherence. It begins with a reflection of the ontological and epistemological background of salutogenesis, which is not particularly described and explained to any significant extent in the publications by Antonovsky. The core c...

20/01/2023

https://www.facebook.com/100028701979776/posts/906004297032961/?mibextid=Nif5oz

THROWBACK THURSDAY!
GOING BACK TO 2011 PRICES
For a Timeless Book

Lessons Learned: An Open Letter to Recreational Therapy Students and Practitioners
By David Austin

Throwback price of $25.00 USD for the print book (Discount Code at checkout: LL2023)
https://bit.ly/SVPLL2023

Throwback price of $19.95 USD of the eBook (Discount Code at checkout: LL2023E)
https://bit.ly/SVPLL2023e

19/01/2023

As Recreation Therapists, we can perpetually advocate for nature and its therapeutic effects:
https://www.facebook.com/100044148308509/posts/736026084545662/?sfnsn=mo&mibextid=6aamW6

During this time of year when our lives can feel quite full, seems the perfect time to talk about the restorative power of nature and how spending time outdoors can nourish the soul.

Being among trees and mountains hearing nothing but birdsong, or at the beach watching the waves crash onto the sand, or witnessing the wide open plains stretching out in front of you with the biggest bluest sky you’ve ever seen, nourishes us in indescribable ways.

There’s a peace that can wash over you more easily beholding such vistas and what’s important to you – what you really care about – tends to bubble more easily to the surface.

Less noise, less being asked of you, plenty of oxygen, movement of your body and observation of natural processes can help to reconnect you to healthy patterns and perceptions. Where possible, remove your shoes and get your bare feet onto the earth. Regular ‘earthing’ – direct skin contact with the surface of the earth – may potentially have anti-inflammatory effects, improve sleep and reduce chronic pain.

15/01/2023

Acknowledging the example of Dr King just after his birthday (15.1 29).
https://www.facebook.com/55555550744/posts/10159316556845745/?sfnsn=mo&mibextid=6aamW6

“On Dr. King's birthday, read a classic (made all the truer by time): https://www.themarginalian.org/2015/03/18/martin-luther-king-letter-from-birmingham-city-jail/

30/12/2022

Greetings to everyone on this penultimate day of 2022, as we prepare to enter the new year. This is to say that my ability to manage this page is now affected by the diagnosis of a neurological condition (thought to be radiation induced after cancer treatment in the 1980's).

As a health professional, I think this is only one component and there's potentially a more recent mechanism at play that's yet to be identified (potentially workplace-related, using the Bradford-Hill criteria for causality as a reference).

The intent is still to provide topical, interesting content related to Recreation Therapy New Zealand that readers find engaging. It's one reflection to say that this is an especially intimate way of learning the value of our profession.

Found on Google from clipart-library.com

24/12/2022

Greetings from Aotearoa! Wishing everyone à Merry Christmas after what's been an especially eventful year. Enjoy this wee ditty:

In Aotearoa the sun stays up until late. How can children possibly go to bed when Santa is coming and it's not even dark yet?Join me on a beautiful journey i...

18/12/2022

fb://photo/5160421284057277?set=a.305663529533101&sfnsn=mo&mibextid=6aamW6

02/12/2022

On the same theme as the most recent post:
https://www.facebook.com/153324434706361/posts/5872413559464058/?sfnsn=mo&mibextid=6aamW6

Time in nature can have a significant impact on our creative development.

01/12/2022

This is a mature, topical speech, and although he's 14 years old, an indication of why 16 year olds should be given the vote in accordance with the recent Supreme Court ruling:
https://www.facebook.com/109710110511880/posts/688546602628225/?sfnsn=mo&mibextid=6aamW6

By harnessing his passion to create change, Nate explores why it is important to get young people into nature. Nate Wilbourne is a 14-year-old environmental...