Embarking on a New Adventure as an Ambassador for AdventureMind

I’m thrilled to share some exciting news with you all – I am embracing a new voluntary role as an Ambassador for AdventureMind. You may remember my previous blog posts about the AdventureMind conferences I’ve attended. Do take a moment to read these articles as it explains my experience and take-homes from the 2020 and 2023 conferences. This new opportunity aligns perfectly with my passion for encouraging and maintaining resilience, especially in midlife women who are navigating the often-complex challenges of this stage of life.

With thanks to its founder, Belinda Kirk, (also founder of Explorers Connect), AdventureMind is an incredible organisation dedicated to promoting the transformative power of adventure to outdoor practitioners, policy makers, educators and, in fact, anyone who wants to listen. Its mission is deeply rooted in the belief that adventure is not just for the gap year go-getters or gritty guys, but for everyone, offering benefits that extend far beyond the thrill of the moment. The wider argument for adventure extends into supporting not only our physical health, but also our wellbeing and mental health.

Today, I want to talk about some ground-breaking research Adventure Mind has just released this week, highlighting the profound impact that adventure can have on children. Despite being child-centred, the research resonates with me, and I can easily relate the findings to adults – particularly my demographic of women in midlife.

The New Evidence: Adventure’s Impact on Children

AdventureMind’s latest evidence summary is a comprehensive look at over 200 studies that explore the benefits of adventure for children. The findings are clear: adventure offers immense psychological, physical, and social benefits. These benefits aren’t limited to extraordinary, once-in-a-lifetime experiences; they also come from everyday adventures that are accessible to all.

The research highlights several key elements of adventure that contribute to children’s development. The points below are only a small selection from the findings:

• Challenge and Risk: Encountering and overcoming challenges in an unfamiliar environment helps children develop resilience and learn how to manage stress – skills that are crucial not just in childhood but throughout life. It also positively impacts their learning and development, both at home and in school.
• Connection with Nature: Being in nature provides significant mental health benefits, reducing anxiety and boosting overall well-being. These connections can be incredibly grounding for children.
• Teamwork and Social Bonds: Adventure fosters cooperation, trust and builds strong, supportive relationships. We can all learn from this aspect of adventure, as building and maintaining strong social connections is vital at every stage of life.

Adventure’s Power Beyond Childhood: Insights for Midlife Women

While this research focuses on children, I firmly believe – and have experienced first hand – that the benefits of adventure can be felt way beyond childhood, long after the Duke of Edinburgh award rucksacks have been packed away. In fact, adventure can be an important tool for adults, particularly women like me who are dealing with the unique challenges of midlife and upwards.

Resilience in Midlife: For many women, midlife brings a mix of rewarding and challenging experiences, such as navigating perimenopause, dealing with changing family dynamics, or caring for aging parents. These challenges can sometimes feel overwhelming, but adventure offers a powerful way to build resilience. Just as adventure helps children manage stress and develop coping mechanisms, it can help us face our own challenges with greater strength and confidence. Adventure has certainly helped me to reset my overactive brain, resolve my problems and rebuild my resilience over the years, and as recently as May this year. I discovered all these benefits by coincidence, while on a long-distance walk thirteen years ago, to mark my rite of passage into middle age. I planned to undertake this one walk, never considering it would burrow its way into my psyche and provide me with a new way of life on completion.

Navigating Perimenopause: The physical and emotional changes of perimenopause can be disorientating and exhausting. As our female hormones deplete, often, so does our confidence. Adventure, whether it’s a brisk walk in the woods, trying a new outdoor activity, or simply exploring new environments, by stretching our comfort zones, we can help counterbalance these effects by boosting mood, improving physical fitness, and offering a sense of control and achievement.

Reconnecting with Yourself: Midlife can sometimes feel like a time of loss; of youth, of former roles, or of familiar routines. But it can also be a time of rediscovery. Adventure provides a way to reconnect with yourself, to rediscover your passions, and explore new interests. It’s about finding joy and purpose in new experiences, which can be incredibly empowering during this transitional period. Often, returning from an adventure provides the ideal time to implement changes and reinvent yourself, or at least try out some of the ideas that may have formed while adventuring.

Strengthening Social Connections: As family dynamics change, particularly with children growing up and leaving home, it’s easy to feel isolated. Adventure, especially when shared with others, can be a fantastic way to build new friendships and strengthen existing ones. The teamwork and social bonds that children gain from adventure are equally valuable for us as adults, helping to create a supportive community around us. If you still have a family around you, have you considered adventuring WITH your family? AdventureMind founder, Belinda Kirk has done exactly this with her (then) four-year-old, with a super positive outcome!

Looking Ahead

As I continue my journey with AdventureMind, I’m excited to explore how we can apply these research insights to our own lives as midlife women. There’s so much we can learn from the courage and curiosity that children bring to their adventures. My goal is to help more women embrace adventure as a path to building resilience, finding joy, and living life as fully as possible, despite whatever ‘stuff’ life throws at us.

Over the coming months, I’ll share more insights, experiences, and opportunities to engage with the incredible work AdventureMind is doing. Let’s embark on this adventure together – after all, just as I discovered, it’s never too late to stumble upon and embrace the unique power of adventure brings to your life.

You can find out more about why I chose to put myself forward as an AdventureMind Ambassador here.

Feel free to share your thoughts or experiences in the comments below. And don’t forget to check out the full evidence summary on the ADVENTUREMIND website!

HeadRightOut Hugs,

Zoe