Clyde Valley Adventures

My buddy Kenn and I spotted some of these beautiful vibrant Green Elf Cups on our last walk.

Their mycelium stains the wood they grow on this stunning teal green which makes it highly prized by highly skilled carpenters.

By sheer coincidence Kenn was stylishly dressed to match the colour theme of the day…

Life is a catwalk darling— be bloody fabulous!

Nature is therapy!

Our Sundays posts are about “Healing in Context”.

But what does that actually mean?

Basically—
How we feel doesn't only depend on what's happening inside our body.

It is affected largely by what's happening around us.

Where we are.
Who we're with.
What’s been happening.
Noise.
Light.
Temperature.
The people.
The Pace.
Pressures and expectations.
And the overall vibe.

Whether we can just be ourselves…

Or whether we have to put on an act while feeling overwhelmed, and carrying the weight of a hundred unfinished jobs.

That's context.

Change the context and you can completely change the experience.

Take sleep.

You could have the world's most comfortable mattress—
But stick it in the middle of Glasgow Central and you're probably not getting a great night's sleep.

Same bed.
Different context.

A beautiful meal eaten slowly around a table with people you love is a completely different experience from wolfing the same food down in your car because you've got seven minutes before your next appointment.

Same food.
Different context.

Walking through a dark car park alone at 2am feels very different from walking the same distance through a sunny woodland nature trail on a Sunday morning.

Same person.
Same distance.
Completely different context.

Even just being asked:
“How are you?”
Depending on who is asking the answer might be:
“Fine”
But the exact same question from the right person might result in an hour-long conversation— and even a few tears.

That's what we mean by Healing in Context.

And once you start looking for it, you see it everywhere.

Someone who can't seem to switch off— but sleeps brilliantly on holiday.

Someone with “no energy” suddenly finds plenty when their mate phones and asks them to do something they love.

Someone who has barely spoken all week can’t shut up when they're finally around the right person.

Someone who's been holding themselves together all day gets through their own front door, sees their dog, or safe person— and bursts into tears.

Someone who feels completely alone walks into a room full of people who understand and suddenly doesn't need to explain themselves anymore.

The person didn't suddenly become a different person.

The conditions changed.

And I think that's something we sometimes forget when we're trying to feel better.

We focus so much on the person.

What's wrong with them?
What are their symptoms?
What do they need to change?
What supplements or therapies might be helpful?
What can they do different to be better?

But human beings don't exist in isolation.

We live, work, play, and grow in houses, homes, jobs, workplaces, families, friendships, communities and environments.

We carry responsibilities, memories, expectations and worries.

We're affected by noise, light, pace, pressure, safety, choice, connection, purpose and belonging.

All of that is part of the context in which we're asking a human body and mind to function.

So sometimes an important question isn't only:
“What's going on inside this person?”

It's also:
“What happens when we change what's around them?”

That's what our Sundays posts are about.

That's Healing in Context.

And that’s The Entourage Effect.

Don’t let injuries and pain get in the way of doing the things that make you feel like you!

If you’ve ever been lost or injured, alone in the wilderness— you will know how dependent we are on others…

It’s ingrained in our nervous systems, and our DNA…

Imagine being a baby..

Elderly…

Or having a broken leg…

And being alone—

In the dark,

In the middle of the jungle.

We would all be pretty defenceless.

Tigers, leopards, or bears will avoid even small groups of humans at all costs, if they can help it—

But they won’t pass up a free meal.

For hundreds of thousands of years that was the reality that faced us all of we got lost, separated from, or abandoned by our tribe.

So it’s easy to see in that context why, evolutionarily, we would do almost anything not to be chastised, shunned, or potentially banished, by our tribe, friend circle, or social group.

A lot had changed in the last 200 years…

But our physiology has not.

Despite the worst of humanity that we often see on social media— humans still generally care for each other, help each other, share food, look after children that are not their own, and perform other acts of kindness— that’s how we continue to survive to be here today.

In people who have experienced the trauma of being physically or emotionally abandoned, abused, or having love withheld, that survival instinct can be turned up to 11.

We can be more likely to resort to “self preservation” mechanisms— fawning, placating, and people pleasing— that often end up having the polar opposite effect.

Often losing ourselves completely in the process of trying to fit in, feel safe, and not rock the boat.

We will justify horrible treatment toward us.

And in extreme cases people might change themselves completely, taking on a whole new persona, or collecting personality traits like Pokémon cards.

But that acting in itself triggers the nervous system into threat mode.

If you’ve never felt the feeling of meeting someone who you don’t have to perform, put on and act, or be someone else to be liked, heard, or understood— it’s immediately disarming.

Which can be a problem in itself— as many abusers and manipulators exploit exactly that opening to worm their way past your usual defences.

An experience which can make it very tempting to isolate, avoid people and relationships, and only associate with cats, and the pigeons in the park.

But for the reasons pointed out above— that lack of social connection and safety can slowly erode away at our mental and physical health.

I wish i had an easy answer— but as someone who is neurodivergent and has experienced a lot of trauma myself— this is something i have struggled with personally in my own daily life.

That’s why i created The Entourage Effect, not just as a business, a shop, or a treatment room…

But as a space where everyone can feel welcome, be themselves, make friends, and talk about their problems.

Without judgement, or feeling the need to put on an act, or persona.

Where you don’t need to pretend that things are worse than they are just to be listened to— or put on a brave face and pretend everything is alright…

Just to not make any waves, be a burden, bore people, or make them feel uncomfortable with your problems.

If that sounds like the kind of place that you, or someone you love really needs then don’t struggle alone…

Pop by. Drop in.

Take the mask off.

And let your nervous system breathe.

Some beautiful vibrant Trametes Versicolor AKA TurkeyTail mushrooms! 🦃 🍄

Got a niggle that is affecting your ability to perform on the hills, slopes, or fields?

That is stopping you from enjoying your walks, climbs, runs, cycles, or other adventures?

Kinetic Chain Release is like a full service for your body and nervous system.

And if you’ve ever had your car back after some fresh oil, filters, and spark plugs, after some long overdue maintenance—

It can feel like a brand new car.

Or even like it’s had a tuneup.

The Clyde Walkway between Mauldslie estate and Crossford has had its boardwalks, stairs, and fences repaired, and is ready for all of you and your furry friends (and your not so furry ones too)

Improvement works have been completed on the Clyde Walkway between Mauldslie Bridge and Crossford.
Stairs and boardwalks have been replaced, pathways realigned and fencing replaced to ensure that the route can be enjoyed for many years to come.
More details in the View:
https://orlo.uk/daLSN

Here we have 3 very similar looking organisms at first glance— but really they are very different.

The image on slide 1 is a Yellow Dog Vomit/Scrambled Egg slime mould.
Unlike a true fungi it does not grow from a tangled collection of Hyphae cells called Mycelum…
The yellow mass you see is more like an Amoeba, crawling the forest floor looking for food, but when the conditions are right it will create spore releasing organs and reproduce much like a mushroom.

The second image is a true Fungi— Yellow Brain Fungus. A wood loving that lives off the lignin in dead trees.
The yellow part you can see is the fruiting body— a mushroom like structure that releases spores, but which grows from the microscopic mycelium growing deep within the tissue of the dead tree.

Pretty neat.