Bridging the Baby Nature Gap with Partners: Featuring Morrison Outdoors

This article was written in partnership with our friends at Turtle Fur. Caring for a newborn can be an incredibly rewarding experience, but it can also be challenging and, at times, overwhelming. Many caregivers experience feelings of depression and isolation, which can affect their overall well-being and the quality of care they provide. One simple yet powerful way to improve mental and physical health during this time is to get outside often.  Any Caregiver Can Experience Depression Postpartum depression affects many new mothers, but it’s important to recognize that any caregiver, including fathers, grandparents, and other family members, can also experience depression. The constant demands of caring for a newborn, lack of sleep, and changes in routine can contribute to feelings of sadness, anxiety, and fatigue. Getting outside can be a natural antidote to these challenges. The Better a Caregiver Feels, the Better Outcomes for Infants When caregivers prioritize their own mental and physical health, they are better equipped to care for their infants. Fresh air and sunlight are natural mood lifters. Exposure to natural light helps regulate sleep patterns by stimulating the production of serotonin, a hormone that contributes to feelings of well-being and happiness. This can lead to better sleep for both the caregiver and the baby, creating a positive cycle of improved mood and energy. Tips for Making Outdoor Time with a Newborn a Success Keep it Simple You don’t need to plan elaborate outings to reap the benefits of being outdoors. A simple neighborhood stroll can be incredibly refreshing. Choose a familiar route to reduce stress and make the outing feel more manageable. The goal is to enjoy the experience, not to create additional pressure. Keeping the outing simple also means you won’t need to carry a lot of gear. A stroller, a baby carrier, and a diaper bag with essentials are usually sufficient. Stay Comfortable Comfort is key to making outdoor time enjoyable. Depending on the weather, ensure you and your baby are dressed appropriately. Sun protection, such as hats and sunscreen, is essential to protect sensitive skin. Moisture-wicking fabrics can help keep you cool and comfortable, especially during warmer months. Don’t forget about footwear – supportive and comfortable shoes can make a big difference during walks. Join a Community Connecting with other caregivers can enhance the experience and provide additional support. Look for local parenting groups, like OutGrown's Hike it Baby program, that organize outdoor activities. Consider starting your own group or organizing meet-ups with friends and neighbors who have young children. The shared experience of caring for newborns can create strong bonds and provide valuable emotional support. Caregivers and Newborns Benefit from Time Spent Outdoors Getting outside every day can be a simple yet powerful way for caregivers of newborns to boost their mental and physical health. By keeping outings simple, staying comfortable, and joining a community, caregivers can make outdoor time a beneficial and enjoyable part of their routine. Taking care of well-being not only improves overall health for caregivers but also creates a positive environment for infants, leading to better outcomes for both. Looking for new gear to get outside with your little ones this summer? Check out Turtle Fur’s new summer collection for adults and kids! Here's a little more about OutGrown: We're a national, 501c3 nonprofit with over a decade of experience helping families get outside with their babies and young children. We believe it is critical to include and center families from birth because it is a crucial developmental time for both the infant and the parent, where we can create a life-long, multi-generational impact. We know that we protect what we love and we're helping families build a loving connection with the outdoors so they can value and protect it for generations to come. As a community-driven organization, we have been working with indigenous, Latine, BIPOC, immigrant & refugee, and rural families to co-design multilingual and culturally relevant solutions in our programming. Since its grassroots inception in 2013, OutGrown is a growing community of 280,000 families and over 300 volunteers. More information on all of our programs can be found at WeAreOutGrown.org  EDITORS NOTE: We hope you enjoyed reading this article from OutGrown. We’re working hard to provide our community with content and resources that inform, inspire, and entertain you. But content is not free. It’s built on the hard work and dedication of writers, editors, and volunteers. We make an investment in developing premium content to make it easier for families with young children to connect with nature and each other. We do not ask this lightly, but if you can, please make a contribution and help us extend our reach.

I have been connected with “We Are OutGrown” (formerly known as "Hike it Baby") for more than 2 years because I see the amazing work it does to empower families with young children to step outside and enjoy the physical and mental benefits of growing up in nature. OutGrown’s mission is to “empower families with babies and young children to step outside and enjoy the physical and mental benefits of growing up in nature.”  I am excited about the next step for this unique organization. Its recent rebranding to “OutGrown” better reflects its true purpose and serves as an umbrella name to encompass three program pillars:  Turn the Blues Green - which supports new parents in going outside with their newborns which can be a powerful tool for overcoming postpartum depression. Bring it Outside - a program to help families build a habit of getting outside and overcome challenges such as accessibility Hike it Baby - focused on community-led events such as hikes Together, these programs are helping families grow up outside, becoming OutGrown. Turn The Blues Green Program The first reason that I was drawn to this amazing organization (at that time called Hike it Baby) was because of the importance of hiking with both my children was to me during my paternity leave with them. Both of them were born in the winter, and one was born immediately before the Covid pandemic began. This meant there was a lot of isolation and my mental health wasn’t where I wanted it to be.  One of the most effective ways that I compensated and dealt with this was hiking with them in a carrier throughout D.C. I hiked so much during one month of leave that our entire family hiked every single mile of every single trail of Rock Creek National Park (close to 40 miles).  The Turn The Blues Green Program is a pioneering maternal mental health program. It is our tool, our solution, to help new parents combat the Baby Blues, to reduce that feeling of isolation many new moms face, and to nurture relationships with the natural world from the very beginning.  As one supporter said, "Venturing out on a stroller walk with our newborn was an incredibly freeing experience. It was like we had collectively been holding our breath since becoming new parents, and getting out into nature allowed us to finally exhale and realize we could manage this new parent thing!"   Bring it Outside Program One of the issues I have seen over and over again in my professional work defending public lands is the lack of accessibility and diversity for those enjoying our public lands. One of We Are Outgrown’s pillars of work is The Bring it Outside (BiO) program—which meets families where they are and supports them in getting outside in the ways that work best for their families.  Experiencing the benefits of being outside doesn’t need to be about climbing the biggest mountain or hiking the Appalachian Trail, it needs to be about whatever works for you. BiO develops tools and activities and hosts workshops and events for families year-round. This helps break down accessibility issues and gives them opportunities to enjoy the outdoors in whatever way works for them. Hike it Baby Program Hiking clubs are ubiquitous in our country, but what is far more rare is a nationwide hiking club that is focused on hiking with young children, and provides the infrastructure and support to volunteer leaders to make it easy and welcoming.  That’s exactly what the Hike it Baby program does— it specifically works to help families build a habit of getting outside, despite challenges such as accessibility. OutGrown was started as a small hiking club in Portland, Oregon, but now exists in more than 270 communities.  If you are looking for a family-oriented hiking club, I would highly encourage you to join. And whether you are looking for a hiking club or not, if there is a way for you to support this organization, please do! https://hikeitbaby.networkforgood.com/