Lisa's Website:
https://www.forestfloormindfulness.com/
Lisa's Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/ellepedscalny/
In this episode, we’re joined by Lisa Pedscalny of Forest Floor Mindfulness, a long-time meditation practitioner and teacher who shares her journey from anxious corporate life to finding healing through mindfulness, meditation, and deep connection with nature.
We talk about how Lisa accidentally stumbled into meditation, how nature became a central part of her healing, and why our relationship to anxiety matters more than trying to fix it. Lisa shares her insights into forest bathing, embodied awe, equanimity through trees, and why nature might be the best mindfulness teacher we have.
Timestamps
00:00 – Intro
00:41 – Meet Lisa Pedscalny of Forest Floor Mindfulness
02:04 – How Lisa Discovered Meditation by Accident
05:01 – Shifting the Relationship to Anxiety Through Practice
07:26 – Nature as a Bridge When Sitting Feels Too Hard
10:16 – Why Mindfulness in Nature Feels Fun and Accessible
12:46 – Explaining Anxiety: Energy, Resistance, and the Role of Curiosity
15:61 → 16:01 – Forest Bathing and the Feeling of Coming Home
18:41 – Nature as a Non-Judging Mirror for Presence
21:31 – Physiological Reconnection Through Nature & “Nature Deficit Disorder”
24:11 – Nature and the Nervous System: Lessons from Children
26:56 – Urban Nature: You Don’t Need a Forest to Reconnect
29:31 – The Sky, the Earth, and Your Body as Portals to Presence
32:01 – The Trap of “Doing It Right” in Mindfulness Practice
34:41 – Customizing Mindfulness to Fit Real Life
37:11 – On Zen Rigidity and Discovering What Actually Works
39:51 – A Dogma-Free, Compassionate Approach to Retreats and Practice
42:61 → 43:01 – Learning Equanimity from Trees: Nature as a Living Model
46:56 – Curiosity and Inquiry: Deepening Practice Through Observation
50:21 – Beauty, Awe, and the Instant Embodiment of Presence
53:06 – Mushrooms, Salamanders, and the Magic of Wild Encounters
55:51 – Psychedelics and Consciousness: Lisa’s Perspective on Psilocybin
59:21 – Awe, Interconnection, and Letting Go of Control
01:01:41 – Nature’s Perfection and Our Place Within It
01:03:51 – Courses, Retreats, Sanghas, and Lisa’s Offerings
01:06:41 – Practicing on the Forest Floor (Yes, Literally!)
01:08:41 – Closing Reflections: We Are Mindful by Nature