Welcome to Kokoro Grove

 

Hello,

I’m Janice Butler, a forest bathing guide and wellbeing practitioner based in North Hampshire in the south of England. I created Kokoro Grove as a gentle, grounded space where people can reconnect with themselves—through nature, stillness, and a sense of belonging.

Kokoro Grove is a sanctuary of soft, rooted transformation—for those seeking calm, clarity, and reconnection through nature. It offers guidance without noise, holding space without pressure.

Born from lived healing and a deep reverence for the forest, Kokoro Grove gently guides individuals from burnout, stress, and overwhelm into softness, stillness, and self-trust.

Through forest bathing, mindful photography, journaling, and creativity, it offers soulful, science-backed practices. Whether in woodland retreats or in the quiet of one’s home, Kokoro Grove provides tools to reconnect, reset, and rewild the heart.

At its core, Kokoro Grove is for the quietly courageous: those ready to return to themselves, one breath, one step, one moment at a time.

 

Why Forest Bathing?

 

For years, I experienced depression, burnout, and the disorientation of career shifts. My massage career was affecting my body and I was feeling stuck and uncertain, not knowing which way to move forward. I was actually stuck fast!

Then I discovered forest bathing - the Japanese practice of Shinrin-yoku.

 

The more I learned, the more I realised this was something I could do. 

I have always found getting out in the woods to be a tonic, and North Hampshire has it's fair share, but I had never quite appreciated just how much good it was doing me! So often after a walk, we all come back with a healthy glow, a calmer nature and a clearer mind. Upgrading that feel-good feeling with forest bathing was something that was needed and something that made sense!

One evening I came across a program on TV with Michael Portillo walking around Cornwall, and he was talking to a man who had captured the media's eye by walking up a Cornish mountain for his eightieth birthday. He had fallen victim to Covid during the pandemic and as he lay in an induced comma, his family were told there was nothing more that could be done for him. The staff had decided to wheel him in his bed into the gardens, presumably to make the most of the wonderful summer that year. And he got better. He swore that it was being outside amongst the trees and the flowers that had helped him turn the corner back to health.

And that was it!

That interview was the final piece I needed, the evidence that this was something real... and I signed up to train as a Forest Bathing Guide that very day!

 

After my first days training spent in a little wood on the south coast of England, I was glowing on the inside and the outside - from being amongst the trees, and from the positive vibes that this practise and the people in it were sending me. My mind had been given a break from the stresses that usually accompanied me by focusing my senses on this beautiful spot, being in the moment and drawing a breath. The trees had gifted me with a days worth of purer air - oxygen rich and pollution free! I felt like I had spent the day being pampered at a health spa! This is what I want for you.

Forest Bathing quietly, profoundly restored me; easing tension as I walked beneath the trees, breathing clarity back into my soul. What began as a personal refuge has become a path of purpose. That transformation ignited my purpose of helping others to feel that same softening, that same return to themselves, that quiet yet powerful transformation.

 

My Belief

 

• Nature holds profound healing power... if we slow down enough to notice.

• Calm isn’t superficial peace, but a rooted resilience from invited stillness.

• Everyone deserves a soft, safe place to rebalance—whether outdoors in woodland, or within their own four walls.

What You’ll Find Here

 

Kokoro Grove offers gentle, nature-led experiences for those feeling stressed, burnt out, creatively blocked, or simply in need of calm:

 

• Guided Forest Bathing Sessions in peaceful Hampshire woodlands

• Nature Journaling & Creative Prompts shared through workshops and content

• Mindful Photography sessions to connect with nature creatively

 

Each session is designed to help you soften, listen inward, and begin again—with tools you can carry into everyday life.

 

Who This Is For

 

• People feeling overwhelmed, stretched thin, or emotionally tired

• Those in life or career transitions, seeking clarity and rest

• Creatives in need of inspiration and reconnection

• Anyone longing for a deeper breath and a slower pace

 My hope for Kokoro Grove

 

While right now I guide small in-person experiences, this is just the beginning. My vision is to grow Kokoro Grove into a broader sanctuary:
A place for retreats, online resources, and supportive tools that bring nature’s wisdom into your home, your heart, and your life.

Whether you’re able to walk with me in the woods or connect from your kitchen,

I want you to feel one thing: less alone, more grounded, and gently returned to yourself.

 

 My invitation

 

This work is my calling—a rooted response to a world that needs more softness, clarity, and deep belonging.
Whether you join me in a woodland or from home, my hope is that if you arrive burdened you will leave soft, clear, and grounded.

For now, it starts with a simple invitation to slow down and feel more like yourself.

 

There is a connection between nature and improved well-being.

The natural world of Mother Earth can soothe our frazzled nerves and gently lift us from our mental fatigue, to refresh and rejuvenate us.

 

The more I understood the science behind Forest Bathing, the more I realised just how much it was needed. How much benefit it brings to both people and to nature. 'To know it is to love it' definitely rings true for Forest Bathing, encouraging people to take a fresh look at the beauty of nature. Because if we love our natural environment, we will most likely take care of it, and nature could definitely do with a helping hand on that one, and if we do, it will most certainly take care of us.

It's out there, you just have to connect with it, so I invite you to let me show you how. 

Come Join Me

If this speaks to something inside you, I’d love to walk with you.