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

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  • 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