DURHAM Wildlife Trust has outlined ways in which people can use nature to reduce their stress levels as part of Stress Awareness Month, which runs throughout April.

Stress Awareness Month, which has been held every April since 1992, sees health care professionals and health promotion experts join forces to increase awareness of the causes and cures for stress.

The event is sponsored by The Health Resource Network, a non-profit health education organisation.

To mark the event, Durham Wildlife Trust communications assistant Abbie Osguthorpe has produced a guide to ways in which nature can help people de-stress.

She said: “Stuck inside after a cold and dark winter, we can too often forget what it feels like to enjoy the gift of nature and wildlife.

“By doing things like taking a walk in one of our reserves, volunteering for conservation work or even just doing some gardening a couple of times a week, people can enjoy the beauty of wildlife. Being out in the open soothes your mind and exercises the body.”

The guide includes details about walks, wild yoga at Rainton Meadows Nature Reserve and volunteering opportunities with the trust.