The waves of the sea help me get back to me.

Jill Davis

We all feel it instinctively. Water heals. Water restores. Water uplifts.

As someone with a sailboat, I spend a fair amount of time on or near water. I know it puts me in another state. A better and healthier state. A calmer, more centred, more present state.

But why? To find out I’ve just begun to read Blue Mind: The Surprising Science that Shows How Being In, On, Near or Under Water Can Make you Happier, Healthier, More Connected and Better at What You Do.

I’ve been meaning to dip into this for a while now. I finally have and I’m sure I’ll share some of what I’m discovering in future posts.

My aha moments….

What first struck me is the notion of a red mind, gray mind and blue mind. We all know these states well. Red mind is when we are stressed, anxious, overactive yet underproductive and gray mind is when we are numb, lethargic, demotivated and unsatisfied.

Red and gray mind states feel awful — they are products of our modern lifestyles, habits and choices. Blue mind is a natural state that feels glorious. We have all experienced it.  Many of us yearn for it when we’re in a red or gray mind state and almost all of us find it very easy to reconnect with when we’re close to water.

Blue mind is a mildly meditative state characterized by calm, peacefulness, unity and a sense of general happiness and satisfaction with life in the moment. It is inspired by water and elements associated with water. It takes advantage of neurological connections formed over millennia, which we are only beginning to understand now.

So many of us are drawn to water as a way to deal with the stress of our lives, to enhance the good times or to feel awe and wonder and get in touch with something larger than our small selves. If we don’t live near it, we head toward it on vacation. We wake up early to take sunrise shots over water. Our kids run through sprinklers in the summer. We immerse ourselves in it to create a feeling of extreme relaxation and well-being.

I find it fascinating that both the human brain (80% water) and the ocean (covering 70% of the Earth’s surface) are still only at the very early stages of being explored and understood by humankind. We still have so much to learn.

I’m looking forward to exploring some of the emerging science on water and blue mind in the days and weeks ahead.

I’m curious to know whether water has the power to put you in a blue mind state — and do you find yourself going out of your way to experience it?