Wellness advocate 'Hiking My Feelings' brings message to Southern Utah

ST. GEORGE – The Hiking Your Feelings tour showcases the healing power of nature and giving back through service during Mental Health Month in May.

Author Sydney Williams organizes healing events that give back to nature, date and location not specified | Photo courtesy of Sydney Williams, St. George News

Author Sydney Williams told St. George News she has partnered with AutoCamp and Field Station to present a series of transformative events. Williams is a wellness advocate, wilderness guide, and creator of Hiking My Feelings. Her company creates mental health programs through outdoor experiences to improve community health by allowing people to discover the healing power of nature.

“Nothing is a one-size-fits-all approach, right? So we’re trying to create an environment where people can find healing in nature and then give something back to the earth because, to me, it has to be a reciprocal relationship to be intentional and meaningful,” said Williams.

This year, Williams is visiting seven national parks and monuments and has a new book “Hiking Your Feelings: Blazing a Trail to Self-Love.” The book provides a framework for self-reflection that helped her recover from burnout, reverse diabetes, and improve her mental health.

To celebrate the launch of his new book, AutoCamp and Field Station will host events encouraging guests to disconnect from distractions and reconnect with themselves, reflecting a shared dedication to finding inspiration and healing in the outdoors.

Williams hosts a variety of events, including fireside book chats, group hikes with local nonprofits, and environmental stewardship projects.

It also offers Wilderness Wellness workshops in one or more day formats. Williams said her intention is to provide an opportunity to slow down for a day (or four) to disconnect from distractions, reconnect with ourselves and explore how spending time outdoors can help us give the best of ourselves in life, love and work.

Hiking Your Feelings Mental Health Awareness Month Tour, Featuring Author Sydney Williams, Makes a Stop at AutoCamp Zion, Virgin, Utah | Photo courtesy of Matt Kisiday, St. George News

On May 10, Williams will lead a group fireside chat at Field Station in Moab. She will join participants in completing a service project with the Canyonlands Field Office.

Then on May 17, she will be in Washington County. Williams partnered with the nonprofit Zion National Park Forever Project and AutoCamp in Virgin, Utah. There will be a fireside book discussion and assistance with the Zion Forever Project. Participants will help the nonprofit project work on land near the border of Zion National Park that has been deeded to the Zion Forever Project. They ask for help to see what types of natural resources are there.

Participants will help check for cultural artifacts by surveying the grounds during a walking workshop with Williams.

“For example, what can we learn from the age of petrified wood and the scale of our problems? » Williams said. “It also helps connect the dots between indoor and outdoor wilderness and support the Zion Forever Project with a few crucial volunteer hours.”

In September 2017, Williams was diagnosed with diabetes. In the summer of 2018, she began hiking around Catalina Island, near her home in San Diego, California. She wrote her first book about her experience.

Williams’ latest book is similar to the first she published in 2019, “Hiking My Feelings: Stepping into the Healing Power of Nature.” It’s based on two hikes across Catalina Island that helped Sydney Williams heal her mind and body.

Hiking Your Feelings Mental Health Awareness Month Tour, Featuring Author Sydney Williams, Makes a Stop at Moab Field Station, Moab, Utah | Photo courtesy of Matt Kisiday, St. George News

Her second book, “Hiking Your Feelings: Blazing a Trail to Self Love,” adds lessons, resources, and things she currently teaches in her online and in-person programs. This book includes a journal and discussion prompts that you can use to build a relationship with yourself. This book offers a toolkit to unpack your “trauma pack” and become your best version.

“Hiking has helped me heal my mind and body and helped me reverse type 2 diabetes. It is my greatest teacher,” Williams said. “It’s the place where I feel most comfortable in my body and with myself. And once I saw that, I couldn’t unsee it. “Hiking My Feelings” is also the name of the non-profit organization I founded in 2020.”

To learn more about the tour, visit this website.

Stephanie DeGraw is an award-winning journalist. For 25 years, she was involved in journalism, broadcasting and public relations. DeGraw has worked for the Salt Lake Tribune, Associated Press and The City Journals. She was a reporter for a CBS television station in Twin Falls, Idaho. She graduated from Weber State University with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and broadcasting.