Birding for Your Brain
Red-whiskered Bulbul sitting on a branch in Pasadena, CA. Photo by Birdability ED on a recent bird outing for her own mental health. May 2025.
For so many of us, birding is more than just a hobby, it’s a lifeline. It’s a way to reconnect with ourselves and the world around us, find moments of stillness, experience joy, and cultivate community. And for people with disabilities and other health concerns, birding can be a profoundly affirming mental health tool, especially when access barriers are removed and our full selves are welcomed into the experience.
Mental health is shaped by many things, including disability, chronic illness, trauma, systemic oppression, and social isolation. The World Health Organization reminds us that “although most people are resilient, people who are exposed to adverse circumstances—including poverty, violence, disability, and inequality—are at higher risk of developing a mental health condition.” But we also know that a meaningful connection to nature, and to birds in particular, can offer comfort, calm, and connection.
A Birdability Captain and community member on a trail at Agua Caliente Park in Tucson, AZ looking through binoculars for a Cassin’s Kingbird across a pond. The trail is paved and there are plants along the edge. April 2025.
Birding is for every body and every mind. And whether you’re just beginning or have been observing birds for decades, here are some concrete, disability-affirming ways to incorporate birding into your mental wellness practices:
1. Create a Sit Spot Practice
Find a place—indoors or outdoors—where you can spend a few minutes each day simply being present with birds. This can be a porch, a window, a park bench, or a favorite trail. If your access needs change day to day, your sit spot can too. The key is consistency and intention. Let this be your space to breathe, notice, listen, and just be.
2. Connect with a Birding Community
Mental health thrives on connection. Whether it's joining a local bird club, attending virtual Birdability events, or following other disabled birders online, finding community can ease loneliness and deepen your sense of belonging. Birding doesn't have to be done alone—even if you're birding solo, you're part of something bigger.
3. Start a Birding Journal—Your Way
Nature journaling isn’t just for artists or scientists. Use words, sketches, voice recordings, or any format that works for you. Record how you felt, what you saw, or what a bird’s call reminded you of. It’s not about perfection—it’s about reflection.
4. Celebrate the Birds Near You
You don’t have to travel to far-flung destinations to enjoy birding. Backyard birds, city pigeons, or the gulls at your grocery store parking lot count. Celebrate the birds who share your everyday environment—they’re just as wondrous as any “rare find.”
5. Practice Birding by Ear
For folks who are blind, have low vision, or have mobility disabilities, birding by ear is a powerful practice. Tuning in to birdsong can sharpen your focus and create a meditative rhythm. Even without identifying each species, letting the sound of birds fill your day can calm anxiety and shift your mood.
6. Use the Birdability Map to Find Accessible Locations
The Birdability Map is a crowdsourced tool for finding birding spots that meet a wide range of access needs. Whether you need a flat paved trail, a bench every 100 feet, or a shade-rich environment to bird comfortably, the Map can help you find a space that welcomes you fully.
7. Welcome Birds to You
If getting outside is challenging, bring the birds to you. Set up a bird feeder, plant native flowers, or add a birdbath near your window. Even a photo of a favorite bird on your wall can offer a moment of connection. Joy doesn't have to be complicated.
8. Give Yourself Permission to Bird However Works for You
Some days, birding may look like hours outdoors with binoculars and a field guide. Other days, it may be watching a sparrow hop across a sidewalk. Both are valid. Both count. There is no one “right” way to bird—only your way.
9. Make It a Sensory Experience
Birding is a multi-sensory practice. Notice the textures of tree bark, the feel of the breeze, the smells of the season, and the sounds that shift through the day. Engaging whatever senses are available to you can ground you in the present moment and reduce stress—even if you’re not spotting any birds.
10. Ask for and Offer Access
Whether you are attending an outing or planning one, normalize talking about access. Ask what accommodations are available. Offer access info when you invite others. When access is treated as essential, not extra, it opens the door for everyone to experience the wellness benefits of birding.
A Birdability Outing in Austin, TX. There is a group of birders using various mobility devices and binoculars who are gathered on a packed dirt and stone path in front of trees, looking at he camera and smiling. Photo courtesy of Virginia Rose.
Birding doesn't fix everything. But for many of us, it offers moments of ease in difficult days. It offers wonder, even when the world feels heavy. And it reminds us that we belong in nature, just as we are.
This Mental Health Awareness Month, consider what it might look like to make birding a more regular part of your wellness routine. Then take one small step toward that vision on your own terms, at your own pace.
Birding is for every body and every mind. We are building a world together where that’s the norm and where our community thrives.
