Meet Tatjana “tati” Mcalister

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Tatjana “tati” Mcalister a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Tatjana “Tati”, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

My purpose has varied throughout different parts of my life. Looking back, I was never one to know for certain what I wanted to do with my “one wild and precious life.” From childhood, my focus was on taking care of my alcoholic mother, who also had mental health issues. I suppose it was mostly reacting and surviving for a long time. I knew I had the capacity for large degrees of empathy and compassion and found myself in jobs that “cared” for others into my adulthood. Starting out as a dental assistant, medical assistant, group fitness instructor, yoga teacher, caregiver and now, Forest and Nature Therapy Guide, I was subconsciously looking for ways to help people. Now, after selling our home in SC and everything in it in 2020 and buying an RV to live nomadically for 3 years, I have been given the gift of time to dive deep within myself to uncover the why I am who I am and what that is going to look like as I move forward. Living on the road for 3 years allowed me to also explore and develop a sense of adventure and openness to what I may be missing by never taking the opportunity to try. In those years, I hiked prolifically, exploring places from Alaska to Mexico, from the east coast to the wide open spaces of the west! I took the opportunity to also explore ME by taking online courses and saying “yes” to learning, growing and healing those childhood wounds and traumas and deciding to LIVE in love and peace and truth and light!!! This lead me to the forest. Ever since I was a child, the forest behind our house was a sanctuary and an escape from the tumultuous environment of my home.
There were always places to explore in the trees, in the bayous and fields. I always felt protected and held in those places. So when I had an opportunity to participate in a Forest Bathing event at Bear Creek Nature Center in Colorado Springs in 2023, I took it! Not knowing what to expect, I found that I had been practicing this my entire life!
After all of the modalities I have tried to move myself to greater peace, this one practice really checked all the boxes! I was present, out of my head (where all the thoughts are…) and in my body through sensory invitations given by my guide. I discovered there are MORE than 5 senses and opened my heart and imagination to find a whole new world of connection! After my first experience, I KNEW I needed to know more, to do more and to SHARE this incredible practice! I immediately went home, filled out the ANFT (Association of Nature and Forest Therapy) application to move into a course in winter of 2024. I completed the course in summer of last year and starting guiding groups at a few locations. It was so heartwarming to see others open themselves up to the “therapy” provided by the forest, also known to guides as the “more-than-human world.” There is a plethora of significant benefits to being immersed in nature that is sort of mind blowing! And it needs to be shared- it needs to be experienced and practiced!
So sometimes purpose is an amalgamation of who you are, why you are, what you’ve experienced, what you learned, how you open yourself up to opportunities and how you can share ALL of that!
Currently, I am exploring bringing my passion for nature and the outdoors to another practice of End of Life Coaching and Death Doula training. My experiences as a caregiver allowed me to see how sacred the process of dying can be. We all deserve what death doulas call a “good death”, with as little fear and anxiety as possible, with the accompanying of another soul who can hold space and provide comfort and peace. To be honest, at this point, I’m not entirely sure what that will look like but I have some ideas…
So basically, my purpose is to share what I have lived and learned to help others do the same.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

I am a Forest and Nature Therapy guide, certified through a global entity called ANFT. I am focused on helping facilitate healing in individuals in the practice of Forest Bathing or Shirin-Yoku (Japanese practice). I offer private and group guided walks locally here in Colorado Springs, CO area. I also offer free guided walks to non-profit groups and school students/teachers. I am also offering Guided Nature Journaling walks starting this Spring. I currently volunteer as an Environmental Educator at Bear Creek Nature Center and lead a fitness group in my town of Palmer Lake.
My brand is Fox Mountain Forest & Nature Therapy. I chose Fox Mountain because I LOVE foxes (we often have them in our backyard) and I work in the foothills and mountain of Colorado. I am also currently enrolled in the Outdoor Learning School’s course on Indigenous Wisdom to bring further attention to the land and its sacredness.
I have Forest Bathing events scheduled starting in March at Bear Creek Nature Center. You can find information on the El Paso County Parks website, my Facebook page, Fox Mountain Nature and Forest Therapy, or my Instagram @fox_mountain_fnt.

The most exciting part of Forest and Nature Therapy guiding as a guide is the privilege of the guide to open the door to the forest (therapist). Benefits include: health improvements such as decreased stress/ cortisol levels, lowered blood pressure, better sleep, and an overall sense of ease and connection and improved heart and lung health. Trees also emit invisible chemicals called phytoncidesthat improve immunity. Phytoncides have antibacterial and anti fungal qualities which help the plants fight disease. When inhaled by us, our bodies respond by increasing the number and activity of a type of white blood cell called NK (Natural Killer) cells. these cells kill tumor and virus-infected cells in our bodies.
Combined with the guides sensory offerings to bring us into the present moment and a beautiful tea ceremony under the trees to round out the experience, it is just pure medicine for the mind, body and soul!

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Being open to possibilities and opportunities!
Allowing yourself to release and let go of control (it’s an illusion anyway…)
Trust the universe to move you into the directions you must go and trust yourself as well.

If you’re early in your journey, take is slowly…there certainly is a sense of urgency when you start to move toward your highest consciousness and move from the first half of life where you were in the phases of intellectual growth to the second phase where you move more into yourself, your “calling”, your intimacy with your own heart and mind and into a gentle wisdom. Read from others who may help move you in this process. In the journey, you will find serendipitous moments that will offer you the calm certainty that you are on the right path. Meditate!
Seek mentors- sage advice is always great! Be patient with yourself, love yourself…

All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?

My number one challenge right now is the practice of Forest Bathing is relatively new, even though people have been engaged with it for eons but just didn’t know what it was! Another challenge is most people associate themselves separately from nature, when in truth, we ARE nature. We tend to use this separation as an excuse to USE nature as resources and commodities. Once we CONNECT ourselves with Mother Earth and all beings, we see ourselves in the web of connection and those tendencies tend to disintegrate. The this shift happens, our levels of consciousness expand and rise to higher levels of awareness and create NEW patterns of living WITH the land and all of it’s inhabitants. It’s truly a beautiful thing!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @fox_mountain_fnt
• Facebook: Fox Mountain Nature and Forest Therapy

Image Credits

Tatjana McAlister