31/10/2026
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🌿 Behavioural Activation, low mood and Garden Therapy
One therapeutic approach that fits naturally with the way I work at Cultivating Care WA is Behavioural Activation.
Behavioural Activation is commonly used to support people experiencing depression and low mood. When mood drops, people often start doing less. They may see people less, get outside less, drop hobbies or routines, and avoid things that feel difficult. Unfortunately, doing less can then mean fewer opportunities for enjoyment, achievement, connection and purpose.
Behavioural Activation works by helping people gradually re engage with activities that are meaningful or helpful to them. The emphasis is usually on starting small, making the first step realistic, and not always waiting until motivation appears before doing something.
This fits well with Garden Therapy because gardening and nature give us lots of different ways to put this into practice.
At CCWA I use a Three Gardens Approach:
🌱 Home Gardens
Working in a person’s own garden, courtyard, balcony or indoor green space.
🌱 Community Gardens
Taking part in gardening, learning and community activity in places such as Perth City Farm.
🌱 Nature’s Garden
Using parks, bushland, coastal areas and other natural spaces for walking, conversation, reflection and connection with nature.
For someone experiencing low mood, the goal might initially be quite simple. It could be getting out of the house, creating some structure in the week, spending time outside, completing a manageable task, reconnecting with an old interest or trying something new.
From a support work perspective, I can use ideas from Behavioural Activation to help make those activities easier to begin. We can plan something achievable, do it together, work around barriers and gradually build confidence, routine or independence. Sometimes having another person there for that first step makes an activity much more manageable.
From a counselling perspective, Behavioural Activation can be used more directly as part of therapy. We can look at how activity and mood are connected, what has changed in the person’s life, what they may have stopped doing, and what might be worth gradually reintroducing. Because the session is also counselling, there is space to explore the thoughts and feelings that come up alongside the activity.
That conversation might happen while planting vegetables, walking through a natural area, working in a community garden, or simply sitting somewhere outside.
One thing I like about using Behavioural Activation in this way is that the gardening itself does not need to be the goal. A small garden activity might instead be helping someone build routine, confidence, social connection, a sense of achievement or simply a reason to get outside.
If you would like to explore whether Garden Therapy, counselling or community based support work might be a good fit for you or someone you support, you are welcome to get in touch to explore the different support options.
🌿 cultivatingcarewa.com.au
📧 [email protected]
