How do you feel when gazing at the sky? Our sky is powerful, as its endless expanse can make all our worries in life seem insignificant. Our sky is also naturally healing, as its constantly-changing shades can remind us that nothing in our lives is permanent, and that includes our bad mood and current life challenges. Our sky gives us a way to escape, as it exists no matter where we are on Earth. And, by simply looking up, we can revive our sense of wonder whenever we feel bored, and spark our sense of hope whenever we feel hopeless – anytime, anywhere. A recent study on skychology explores the healing power of staring at the sky. Read on to learn how the sky can improve your well-being and nourish your mental health.

The Psychology of the Sky 

Skychology is the scientific study of understanding and leveraging our interaction with the sky to improve our mental well-being. It focuses on exploring our experience that looking up at the sky can give us, as well as the ways that our sky can help us achieve a healthier, and more flourishing psychological state. The term combines “sky” and “psychology”, and was first coined and introduced by Paul Conway – a life coach and positive psychology researcher – in his study: The Extraordinary in the Ordinary: Skychology published in 2019. His study aimed to explore the psychological influence of looking up at the sky, and how the sky can influence and improve our mental health. And in order to address these questions, he scheduled in-depth interviews with four people, and asked them to share their personal experiences and reflections about looking up at the sky.

The Sky-Gazing Experience 

Generally speaking, Conway’s study revealed that gazing at the sky is considered an ordinary activity that offers an extraordinary experience. Looking up at the sky offers a sense of connectedness. For instance, interviewees explained that this is because the sky can provide them not only a chance to connect with the natural world, but also give them a way to enjoy the peacefulness and calmness of being alone and away from the crowds. Staring at the sky can also allow us to restore our inner peace. The study has found that the participants believed that this sky-gazing experience could allow them to immerse themselves in a judgment-free world: a utopia wherein they can stop worrying about what others think of them. And as we stare at the sky, we can feel safe to drop our social masks, and to live freely as our true, authentic selves for a moment. Simply put, our sky provides us a rabbit hole to escape and find a sense of relief from the chaos in our modern, fast-paced world – a world full of societal pressure, the hustle and bustle, and the cult of busyness.  

Always There For You 

Our sky nurtures, supports, and encourages us. It plays a role as a constant companion; for example, the study has suggested that the sky can play a role as an important friend, guardian, or mentor, because we can see the sky whenever we want through the simple act of looking up, and that the sky accompanies us across our lifetime from childhood, to adolescence, to adulthood. And this form of support that the sky can give us is crucial – and essential, too – for our mental and emotional health, as it provides us with the courage we need, supporting us to persist through challenging times along the way in our lives. The sky can also give us soothing effects that we otherwise experience in mindfulness and meditation. For instance, the sky-gazing activity can allow us to breathe more deeply, focus on the here and now, and restore our body-mind tranquility – and these effects can evoke our senses in many ways that are similar to what we tend to feel and seek from traditional healing practices.

The Emotional Weather 

We can also feel a sense of relatedness while looking at the sky, as the weather can sometimes embody our emotions. Also known as “emotional weather”, the changing weather of the sky represents our emotional states – which can make us feel stronger if the sky’s state matches one’s emotional state. A depressed individual can feel supported looking at a gray sky that falls raindrops; a joyful person can feel understood gazing at a bright blue sky with clouds crossing and the sun shining; a furious man can feel empathized staring at a stormy sky with lightning and thunder. This constantly-changing weather of the sky can, as a result, offer us a powerful sense of emotional support, and an instant way to better regulate our emotions without any use of language at all. 

Bring Skychology Into Your Life 

There are many ways that you can use skychology. For example, you can practice it when you’re feeling overwhelmed by your hectic work schedule, or simply when you need a quick break from the hustle and bustle. Staring at the sky can also help boost your creativity. So when you lack the inspiration to create, such as struggling with writer’s block, staying away from your laptop and staring at the sky for a few minutes can, perhaps, offer you new insights and ideas. Skychology can also help regulate your emotions and tame your racing thoughts – which can be especially helpful if practiced before an important event. 

For best effects, look at the sky for at least one minute – but feel free to continue enjoying the view for as long as you wish. We recommend standing, sitting, or lying down – depending on your location – in a comfortable position during the practice. Inhale through your nose, and exhale via your mouth as you savor the ever-changing sky – a unique breathing technique that Conway recommends. Let go of all your worries as you gaze at the sky, and imagine them gradually vacating from your body each time you breathe out. Observe carefully, and appreciate all the details of the sky – the shapes and movements of the clouds, the direction in which the birds fly, and the changing hue of the sky as time passes. Immerse yourself fully into the skychology experience, and finish the practice with your deepest breath.

All of the content on our website is thoroughly researched to ensure that the information shared is evidence-based. For more information, please visit the academic journals and other resources that influenced this article: Skychology: The Future of Wellbeing Is Looking Up; The Extraordinary in the Ordinary: Skychology - An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of Looking up at the Sky; Skychology Is the Easiest, Simplest Wellbeing Trend to Start Today (And It’s Free); Skychology: What Is It and Does It Really Work?