Living in Harmony with the Seasons: Fall
When I lived upstate, Fall was particularly bittersweet. While I love the season and all that Fall in nature brings, I often saw the season as a sign of what’s to come in terms of harsh winter weather. I experienced incredible grief thinking about the inevitable shortage of nice weather days that lie ahead on the year’s calendar. Living in NYC with much milder Winter, the season is less bittersweet for me. That said because of my experience living upstate, I have an appreciation for the milder Fall and Winter and I meet the transition to Fall with gratitude.
Fall in Nature
Fall is often associated with pumpkin spice lattes, weekend leaf peeping excursions and the beginning of the holiday season as we kick off Halloween in October. From a Chinese Medicine perspective Fall in nature corresponds with the Metal element. Metal is about taking in inspiration and letting go. On a mental and emotional level Metal corresponds with reverence and grief, it’s about knowing the value of a relationship, a material item, an idea or an experience while also being able to identify when the value has passed. On a bio-physical level the Metal element corresponds with the lungs and colon, both of these organ systems have functions related to taking in what’s valuable and letting go of what’s not. With each breath cycle, the lungs take in valuable oxygen and let go of carbon dioxide waste. Following the absorbtion of fats, carbs and proteins in the small intestine, the colon receives the what’s remains of the food we’ve digested and squeezes out the last bit of value; water, minerals and vitamins; before letting go of the rest.
During Fall In nature we see the trees let go of their leaves. While their function served the tree and it’s understory well during fall and spring, holding onto the leaves as we move into the winter will put the tree at risk for storm damage from wind and snow. Additionally while the leaves provide needed shade for the understory in hot summer months, it cuts off the understory from the necessary warmth of the sun during the cold winter.
Applying Fall in Nature to Our Mental and Emotional Health
Often one thinks about the new year as the ideal time to evaluate in preparation for making resolutions. When living in harmony with the seasons, Fall is an ideal time to evaluate our health, our activities, our habits, and begin to ask questions like:
Does this still serve me?
Do I value this?
Does this inspire me?
Is it time to let go of this?
Would someone else get more value out of this?
In nature during winter the seed is gathering potent energy, in spring it sprouts forward, during summer it comes to maturation, in late summer it bears fruit and in Fall we evaluate, determine what serves us and let go of what no longer has value. This process ultimately sets us up to be ready for the potential that will be birthed during the period of respite that comes every winter. Nature’s cycle of creation, isn’t much different than most project management cycles and while we can’t lay every project timeline over the annual seasonal cycle, we can do this with our personal goals for health, growth and self actualization. Since we are not separate from what’s happening in nature during the fall, this time of year is a great time to start the clearing out process.
Where in your life are you currently feeling it’s time to let go?
Fall in Nature and Physical Health
As Fall sets in, the daylight hours are getting shorter, the leaves on the ground are beginning to rot, the temperature is dropping and there’s a dampness in the air. It’s not uncommon for people to have a flare up of digestive symptoms this time of year. To support your digestive process during the transition to cooler weather, shift away from raw foods. Cooling foods that served us well on warm days will tax the digestive system as the chillier weather sets in. Warming herbs and spices like ginger, turmeric and pepper can be used to warm up the digestive system.
The lungs are especially vulnerable to the cooling temperatures, the dampness of fall and the mold that often increases in the air as leaves and other plan matter decay around us. Ginger and turmeric not only support digestion but they can be wonderful for reducing dampness and phlegm in the respiratory system this time of year. I grate and boil raw ginger root to make ginger tea. Since there’s no caffein or sugar, it also helps me meet my hydration goals. Learn more about optimizing hydration here.
The Fall equinox marks the mid-point between the longest and shortest daylight hour days. If you suffer from seasonal affectiveness and typically supplement with Vitamin D in the winter months, now is the time to start. Many people will wait til the Winter Solstice but at that point, we are already at the point in the cycle with the shortest number of daylight hours and thus the smallest opportunity for Vitamin D production from sun exposure. I typically recommend people that need to supplement seasonalyl with Vitamin D, start at the Fall Equinox.
The Seasonal changes are also a great time to check in with your Acupuncturist. If you’re on a wellness plan and see your provider seasonally, reach out. If you’d like to learn more about seasonal tune ups at Ronald Pratt Acupuncture, schedule a phone consultation with me.