After 30 years of clinical practice witnessing physical pain, exhaustion, stress, and poor nutrition among other things, I have found one of the most impactful ways to communicate about how to live well is to frame my work through living in harmony with the seasons. Our mental and physical energy feels different in each season. So we must adjust to stay in balance and feel well. Tuning into the ebbs and flows of mother nature and our environment is a way to do this.
As we are turning the corner into Autumn, we are reminded that nature has always known what many of us have forgotten, there is strength in slowing down. Modern life encourages us to keep pushing forward through every season, but Autumn is actually a time to pause, reflect, and release what no longer serves us. Look around at nature and see that the same is happening. The nights getting longer and temperatures are starting to fall.
In my book, Wisdom in the Seasons, I draw on the principles of traditional Chinese wisdom. Together we explore Autumn as a metaphor for personal transformation. As the trees surrender their leaves to preserve their inner vitality and nourish the soil below, we need to be doing similar in our own lives. What habits have you gained through the year that don’t suit you? Which relationships drain you rather than nourish you? What emotions would you like to clear? The Summer season can be very busy, high energy and rather draining if we don’t balance it up with some rest.
Image by Alicky Gravell
In Wisdom in the Seasons we explore how to connect to the rhythms of nature creating harmony in the body and mind. In Chinese medicine, the lungs and large intestine are the organs associated with the Autumn. These organs physically eliminate unwanted waste and emotionally this can represent the release of emotions such as grief and sadness. Open the book to find out more!
Some view Autumn as a season of decline, but I share how it is a season for release and preparation for the glorious winter ahead. Nature calls us to start retreating inwards. It is a time for consolidating the lessons and wisdom we have learnt in the year and for building our resilience. In Wisdom in the Seasons we unpack the ways you can do this. I take you through physical and emotional techniques such as Qi Gong and Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) with nutritional ideas and recipes that bring your mind and body back into balance. Practical guidance is woven throughout the book. It is packed with simple, achievable practices that you can incorporate into everyday life throughout the four seasons.
Mother nature uses the season of Autumn for drawing energy down into the earth for renourishment ahead of the Winter. This provides the essential foundation for the big burst of energy during the regrowth in the Spring. We need to reflect this in our lives too. Living this way will support inner harmony and peace.
In Wisdom in the Seasons, I encourage readers to live in harmony with the natural cycles that surround us rather than against them. This of course seems obvious now but we do have a tendency to forget and swept up in the chaos of life around us!
Main – Image by Alicky Gravell
About the Author: Alicky Gravell
