By Cora Stover, N.D.
Years ago, I read a book called Staying Healthy With the Seasons by Elson Haas. It provided a great beginning to the road I would choose to travel, and provided me with this insight: Each season has emotions and thoughts that are very healthy to have. During each season, there is space to allow certian feelings and moments, just like yin and yang there is a little of everything in each of us, and we must keep the balance.
Fall is a time for introspection, it is a time that plants take their nutrients from their leaves and bring them down to their roots to protect the plant from frost, starvation, and destruction. So where one part appears to have died, there is another part that is thriving, preparing and growing. Life is surrounded by beauty and wonder, if we choose to take a moment, acknowledge it, and ponder it. Life may seem mundane should we not stop to smell the roses, or kick up the fallen leaves. Fall is the time to look inward instead of outward for contemplation, to reserve resources, to process death or change, and to start a different type of growth.
It is the time when we use our couches to hide under our blankets of warmth, to cuddle, or to read a book with a hot cup of tea in the cool air. We keep the windows open, even though we are covered in our warm and fuzzies. We inspire to have those last moments of longer days, the sunshine coming in through the leaves, and the fresh fall air filling our nostrils and lungs. With introspection and contemplation, many of us may experience a sense of sadness or become depressed. Emotions that we deem negative are necessary for change to occur. We must grieve in order to let people, places, and things go. This is so that we may embrace our existence now, to be able to move ahead and blossom come spring. It is important to have self love and care for ourselves. We must allow ourselves and others the space and time to heal, to contemplate or think about the way of life, to compare our deepest most hidden desires. If we are not happy then we must figure out what we need to do to change, so that we may feel fulfilled.
If negative feelings are overwhelming and you are trying to make sense of them, or perhaps you are just looking for other ways to keep fall interesting and healthy, we would like to help you. Please contact us at Velise Total Health to make an appointment. We are always here to support your health needs, no matter what season it is!