Balance Blog
all things health, wellness, and Chinese Medicine
Just as trees shed their leaves, fall is the time for personal reflection, releasing negativity, and nurturing the seeds of what we want to grow in the future. To support this inward journey, affirmations can be a powerful tool for aligning with the natural rhythms of the season and harmonizing with the Metal Element.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), each season is associated with specific elements, organs, emotions, and health practices to maintain harmony and balance. Summer, governed by the Fire element, is a time of abundance, activity, and outward energy. Here’s how TCM approaches health during the toasty summer season!
The teachings and practices of Chinese Medicine supports the body, mind and spirit in the midst of change. In preparation for Fall, our focus turns to strengthening the metal element’s organ system pair, the Lungs and Large Intestine, and practice that which we observe in nature: letting go. Enjoy our 10 self-care tips for keeping well this fall.
Summer is just around the corner! Beach days, barbecues, and pool hangs are calling our name. The energy of the season is all about joy, connection, expansiveness, and fun. To enjoy the season to its fullest, TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) teaches us how to live in harmony with the season and the feisty element of Fire. Food therapy plays a major role in how we can maintain good health year round!
The teachings and practices of Chinese Medicine will support the body, mind and spirit in the midst of seasonal change. In preparation for Winter, our focus turns to strengthening the water element’s organ system pair, the Kidneys and Urinary Bladder, and practice that which we observe in nature: stillness and conservation.
The Metal Element is all about a lesson in "letting go." Leaves fall from trees, autumn harvest begins, and the days are shorter and cooler. From a Traditional Chinese Medicine perspective, there might also be a benefit it beginning to tidy, declutter, and let go of that what you no longer need. South Carolina-based Acupuncturist Lauren Becker, L.Ac. shares perspective on why you might think about using this time to "Marie Kondo" your house.
The teachings and practices of Chinese Medicine supports the body, mind and spirit in the midst of change. In preparation for Fall, our focus turns to strengthening the metal element’s organ system pair, the Lungs and Large Intestine, and practice that which we observe in nature: letting go. Enjoy our 10 self-care tips for keeping well this fall.
In Chinese Medicine, we take seasonal changes as opportunities to better our health and prevent disease. Late Summer is the time to reinforce the vitality of the earth element.. Adjusting our qi with the flow of the seasons will help us cultivate balance, resiliency, and vibrant health throughout the year.
Things are warming up and we've got your TCM tips to help you enjoy a happy and healthy summer! The transition from Spring to Summer is represented by the wood element moving into the FIRE element. The new growth and budding energy of spring is now exploding into summer vibrance and abundance. Whether you thrive in the heat or want to melt away, self-care is essential this time of year.
In Chinese Medicine theory, the Wood element aligns with springtime and corresponds to the Liver organ, which is responsible for the free flow of qi in the body. Themes of the season are growth, strength, courage, vision, and renewal. Learn how the teachings and practices of Chinese Medicine can help ease the transition into Spring and support that wood energy!
Wherever you fall in the transition to the cold winter months, the teachings and practices of Chinese Medicine supports the body, mind and spirit in the midst of change. In preparation for Winter, our focus turns to strengthening the water element’s organ system pair, the Kidneys and Urinary Bladder, and practice that which we observe in nature: stillness and conservation.
The teachings and practices of Chinese Medicine supports the body, mind and spirit in the midst of change. In preparation for Fall, our focus turns to strengthening the metal element’s organ system pair, the Lungs and Large Intestine, and practice that which we observe in nature: letting go. Enjoy our 10 self-care tips for keeping well this fall.
Chinese Medicine proposes that we will feel our best if we live according to the seasons. In late Summer, it is the Earth element that is the most active and also the most vulnerable. With appropriate diet and lifestyle adjustments, we can cultivate a healthy Earth element, a strong gut and optimal immunity.
The Wood energy of the season wants to rise up, push through, and get things done. It’s active and energetic, and supports vision, creativity, and leadership. This is the time of year we would work on any blockages so we can have access to all that great energy. After all, the themes of the season are growth, rebirth, and renewal. When this energy is thwarted or constrained, the result is Qi stagnation.
Wherever you fall in the transition to the cold winter months, the teachings and practices of Chinese Medicine supports the body, mind and spirit in the midst of change. In preparation for Winter, our focus turns to strengthening the water element’s organ system pair, the Kidneys and Urinary Bladder, and practice that which we observe in nature: stillness and conservation.
Fall is the season of slowing down, contracting inward and beginning to store. It is the time to reserve our energy, to organize, set limits and heed boundaries. The endless energetic days of summer are over, we feel a call to refocus and shift inward. We also see this shift reflected in nature. Days are starting to shorten, leaves are turning, and crisp early mornings are becoming more frequent. As we adjust, so does nature.
We’re all familiar with spring cleaning, but fall is a perfect time to de-clutter and tidy up! Understanding the five elements allows us to bring harmony in our home and in ourselves. The fall welcomes in the metal element phase. After the growth of spring (wood) and the abundance of summer (fire), fall, the season of the metal element, is a time to decrease.
In Five Element theory, each of the five elements has a correlating season and organ system pair. For the Fire element, the season is Summer and the organ systems are the Heart and Small Intestine. Here, the spotlight is on the Small Intestine- a favorite channel used to clear summer-related heat and dampness, improve mental clarity, calm the spirit, and support digestion and gut health.
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