The Autumn Equinox, which falls on September 22, marks the beginning of the fall season. Autumn is when things begin to shed and the energy moves inwards and downwards. During this time of year, Nature illustrates this beautifully in the leaves falling away from the trees. Just as the squirrel stores his harvest of nuts and twigs, we too fortify our energy reserves to sustain us through the resting winter months until the re-birth of spring.
In Chinese medicine there are five elements considered in our internal and external environments – wood, fire, earth, metal and water and each is connected to a particular season. The fall season is connected to the metal element and related to the lungs and large intestine. Other associations connected to the Metal element are: the emotion is grief; the sound or tone in the voice is weeping; the taste is pungent/spicy; the color is white.
The balance between the intake (air and food) and the output (breathing out and waste elimination) is vital to staying healthy in body and spirit. The lungs are vulnerable to damp and cold, which can easily start a cold or lung infection. All sinus, congestion and mucous formation at this time are more than likely connected to an imbalance in the Metal element. The large intestine is susceptible to dryness, which is why constipation often accompanies colds, sinus and other lung problems. Poor intestinal elimination may also result in skin problems, as the skin is also governed by the Metal element and is our body’s largest “organ” of elimination.
We also need to eliminate mental and emotional toxicity as well. As our minds and spirits become “constipated” it becomes increasingly difficult to experience the pure and the beautiful that surrounds us. We need to let go of the old patterns, beliefs, people and “stuff” that just doesn’t serve us any more.
Don’t hold on to stuff!
• Go through your closet, desk, garage, etc. and discard what you no longer need.
• Take a mental inventory: examine attitudes (prejudices, envies, hatreds, jealousies, resentments) stored within your psyche. Attempt to resolve the hurtful old issues with those concerned.
• Take time each day to breathe slowly and deeply. As you inhale the clean autumn air, feel yourself energized and purified. Feel the old negativity, impurity and pain leave your body, mind and spirit.
• Eat seasonal fruits, vegetables and grains- buy organic from local farmers when possible. Pungent/spicy foods may protect and support the lungs during the fall. Chilies, peppers, onions, garlic, radishes. Fiber/pectin- flaxseeds, apples, cherries, carrots; for dryness- pears, honey, almond, barley, millet; sour foods-sourdough.
For more information on how Acupuncture and Oriental medicine can help you feel more balanced during these seasonal changes please contact Kathleen Kenneally L.Ac. at 661-252-4100