Autumn Health + Wellbeing
Today is the 21 September and marks Autumn equinox in the northern hemisphere or Mabon. The Celtic celebration of the first day of Autumn.
As a season autumn is the season of shedding + releasing what’s no longer serving us and the life we want to live, or bringing us joy.
Seasonally there are many themes that come up for autumn. If you wish to learn more I recently wrote about seasonal living through autumn.
For many years I struggled through autumn and winter, struggling with the turn in weather + darker days, especially the cold weather. It was only once I found the path of holistic health + living that I found things to appreciate and enjoy in every season. Even in the darkest days, there are little sparks of light + joy that you can find if you take the time to look.
If you struggle with low moods, energy levels + motivation once the summer season begins to fade, then I know just how you feel. That was exactly how I felt too.
The good news is, half of the battle is your mindset + how you think about those seasons. If you start dreading autumn from the start of August and telling yourself that you hate it, that it’s awful, that it’ll be miserable, then it will.
Our brains find facts to back up our thoughts. So instead, when you start thinking these things, instead find things to appreciate that you can enjoy.
Change “ I hate the dark mornings”… to “I love being able to see and appreciate the stars”…
Change “It’s cold + damp”… to “The misty mornings are magical + make for stunning sunsets I love”… etc.
And if neither of those ideas appeals to you, make up your own!
It’s appreciating those small moments of gratitude that allow you to focus on the positives instead of the negatives…. and, in time, you will find you don’t dread those autumn/winter months as much.
Because let’s face it, there’s no point disliking six months of every year and wishing half a year of your life away!!
When it comes to our health + wellbeing many of those autumn season themes show up. Here are some of the things we can do to support our mind, body + soul health this Autumn…
Autumn Health + Wellbeing
Taking care of yourself in each season will look slightly different, but there are still a few basics that are important for every month of the year.
drinking plenty of water
eating nutrient dense foods including lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, and making sure each of your meals are made up of healthy fats, complex carbohydrates + proteins
getting plenty of fresh air and moving your body frequently
making sure to spend time with loved ones + build your community of people
spend time doing things you enjoy doing that feed your energy and make you feel good
These are all just the essential basics each human being needs to support their ‘whole’ health + wellbeing. Now for those things that are more specific to autumn health + wellbeing..
There are a few things to be aware of through the autumn months that can cause problems for your health. With the damper weather and change in temperature, we can see more aches and pains creeping in as the damp affects muscle/joint pain and stiffness, asthma and chest related health complaints (especially for elder generations), as well as affecting our skin — you may notice as we switch seasons that your skin acts up, you have breakouts or irritated skin, and skin can feel a little dryer than normal too.
The darker mornings and less light we get can start to affect our mood + wellbeing even this early in the year.Here are some common health tips and ideas for getting you through the autumn months to make sure you are taking the best care of yourself + getting the most out of autumn :
Take Vitamin D supplement
Whilst the autumn equinox represents the balance between light and dark, it is from now on that we move towards the darker days as the sunlight in the northern hemisphere fades.
The darker mornings and less light we get can start to affect our mood + wellbeing even this early in the year. And it’s not unusual to feel more lethargic than you’ve been used to as we move into September.
Sunlight provides our body with essential vitamin D. One of the few vitamins the body isn’t able to create itself so ensuring we are getting plenty of sun on our skin through summer is actually beneficial to our health. As the sunlight starts to fade in autumn and the earth shifts on its axis we will see not only fewer daylight hours but also a less potent sun because the northern hemisphere is now further away from the sun. This is the time of year where you need to try and spend at least an hour each day with at least your face and arms bare, soaking up the sunlight.
In preparation for the last half of the year where we are 99% likely to become deficient in vitamin D, starting to take a vitamin D supplement now, will protect and support your body + wellbeing in advance too.
A lack of vitamin D can cause symptoms such as depression, anxiety, fatigue, and muscle weakness + pain, as well infections + immune system disorders too.
Grounding
As we draw closer to winter the time we spend outside gets less and less, even more so the time we spend walking barefoot. Make the most of these still mild days to walk for at least 5minutes a day bare feet in the earth.
Walking barefoot is actually beneficial for our health and our body. Allowing us to absorb healing ions from the earth, releasing negative energy and stress through our feet, as well as improving our balance, reducing inflammation, and has a beautiful calming effect on our mood too.
Other ways to keep your body grounded + absorb the benefits of the earth is eating grounding vegetables — cooked root vegetables like beetroots, carrots, pumpkins, dark leafy greens, parsnips, sweet potatoes. Preferably in hearty, warming stews + soups are perfect fall weather foods.
These are the foods our bodies crave at this time of year, foods that naturally grow + are ready to eat in autumn. Foods that give our body plenty of warming, filling carbohydrates, vitamins + minerals — the things it needs to deal with the change in season + in preparation for winter.
Harvesting
Autumn is known as the season of harvest + celebrating the fruits of summer. Apples, plums, pears, blackberries are a few of the foods you can find in abundance at this time of year, as well as cabbages, kale, the last tomatoes, cucumbers, and the like.
Autumn is the time we should be making the most of the plentiful resources nature provides us, picking, baking, and preserving excess foods to store ready for your winter.
While this doesn’t necessarily have positive effects on your health + well being now. It can be a hugely cathartic and meditative process and it’s preparing you for a healthier winter.
Cleansing [ physically + metaphorically]
Getting rid of the dead weight, cleansing your physical space, your mind, your environment, your relationships, friendships and connections + letting go of the habits + things that are no longer serving you, lighting you up, or are no longer the direction you want to go it.
This is what autumn is for.
Getting realigned with yourself. Really tuning in to your heart instead of listing to your head.
Autumn is a beautiful time to realign yourself, have a clear out of the detritus you’ve accumulated since Spring, and plan out your next 3-6 months so you can be prepared for Winter.
That can include cleaning, tidying and reorganisation for every room in your house/office/space. As well as a good dose of Palo Santo or sage burning to energetically cleanse your space too.
It can also be taking a long hard look at your friendships, relationships, and self. Letting go of the toxic people + habits you may have picked up. Making changes to your work and/or life situation if you think it needs it + readjusting.
Sometimes we can get complacent or comfortable in situations that aren’t good for us or aren’t making us happy. This is the season to really get honest with yourself and let go of all those things. Allowing you time to process, plan, and be ready for a surge of energy + exciting new growth come Spring (the perfect time for change!).
Refresh + reevaluate
Closely linked to the cleansing point above this is doing more of the inner work on yourself.
Starting to take a look at the shadow aspects of yourself you’ve been ashamed of or scared to face… and really digging into your subconscious to get to know yourself better.
Whilst a lot of the process of going inward is perfect for the winter season, Autumn is where you begin to lay the groundwork — shedding a lot of those unwanted habits, thoughts + patterns. Adjusting your lifestyle to better suit your needs + your health and wellbeing.
Are you happy ? Are you following a career path you love + enjoy? Do you like who you surround yourself with? and if not, what DO you want your life to be like?
There’s no better time than now to start making changes, pruning away the unwanted + setting yourself on a direction you want to take. Because being miserable and surrounded by toxic people is bad for our mental health, our emotional + spiritual health, and eventually our physical health too.
Don’t forget everything is interconnected, so eventually they will touch all parts of your health + wellbeing.
Autumn is the season of setting limits, protecting boundaries, finishing projects from the summer, and starting new (less active) goals.
If you’d like some journaling prompts to get you started on evaluating your year so far + what your next goals will be you can download my FREE Seasonal Journaling Prompts pdf. below
Herbal support
Autumn is the season to start ramping up those digestive fires + working to protect your health + wellbeing. Warming and spicy herbs are the heart of this season ;
Ginger - a warming digestive aid
Cinnamon - the blood sugar balancer
Black pepper - warming, spicy, antioxidant, anti inflammatory + blood sugar balancer
Cardamom - antioxidant, digestive aid + anti inflammatory
Nutmeg - sleep aid, immune system booster, antibacterial, digestive aid + helps blood circulation
Other medicinal herbs for autumn, ones that are either ideal for harvesting from September - November and therefore naturally adept at providing the nutrients + support our body needs at this time. Or ones that lend themselves to supporting + nurturing the body at this time of year include :
Rosemary
Added to hearty autumn stews rosemary is not only a flavourful addition to your food but can help with all kinds of ailments. Rosemary is a herb most well known for its cleansing properties, but it is also a wonderful herb for supporting the lungs + treating those dealing with asthma. Its properties help in reducing mucus which can help if you are suffering from a pesky autumn cold or sinus issues at this time of the year.
It is also an antioxidant. Meaning it works internally to repair the damage done to your cells by toxins, chemicals, and sunlight as you come into contact with it.
Rosehips
Rosehips are abundant at this time of year, making it the perfect time to harvest them and make rosehip syrup. Rosehips are full of vitamin C, which our bodies need more of at this time of the year in preparation for winter. They are also great for glowing skin + treating acne from the inside out, treating digestive complaints + constipation — they act as a prebiotic and an indigestible fibre that your gut uses to produce lots of health bacteria.
Rosehips are also known as a remedy to aid exhaustion and lethargy - both things that can often occur at the onset of the autumn/winter months and last through winter. So make sure you make plenty!
If you’d like to learn more about rosehips, read about their properties + how to make rosehip syrup.
Burdock
Burdock root is what is known as an alternative. That is a herbal medicine that works gradually to restore the body to its natural health, function, and vitality. Helping the body to deal with a wide range of functions including proper nutrition absorption + elimination of unwanted waste etc.
Autumn or Spring are the perfect times to harvest burdock root, and using burdock in teas or tinctures can help your body to adjust and stay healthy through the next six months.
Burdocks particular qualities make it one of the best know treatments for dry, scaly skin conditions (such as psoriasis + eczema). It can also be used externally in a compress to soothe skin ailments such as psoriasis, as well as treat and speed up the healing of wounds + ulcers.
Turmeric
Turmeric is a herbal remedy that has many properties it is both antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, a digestive tonic, and traditionally in Ayurveda a herb for treating the lungs and respiratory system.
Turmeric can reduce coughs, help relieve sore throats when gargled, and its anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties help to relieve inflammation in the lung membranes and treat any bacterial infection - for eg. in bronchitis, which is often more prevalent at this time of year.
Turmeric is also a tissue healer and supports + rejuvenates joints. While it is traditionally used in Chinese medicine for aging and treating arthritic joints, it works just as effectively to treat joints and tissues suffering inflammation + pain through the colder + damper months of the year.
Horseradish
Horseradish root is one most commonly known as a food, or garnish for food. But it is in fact also a medicinal plant with healing properties of it’s own. Horseradish is great for stimulating both the digestive process when consumed internally, and also the blood circulation is applied topically, acting like a natural form of deep heat or tiger balm! This ability to increase blood flow is not only a wonderful way to treat and soothe tired + achy muscles and joints. But it also aids in the cleansing and nourishment of the affected parts by increasing blood flow, bringing new blood to the area + cleansing/removing any build-up of toxins or inflammation.
Valerian
Valerian is a sedative herb, and therefore the ideal choice if you are struggling to get to sleep or have restful sleep due to the change in season. Valerian is known as one of the most useful relaxing nervines ( a herb that has a calming effect on our nervous system). Sedative herbs are wonderful for reducing tension and anxiety, as well as stress, and helping to induce natural, healing sleep - sounds wonderful doesn’t it?
Valerian can also help to relieve migraine + rheumatic pain. And can be used to treat colic and other digestive complaints where there is griping/spasming or symptoms where muscle tension is involved eg. period cramps.
Always read the instructions and recommendations for using herbal remedies + if you are taking any other medicine check with your Dr'. of a Herbal professional first.
While herbal medicine is a gentle form of treatment that builds up over time, their strength and effectiveness is no less that over the counter drugs so side effects are still possible.
What will you do this season to aged + renew? What ways will you be taking care of yourself? Hit reply and tell me your favourite way to celebrate the autumn months + don’t forget to download your copy of the journaling prompts
xo Emily
