Stepping into Spring
Seasons and your health
The changing of the seasons can have a profound effect on our health, emotions and state of mind. Each season is related to a transition of life, to our experience of being human. Spring is a time of new life and rising energy (Yang). Working with acupuncture there are the five elements: water, wood, fire, earth and metal. The wood element is the one related to the season of spring.
The Yang life force activates and expands to mark the return of life. The wood element living within us is the strength in our tendons and ligaments, the clarity of our eyesight, the lustre of our nails and the fluidity of tears.
Acupuncture points
An acupuncturist will carefully select acupuncture points; potentially they can become a doorway that allows us to access the potent energies of the seasons. The points have the capacity to bring us closer to our wholeness, to initiate change, endure chaos and uncertainty. Powerful stuff!
Getting in touch with nature
Pulling us back to time when we had greater connection with nature, when we were dwellers in the trees, the archetype of the wild person in the woods is the ‘Green man’ or the ‘Green woman’. Both are an expression of the unity that exists between humans and vegetation and the laws of nature that govern human beings, animals and the green world. Getting in touch with the nature around us is for free, it is stimulating for the senses and immensely good for the health.
Top Tips for nourishing yourself in spring
- A leisurely stroll under an umbrella to see the cherry blossom.
- Wandering along woodland paths and hearing a warbler serenading his mat.
- Plant and watch a seed sprouting as it defies the power of gravity rising up. The sheer determination of a plant growing through the concrete pavement is amazing!
- A good time of year to take the time to plan and vision before taking action.
- A feeling of spring tends to inspire action so take care to temper activity with rest, restore the body with adequate sleep and replenish the blood with nutrient rich greens. (Kale, spinach, cabbage, watercress, Swiss chard etc)
- Celebrate this time of year by enjoying a surge of new energy and creativity: dance, sing, take photos, gardening, crafts and anything that brings you joy!
- Can you find a ‘Green man’ that is immersed in foliage? Possibly on a plinth or pillar in old stone at your local church.
Kerry Byrne Lic.Ac., M.B.Ac.C
07715 458 064
Foxton Locks Bookshop
