Traditional Perspectives on Summer Self Care

Summer is my favorite season. Not only is it my birthday season, but I have very fond memories of summers spent at the beach and at summer camp.

Even though summer is incredibly joyful for me, it is also incredibly hot and can exacerbate some common conditions associated with excess heat in the body.

Summer is associated with the energy of fire in both traditional Chinese medicine and Ayurveda, our two most prominent traditional wellness philosophies of plant medicine. By looking at some of what each of these systems has to say about the seasons, we can extrapolate self care protocols to stay balanced this season and access the nectar that summer has to offer.

Hold up! Are you an auditory learner? Feel free to LISTEN to this article in podcast format ⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️

TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE

In TCM, summer is a associated with a time of growth, joy, and prominent YANG energy. This yang energy is what pushes our gardens to grow to their peak! It is the vibrant and lively energy of the season that also propels our own vitality through the summer.

It is also the hottest time of the year and thus, is associated with the fire element. Like summer, fire is also associated with joy, enthusiasm, and vitality. It is also associated with the heart and pericardium and it’s organ pair of the small intestines.

Focusing in on the heart, in TCM, the heart is said to house a persons SHEN.

The heart is said to house the SHEN. The Shen includes our thought processes, memory, consciousness, intelligence, and emotional well being. It is important during the summer, to emphasize calming and supporting the Shen. We know we are successful if the mind is calm and the sleep is sound.

According to traditional Chinese Medicine, imbalances in the fire element and the heart energy may show up as:

• Feeling mentally scattered and erratic
• Having a short temper
• Feeling impatient and being easily agitated
• Mood swings
• Feeling hot all the time
• Heartburn
• Stress and Irritation
• Anxiety and Depression
• Low or high blood pressure
• Sleep troubles
• Brain fog

AYURVEDA

In Ayurveda, the summer is what is known as PITTA season and is primarily associated with the element of fire. It is a time of heat building as the sun is the strongest at this time of the year. According to Ayurveda, the sun can exacerbate the pitta dosha and the fire energy of the body.

Too much fire can show up as increased dryness and anxiety because it decreases fluids in the body leading to dehydration and excess vata. The intense heat can also diminish strength in the body as well.

Excess pitta shows up as inflammation in the tissues like ulcers, acid reflux, and diarrhea. It can show up emotionally and mentally with emotional disturbances like aggression and anger.

Ayurvedic self care would emphasize trying to manage external projections and instead focus on inner replenishment, rejuvenation, and restoration which we can do through activities like forest bathing, day time naps, by reducing the intensity of ones fitness routine and exercise program, and avoiding direct exposure to sunlight and being active during the most intense times of the day.

CORE THEMES

As we can see, there are some common themes between these two traditional systems for what issues and benefits show up in the summer.

On the bright side, the summer is associated with peak growth, joy, celebration, and expansion. It is a time of leisure, naps, rejuvenation, and replenishment if we treat ourselves with the appropriate care.

On the other hand, because of the heat of summer, imbalances of the fire element can be easily tipped. This can show up emotionally as aggression, emotional disturbances, agitation, irritability, anxiety, and depression.

Physically, because of the heat, we may be prone to lethargy and dehydration. Once heat settles into the body, we may be prone to diarrhea, digestive upset, insomnia and restless sleep, excessive perspiration, rashes and hives, and diarrhea.

STAYING BALANCED

To stay balanced in the summer with all this heat, we want to try to avoid extremes in these intense seasons because it can be very easy to be over active which can lead to over heating.

The medicine that the season has to offer is within the joy and vitality, leisure, and abundant growth. Because we are already warmed up just by nature of the temperature of the air, we have more access to TAPAS aka our potential for transformation and sustaining new neural pathways. We can integrate and extract in the summer. It’s like the peak of our transformational potential over the year where the processes and intentions we set in the depth of winter are reaching their full blooming stage.

Spiritual practice can be expanding, matching the abundance of the natural world. Intentions for transformation can be more streamlined and sustainable in the summer especially in terms of creative and artistic projects.

Emotional and psycho-spiritual work comes easier as well. We have more access to our heart energy and with longer, slower days, the time for processing expands so we can move through our emotions and therapy work in a leisurely way.

We can see all of this presence and transformation I the natural world as well. Growth is expansive in the garden, compost breaks down quickly creating new, fertile soil. There is rain and water and heat and sun creating the perfect hospitable environment for growth. Plants establish themselves in the gardens.

To enhance the nectar and medicine of the season, we want to be mindful to intentionally include practices and interventions that soothe the dominant energies. One consideration is that if summer is very hot, then our balancing medicine is cooling. You are likely already intuitively aware of this, leaning towards lighter meals and cooler foods like cucumbers, mints, summer squashes, iced drinks, and seasonal melons. You probably prefer to do your hiking, gardening, and walking early in the morning or later in the evening as the sun is closer to setting.

Putting all of these ideas together, here are my top suggestions for staying balanced in the summer!

1. STAY COOL

The primary remedy for summer energy is to stay cool. We can do this by avoiding being outside during the hottest parts of the day or at least when the sun is at its peak from 10am-2pm. We can also protect ourselves from the sun by wearing hats and sun screen and emphasizing herbs and foods that are cooling in nature including:

• Mints
• Hibiscus
• Lemon balm
• Cucumbers
• Melons
• Berries
• Yogurts
• Bitter and sour flavors as well

Also consider minimizing things that increase fire in the body like spicy foods, alcohol, fried foods, as well as caffeine and coffee which can agitate fire and disturb mental ease.

2. EMPHASIZE JOY

Do things that are joyful to you! Revive old hobbies, spend time with friends, nourish your heart and mind. Get creative. All of these things help to support the heart and the Shen. Emphasize activities that feel uplifting and light.

3. HYDRATE

Drink water, yo. More than you think you should. It’s hot outside and easy to get dehydrated. Remember that for many things, the solution is dilution. It’s self care and meeting your bodies needs 101.

4. BALANCE ACTIVITY + DOWNTIME

It’s very easy to overwork in this heat whether physically, mentally, or emotionally. Take naps during the day to give yourself extra rest time. Keep your body moving but try to keep your exercise to the earliest parts of the day. Keep exercise lighter than usual during this time of year to avoid over exerting yourself. Be sure to weave extra leisure and fun into your days!

Remember that in terms of self care, context matters. Staying balanced isn’t about following all suggestions perfectly, but making sure that you navigate the nuances. If you know you worked very hard in the gym, be sure to drink extra water and fore-go the spicy meal at dinner. On their own, certain activities may not exacerbate internal fire but when put together in one day or week, it could be a recipe for a fire imbalance.

MAKE YOUR OWN WELLNESS PROTOCOL

I like to make a new wellness protocol at the start of each season taking into consideration what balance might look like for me. If you want to hear about how I am making adjustments to my work and exercise routines to support myself during the summer, you can listen to that now!

⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️

The highlights include

• Decreasing my work load
• Decreasing the intensity of my exercise routine
• Get back in therapy to support my heart and my mental and emotional health
• Drink Red Raspberry tea daily which is cooling and astringent, a perfect daily tonic that also supports a well regulated menstrual cycle.

Want to make your own wellness protocol? I will walk you through the process! You can do that HERE. Don’t worry it’s all FREE.

I hope these ideas inspire you to rethink your own self care and if anything really hits home for you, remember that you can always reach out, leave a comment, send an INSTAGRAM DM, an email or a voice note! I always love to hear from you.

Have a very happy summer!