Supporting Your Year

According to traditional Chinese medicine, winter is associated with the water element and corresponds to the related organs: the kidneys and bladder. The wisdom of water is to flow. A balanced water element can move smoothly through the season with strength, courage, and willpower. Winter is considered a time of conservation, introspection, and rest. In looking ahead at the year in front of us, we can associate our yearly planning with excitedness and wisdom from walking through situations and gaining insight from those experiences, with stepping into the unknown with courage and openness. Kidneys also store fear – fear of the unknown, shock, loneliness, paranoia. How can we aid our kidneys and the rest of our being in order to step into the unknown with wisdom and clarity and not fear? This article shares holistic tips for yearly foundational planning to support our beings so we can step into the unknown with integrity and vitality.

The kidneys are believed to house the fundamental energy and essence within our body, serving as the source of vitality and the root of all Qi, or life force energy. This essential essence is like our pilot light, igniting energy throughout the entire body, mind, and spirit. We want this spark to be balanced well. Our culture is like a bulldozer as far as that goes and we can burn through these resources and then can’t settle our spirit down as our reserves have been burned out. Foundational yearly planning is also planning for balance.

Lessons learned

Take some time to reflect on this past year. What did you accomplish? What improvements did you make? What didn’t go as planned? What lessons did you learn from the past year? What kept you going? Don’t forget to celebrate your accomplishments!

High vibe, high value

What personal and professional values guide how you approach your tasks and your work? You can have endless to-do lists, but how do you want to feel? How can you bring your core values into the success of your work and home life? When we act in alignment, we are more productive, more efficient, and generally happier. List at least three values you want to live in alignment with for this year and plan aspects of your year and task lists based on these foundational values. This can be re-done as the seasons change. Here is a values exercise to get you going and identify your ideal values. 

What’s on the schedule. What’s on your plan.

Now is the time to befriend your calendars! If you haven’t already, get one you’re excited about (I love my Writual Tarot Planner) and consider the following:

• Utilizing rainbow markers – it truly is a visual motivator!
• Creating a color code for different life areas
• Adding yearly appointments for you and your family such as dentist, bloodwork, gynecologist, annual checkup, dermatologist, optometrist, radiologist, pet checkups.
• Planning wellness appointments – Sign up for that retreat you’ve been thinking about. Connect with an acupuncturist or find an acupuncture clinic for discounted rates while helping a school out.

How can I live in harmony with nature?

Attuning to the activity of each season is one of the cornerstones of Chinese medicine. For example, eating some fresh, local berries or ice cold watermelon during the summer could be a typical way to enjoy the foods and flavors of a hot season but eating them during winter counters what the ancient Chinese taught us as these are cooling foods. As summer leaves us, our body needs to protect its inner warmth and adapt to the oncoming cooler weather. 

Heading into the year with the intention of living in harmony with nature is a fundamental way to protect your vitality. Besides food and the way you cook, also consider what you need to prepare for to shift the following aspects of your vital health: healthy movement, connecting to nature, sleep and energy patterns, supportive herbs, social activities, etc. 

Here are some aspects around living in harmony with the winter season:

• We can restore our deepest energy by eating with the season, getting the proper herbs/vitamins, slowing down, and meditating, to restore our deepest energy. 
• Incorporate bitter and salty flavors to support our vitality going downward – but not too much
• Salty – cooling supports kidney function, promoting the elimination of fluids through urination while supporting distribution and dissemination of bodily fluids throughout the body to stay hydrated.
• Bitter flavor is cooling and descends qi and purges excess heat. While sitting by the fire and spicy foods are great, too much can dry us out. Incorporate bitter flavor into warming foods during cold months and limiting salt addition by balancing saltier foods with bitter foods.
• Bitter: dandelion, parsley leaves, collard greens, mustard greens, arugula, kale, celery, corn, burdock root and sesame seeds
• Salty and beneficial: Sea veggies, seafood, miso, barley, ham, oyster.
• Balance with warming foods like cinnamon, star anise, chile peppers, curry, cloves, nutmeg.

Distinguish a planning week or two before the onset of each season to ensure your home is prepared for the seasonal transition, allowing you to opportunistically welcome each new season with honor and enthusiasm!

2024 Seasons	Transition Planning
Spring/Vernal Equinox – Tuesday, March 19	March 5th – 18th
Summer/Summer Solstice – Thursday, June 20th	June 6th – 19th
Fall/Autumnal Equinox – Sunday, September 22nd	September 8th – 21st
Winter/Winter Solstice – Saturday, December 21st	December 7th – 20th

I’d love to support you for personalized seasonal transition planning! Connect with me in order to create an individualized plan with personal custom herbal formulas. 

When I see the connection

Connecting to others is one of the pillars of our vital health. When planning out your 2024 year, consider different ways to connect with others. Perhaps notate in your calendar to have more home-cooked meals with friends in the winter months, more outdoor concerts in the summer months, more planting in the garden with others in the spring, and more harvest activities in the fall.

Why is environmental health and toxicology important?

Reducing our toxic exposure and encouraging proper functioning of the organs of elimination (and following other principals of Vital Health) can dramatically improve your vitality. A toxin is a substance or energy (such as radio waves from cell towers) that puts stress on a cell, organ, or tissue, which impedes its function and reduces our vitality. This can be from external or internal sources. Reducing our toxic load can feel like a large load to lift at once (imagine trying to get all of your metal fillings removed while also moving out of an older home with mold in it while also trying to identify what herbs to support reducing your metabolic waste!) Understanding toxicological principles and the development of preventative measures to reduce exposure and affect is a key to preventing health issues before they occur – a key to foundational health.

Consider working with a holistic practitioner and herbalist for a guide on this process and for individualized herbal formulas in order to restore health and reduce imbalance. You can reach out to me here to identify, assess, and mitigate the risks associated with exposure to toxic substances in various aspects of your life.  

Holistic Viewpoint

According to holistic medicine, an ecological approach is present. The whole person is made up of interdependent parts and if one part is not working properly, all the other parts will be affected.

Addresses root causes is key; as they are resolved, symptoms naturally fade away. Achieving optimal health is a collaborative effort, requiring a comprehensive examination of the various layers of our vital well-being much like understanding all of the facets of a tree to grasp its entirety. Remember to support all of your facets when building and maintaining your foundation.

Here’s to an incredible and abundant 2024!

Winter holds a pivotal importance in nurturing our innermost selves. If you’re ever tired of the dark and rain and snow, just take a moment and remind yourself that under earth’s surface, all life is regenerating itself and this is your chance to do the same. Nourishment now and proper foundational planning can truly set us up for a bright, vibrant year ahead. Cheers to the new year!

References:

Michele Collins Vergara, RH (AHG), MPH, MMQ
Beinfield, H., Korngold E. (1991). Between heaven and earth : a guide to Chinese medicine
Goldsmith, E., Klein, M. (2017). Nutritional Healing with Chinese Medicine. Robert Rose Inc.