Seasonal Synergy: The Transition from the Dog Days of Late Summer to Fall | | |
How do we "do" the Season of Fall? | |
The transition between late summer and fall seemed to happen in my part of coastal South Carolina just this week. Last week was so languid and hot that I could no longer bear my walks in the morning as there seemed to be no safe space from the heat. My normal routes found an atmosphere of no wind, no waves breaking on the water, no clouds to help me escape from the burning sun that is perpetually emitting solar magnetic events and mass coronal ejections, or the constant smell of lowtide.
I could feel this transition in my body this year. Last week, my limbs were heavy and my balance was off. My symptoms of vertigo and syncope (fainting) were exacerbated by the heat and lack of flow in the air. I felt like I was moving through cement every day. This week, with falling temperatures, a little more wind in the air, and the usual ushering in of fall (football season,) I have found respite from the extremes of late summer. I do Fall way better than I do late Summer. Many of us, however, will struggle through this transition, unable to let go of the Summer and the chaos it brings with kids out of school, parents out of normal routines, and the freedom it brings from our usual routines and habits.
How do we make the adjustment during this period of falling energy and season of letting go? What changes must be made to retain our peace through a season that is meant to prepare us for the semihibernation of Winter and longer nights than days? How do we hold up our finances after vacation and see our way through a long holiday season that begins with partying on Halloween and works its way through Thanksgiving while rushing to the sacred holidays of Winter?
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Echoes of Ancient Wisdom: The Earth Element | |
We THINK With Our Enteric Nervous System: Governing Thought With Our Gut | |
The Shortest "Season" in Five Element Theory of Chinese Medicine
Even though we are transitioning to Fall, it is worth mentioning the Element of Earth (Season of Late Summer) before we dive into the Element of Metal (Season of Autumn.) We will explore the correspondences that make up this Element and talk about the significance and uniqueness of this Element in harnessing the middle and anchoring the energy of holding everything together.
The Correspondences of the Earth Element
All of the Five Elements (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal & Water) govern yin/yang meridians (organ systems and their collateral channels and deep pathways,) Direction, Season, Weather, Outward Manifestions, Inward Manifestions, Color, Emotions, Spirits, Activities or Labors, Tastes, Tissues, Spiritual Growth Themes, Smells, & Sounds.
The Earth Element governs all things in the Center of something else. It's Yin/Yang Meridians are the Spleen (Pancreas) and Stomach: the Origin of Fluids in the body and the impetus for the transformation of our food into Us! It's Direction is the Center of the body and therefore it's focus is on harmonizing the way we feel inside of our bodies. It's season is the shortest of all. Labeled as Late Summer, it encompasses the energetic shifts of equinoxes and solstices as well...though this is rarely mentioned in educational settings for this material. This is the energy of Transformative Times.
The weather of Late Summer is DAMP...and that damp can wreak havoc in our bodies in a multitude of ways. We feel this in all of the embodied correspondences it governs. We feel this in our flesh, in our mouths and lips, and especially in our muscles as the heat combines with the damp and makes us slower to move and often affected by heat rashes on our bodies and in the soft tissues that we first take in the world with: our sense of taste through our mouths and lips.
Its color correspondence is yellow, like the sun that we receive nourishment from. It's taste is sweet like the ripe fruit falling from the trees at this time. It's smell is also sweet, harmonizing the Stomach and Spleen and can be found in the smell of many of the foods we put on our plate (sweet is found in way more than sugar, and makes up the bulk of the flavors we put on each plate.) The sound of Earth is Singing, which you can hear throughout the late Summer and in those who are Constitutionally resonant with this Element. (Earthy people often sing as they talk...and in pathology, they often whine when they cannot find support.)
The Spirit Earth governs is that of the Yi (Thought) and the emotion it governs is that of Worry. This is different than Fear (which sinks us into fight, flight or freeze mode) and is more circular in nature. We worry about our lives in circular ways, often when we lay down to let go of the day and are unable to stop the runaway circular thoughts. While Chinese Medicine acknowledges the importance of the brain in processing our thoughts, it gives special credence to the processing we do when we feel our emotions and use our intuition to make decisions. Gut decisions often render the most effective actions.
The labor of this Element: Sitting. I can honestly say these transformative times often move me to only be able to sit with my thoughts.
The spiritual growth it governs is one of Transformation. We take in food and transform it. We take our circular thoughts of worry and transform them into solutions. We exercise our bodies and engage in self-care techniques to transform our aches, pains, and embodied suffering into healthy ways of being. And finally, we transform the circles of community we belong to by providing support, understanding and balance in our belonging to said community.
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What do I do to serve my clients?
I am here to comfort my clients, address their needs, and customize their experience.
There is no judgment. Come as you are. Relax, destress, and reduce muscle tension and trigger points.
Massage therapy has profound healing power. It has made an incredible impact on my life and my ability to help others.
My purpose in this healing field is to provide a safe space for relaxation, and stress reduction, and improve physical and psychological well-being.
I encourage clients to create a positive mindset and view their sessions as valued self-care.
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Book a Massage, Reiki, or Therapeutic Body Work such as Body Scrubs, Hot Stone Therapy, Dry Brush Exfoliation, Kansa Wand Therapy, and Aromatherapy with Natalie Clark, LMT at Divinitude by downloading the Wellyx App on your phone and searching DIVINITUDE-NEW, or on the Divinitude Website at https://online.wellyx.com/divinitudebeaufort/southcarolinausa/services | | |
Technological Advances in Healthcare | |
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Divinitude's own Natalie Clark can be found performing chair massages at Restore Hyper Wellness in Bluffton. After a recent set of serious falls for me, I was gifted by the General Manager with services that might help me with the deep bruise over my greater trochanter (I fell directly on my hip when I lost consciousness in my bathroom,) and damage I had done when I fell directly on the ground from a standing position when I lost my balance on my porch, injuring the sacral foramen above my tailbone.
As I said above in Echoes of Ancient Wisdom, this directly deals with the Spleen Meridian, as the Spleen is responsible for holding things up in the body, such as the blood in the vessels that show the injuries in bruising.
My tour of the facilities complete, the owner used their cryowand directly over my bruise for about ten minutes. The results were INCREDIBLE. There was no pain in the process and I could feel immediate relief. I received the treatment within a week of fainting, when the bruise had expressed itself fully. Ten minutes later, I could already walk with less pain and sit down without wincing when my right side touched anything. That night, I could sleep better, able to roll over directly onto the side that I usually sleep on. A day later, the bruise was well on its way to being healed after the wand broke up the blood stagnation. Moreover, the bone pain seemed to be transforming as well.
The application of cold to bruising is not new to most people who use ice to handle their falls. However, the cryotherapy temperatures are much lower than ice (often as low as -168 degrees) allowing the technology to move through the skin, addressing levels of pain and blood stagnation that allow for deeper and faster healing than one can expect with ice baths, local ice therapy, or cold plunges.
Not only is this technology that Restore offers important as we move forward in medicine, but Restore is making it affordable for all, with all therapies costing $50 for non-members and $32 for Members of the organization.
I can't say enough about what Restore did for me that day. We will continue to highlight what this amazing facility offers and encourage everyone to take advantage of this technology and become a member of Restore Hyper Wellness!
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What is Cryotherapy?
Safely expose your entire body to sub-zero temperatures in a specialized chamber for up to 3 minutes or local areas with a wand for up to 10 minutes.
BENEFITS OF CRYOTHERAPY MAY INCLUDE:
- Stress relief
- Enhanced healing
- Improved athletic recovery
- Reduced pain and inflammation
- Boosted mood, energy and sleep.
| Original Bruise After Fall | 10 Minutes After CryoWand | | |
Coaches Corner: Finding Balance in an Unstable World
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As a disabled person, I must think about my physical balance a great deal. Within my coaching practice, most of my clients are struggling with Work-Life balance. In a world that offers very little stability that doesn't compromise the time we spend with our loved ones, how do we find balance to cover our expenses in ways that don't compromise the time we get to spend with our friends & family, as well as give us time to explore our spirituality, personal goals & development individually?
In a perfect world, the work we do is valued for its service to the collective, rather than for the money we make. Unfortunately, we don't live in a perfect world, and our pursuit of comfort and stability often comes at the cost of time for self and others. Is Work-Life balance possible?
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When coaching my clients who feel this balance is unachievable, we begin with the things that are obligatory to find out if there is anything that we can remove from our plate. Are there changes that can be made to work schedules, extracurricular events in our lives, or to relationships we feel we MUST tend to before we can tend to ourselves?
Within our evaluations, we must ask ourselves...are we really as obligated as we think and if its causing us to suffer, can we change the nature of our obligations to reflect what we REALLY want out of our lives?
Many of my clients are finding that they are less interested in lifestyles that take them away from their loved ones, and are exploring options to change their circumstances. This includes major transitions such as job/career changes, new educational opportunities, and downsizing their homes to reflect better their needs in life. It also contains an assessment of what they really value and a coordinated action plan to manifest the lives they want.
As we ascend from the material world of competition for resources and move to a more spiritual mindset, these evaluations help us to align what we really value with the work-life balance we all seek. Balance IS achievable when we understand the difference between what we WANT and what we NEED.
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Chakral Connections: Grounding & Chakra Zero, the Earth Gateway | |
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Beyond the 7 Chakras that are known to most are others which is often debated. According to some Ayurvedic masters, there are 144 chakras total. While we will spend time on the first 7 extensively, and the next 5 to a degree, we will put forward exercises that will help people evolve through their human curriculum primarily and simply touch on those with connections to higher realms. Today we will begin with the Earth Gateway, which is literally a portal to Inner Earth. This chakra of spinning energy allows us to not only gain energy from the planet, but also give back to her when done with intention.
Reasons to Ground: We resonate with the Earth. Her pulse is our pulse. Everything about her was made for us naturally. When we do the following exercises, we can pull energy directly from the Earth: FREE ENERGY. When we combine our energy with qigong, yoga, or meditation, we can intentionally send energy back down into the Earth.
Grounding Exercises:
- Walk barefoot on the ground: humid soil, rocks, grass, sand...stay away from unnatural products like concrete, asphalt, or any petroleum or rubber products.
- Gardening: or placing hands in soil, sand or water.
- Sitting with your bare feet flat on the ground.
- Lying down on your back on the ground.
- Immersing yourself in a body of water.
- Grounding with yoga postures and intentional meditations or moving meditations such as QiGong.
QiGong for Earth Pulsing
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I ground every day in nature. I spend my mornings walking the beach, laying directly on the ground, or sitting directly in the water up to my kidneys or chest in the ocean. I can do that because I live in a beach town. Others will need to actually find their own places in nature that have easy access. Regardless, I urge everyone to find a place in nature that can ground them to the Earth.
I do directional grounding during Eclipses, Equinoxes, Solstices, New Moons and Full Moons. These are times of enormous cosmic energy. I want to offer you directionality to your grounding as you try to incorporate the inner aspects of yourself.
- FROM THE NORTH, I CALL ON THE PROTECTION OF THE WARRIORS. May my own Inner Warrior act with their strength, discernment and protection of my body and soul. (Face North as you Ground)
- FROM THE SOUTH, I CALL ON THE NOURISHMENT OF THE NURTURERS. May my own Inner Nurturer act with their compassion, understanding, and support of my body and soul (Face South as you Ground)
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FROM THE WEST, I CALL ON THE WONDERMENT OF THE CHILDREN. May my Inner Child act with the glee, joy, and awe of seeing each moment as new in my body and soul. (Face West as you Ground)
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FROM THE EAST, I CALL ON THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE SAGES. May my own Inner Sage act with the remembering of ancient wisdom, the application of my experiences, and the ability for my body and soul to learn and grow (Face East as you Ground)
In this exercise, we call back our consciousness from all corners of the globe, tackling directionality within us, AND we incorporate the inner aspects of our personalities into one.
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Give the Gift of Health & Wellness to Yourself, Family & Friends! | |
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DIVINITUDE ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP
Receive 20% OFF ALL Services provided by Divinitude. You may receive 20% off 1 service per week, combined group evaluations from coaches and practitioners at Divinitude, and an invitation to the Divinitude BaseCamp where you will find community support, study groups, class information, and resources for your own personal journey to knowing and loving yourself fully!
12 Payments of $30/month
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15% OFF ALL GIFT CARD PACKAGES | |
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15% OFF ACUPUNCTURE for 30 Days
Gift Card includes initial 90 Minute Intake that contains medical history review, differential diagnosis and first treatment, along with Two (2) 60 Minute Follow/Up Acupuncture Treatments. All treatments must be used within 30 days of purchase.
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15% OFF MASSAGES
for 30 Days
Gift Card includes Three (3) 90-Minute Swedish or Therapeutic Massages Within 30 Days of Purchase. Offer not good for specialty massages such as Kansa wand, Thai Foot, Scalp or Face Massages, or Tui Na (Chinese acupuncture massage technique.)
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15% OFF REIKI THERAPY for 30 Days
Gift Card Includes THREE 60 Minute Reiki Therapy Sessions within 30 Days of purchase with practitioner of choice. Offer not good for any other add-on services available. No Rollover benefits. All sessions must be completed within 30 days of purchase.
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15% OFF SPA SERVICES PACKAGE
Gift Card may be used for Two (2) 45 Minute treatments (Back Scrub or Fire-Cupping) or Three (3) 30 Minute Treatments (Hot Stone Therapy, Hand Scrub, Foot Scrub, or Dry Brushing) in 30 day period after purchase.
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15% OFF COACHING PACKAGES
15% Off WellCoach Initial Goals Assessment (60 Minutes) and Two (2) Follow-Up WellCoach sessions (3o Minutes) within 30 days after purchase. May be virtual or in-person, OR
15% Off One (1) Initial SoulCoach Goals Session which includes comprehensive lifestyle intake, chakral assessment, 5Element emotional regulation analysis, nutritional assessment, work-life balance assessment, values-in-action assessment, and goal evaluation & plan. Within this 30 day period, receiver is also entitled to Two (2) follow up coaching sessions to assess progress and support goal achievement. SoulCoaching is designed to go deeper than simple health/wellness coaching to improve balance, clarity, function and relationships with family, friends and colleagues in life.
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Divinitude Monthly Pass
Not sure if you want an annual membership at Divinitude? Try the Divinitude Monthly Pass which gives 10% OFF ALL Services Offered By Divinitude, including acupuncture, massage, coaching, reiki, spa and herbal medicine services. You may access the discount code for one service each week within 30 days of purchase.
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