According to Chinese medicine, fall is all about letting go. Letting go can be scary, but it is necessary. Think of fall leaves. They fall off the trees, nourish the ground below through the winter, and support the regrowth that happens in the spring. Letting go of the old, helps make room for the new. Is there anything old holding you back in your life? Anything new you'd like to make room for? Is there anything you have been holding on to (a belief such as "I'm not worthy," a bad habit, too much "stuff," old regrets, etc.) that you know you should let go of but you're afraid of what life would be like without it? Fall is a great time to ask yourself these questions.
Collectively, we would benefit from letting go of the belief in the old medical paradigm that focuses on naming diseases and giving the corresponding pill(s). This would make room for more holistic medicine that truly heals to take root. A common belief is that our genes determine our destiny and there is nothing we can do but sit and wait for that inevitable disease to develop. When we let go of this outdated assumption, we can feel empowered to take control of the trajectory of our lives. The reality is, our genes do not have complete control over our health destiny. The field of epigenetics has shown us that it’s not our genes themselves, but how our genes interact with our environment, that determines our health status. “Environment” refers to things like diet, lifestyle, stress, toxic exposure, etc. Given the fast acceleration of technology, I know it can be easy to overlook therapies like diet and lifestyle. Though seemingly simple, diet and lifestyle are powerful tools to help course correct and/or prevent most diseases.
I’ll leave you with a few more questions: What health habits would you like to “fall” into? How would your life change if you made your health a priority? Is there anything you need to let go of to make these changes a reality?
