If you’ve been with me in class lately, you know June was all about the Fire Element, where we explored the organs of Fire (heart and small intestine), the systems of Fire (our inner and outer protectors), and the emotions of Fire (anxiety or inspiration and joy). And here’s the truth: we’re not leaving the
Something stirs in May. The trees are pushing skyward, green is taking over, and there’s an unmistakable charge in the air. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, this energy has a name: the Wood Element — and all month long, we’re going to work with it. The archetype for the Wood Element is the Warrior or the
As we move deeper into fall, we enter the season of the Metal Element in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). Just as trees release their leaves, we too are invited to let go of what no longer serves us. Metal represents strength, clarity, and the wisdom to release gracefully. The art of release unfolds naturally when
Spring is here and bursting with energy! There is new growth and new life all around you. There is a crispness in the air, and you can sense the changing light and temperatures as we make this transition between Winter and Summer. It’s in this transition between hibernating and fully expressing the sun that you
April is a celebration of Spring and the Wood Element in Traditional Chinese Medicine. The archetype of the Wood Element is the Visionary and the Warrior and is associated with the expansive young yang energy in the Spring. Think about the energy it takes for the dormant plants to begin to push their little green
I recently came back from teaching a yoga retreat for women in Costa Rica. As we explored the Water element and it’s focus on creativity, I asked the question “How do you express creativity in your life and how could you increase it?” The common response was “I’m not creative.” While this response was not
The Fire Element in Traditional Chinese Medicine is associated with summer. When you practice with the powers of the Fire Element, you help transform habits, calm your fight-or-flight response, heal your immune system, increase your intrinsic harmony, and move from feelings of panic and anxiety to feelings of inspiration and joy. You learn to be
Here is one version of the season: Tis the season to buy stuff during Black Friday and Cyber Monday (thank goodness that’s over!), the season to go to parties and eat and drink too much, the season to then worry about how much you ate and drank and feel bad about it, the season to
Among the ancient healing modalities found in Energy Medicine, the theories and practices of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) are front and center. As a psychologist, it is the study of the Five Elements from TCM which I have found most fascinating. While I learned many theories of personality in my psychology training, I have learned
I’m in the middle of teaching the 21-Day Summer Sunrise Yoga series. Every two days I teach one of the Yamas or Niyamas (basically the yogic directions on how to live your life found in Limbs One and Two of the Eight Limbed Path of Yoga). Each Yama and Niyama have an associated mudra (hand
