Spring Has Sprung in Our Bodies

© 2017 by Dr. David B. Meredith, D.Ac.

Life has been a bit hectic lately for those of us keeping track of the seasons. Our warm Baltimore-area winter was unusual enough, but now as I type this, we are expecting a blizzard in mid-March. 

Our bodies, however, are attuned to the true passing of the seasons, that natural cycle our species revolved around.

No one thinks it’s unusual in the late fall, when the days get noticeably shorter, and some people start getting “depressed” about the upcoming winter. Seasonal Affective Disorder is the diagnosis, as if settling down, becoming thoughtful, and conserving energy for the winter is a pathology rather than a built-in feature of nature. If you take a walk in the woods, you’ll the trees and animals are doing the same thing. 

Springtime has the opposite effect, although this doesn’t get as much coverage. Outside, as the days get warmer and brighter, the sap has left the roots of the plants and they are growing almost visibly. The animal kingdom is active, mating, hunting, reestablishing itself after the colder and darker times. While the natural energy of winter is sinking, the energy of spring is shooting upward, and our bodies are responding.

This is my busiest time of year. Anxiety, frustration, allergies, headaches, acid reflux – everything moving upward in the body – has been off the charts in the past couple of weeks. I’ve seen more arguments on Facebook (and participated in some, to my regret) than I did during the election season. My patients keep saying, “I don’t know where this came from.” Yes, you do. Look out the window.

Acupuncture can help ease this phenomenon, certainly; help the seasons in of the body arrive more fluidly, with less stress and suffering. But in addition, you can appreciate it, this fresh burst of directional energy. Harness it. Use it to propel yourself forward into a productive year on your own terms.