Autumn: Making Space and Letting Go

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The days are getting shorter, the air is becoming cooler, and nature is slowly letting go of what it no longer needs. While summer invites us to go outside, autumn draws our attention more inward.

Within Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), autumn is associated with the Metal element. This element is linked to the Lung and the Large Intestine, as well as themes such as breathing, boundaries, clearing out, and letting go.

The Lung: more than just breathing
In TCM, the Lung has a broader meaning than just the physical organ. The Lung is connected to breathing and to how the body relates to the outside world. Especially in autumn, when cold, wind, and dry air make their entrance, this system traditionally receives extra attention.

Breathing serves as a beautiful bridge between the inside and the outside. With every inhalation, we take something in; with every exhalation, we let something go. It's something that happens naturally, but we often only become aware of it when we take a moment to pause.

A walk in the fresh air, consciously breathing a little deeper, and taking enough time to rest are therefore well-suited to this season.

Letting go is part of autumn
The Large Intestine also belongs to Metal within the five elements. Literally, it plays a role in excretion. In TCM, it also carries a symbolic meaning: the ability to let go of what is no longer needed.

Nature effortlessly demonstrates this to us during these months. A tree does not try to hold onto its leaves until February. Therefore, autumn can be a beautiful moment to reflect on what still deserves attention and what may need to make way for something new.

This can be very practical: clearing out an overcrowded schedule, tidying up your home, or consciously incorporating more moments of rest.

Grief and creating space
Each element in Chinese medicine is also associated with an emotion. For Metal, that emotion is grief. This does not mean that grief automatically indicates a disturbance in the Lung, or vice versa. The five elements primarily offer a way to look at the interplay between physical and emotional processes.

Grief requires time and space. At the same time, processing ultimately also involves movement: memories and experiences may remain, while we slowly move forward. That very movement between holding on and letting go aligns with the character of autumn.

Flowing with the season
You don’t have to completely overhaul your life as soon as the first leaves fall. Even small changes can help you consciously move with the season. Continue to go outside, pay attention to your breathing, ensure you get enough sleep and rest, and critically assess what drains your energy.

Acupuncture also considers these seasonal changes. An acupuncturist does not simply treat 'the Metal element,' but looks at the individual pattern of complaints, constitution, and lifestyle.

Thus, autumn does not have to be solely the season in which summer disappears. It is also a time to create space. To literally and figuratively shed some weight, bring your attention inward, and conserve energy for the months to come.

Would you like to know what acupuncture can mean for you? A NVA acupuncturist will look at your personal situation and the connections between complaints, lifestyle, and other factors.