Coming Back to Earth: Nourishment, Digestion & Receiving
As we move from the expansiveness of summer towards the more reflective, introspective nature of autumn, we arrive at that beautiful in-between season of late summer. It’s a time of abundance, ripening and harvest; a moment to pause and gather in everything we’ve cultivated so far this year, before nature gradually turns inwards and asks us to slow down.
In Chinese medicine, late summer belongs to the Earth element, associated with the Spleen and Stomach. Earth is the centre of the five elements and is concerned with nourishment, digestion, grounding and our capacity to receive.
The Earth element in balance.
When our Earth element is well supported, there is a sense of being grounded, nourished and resourced. Physically, we are able to digest and absorb the food we eat. We tend to have steadier energy and a more comfortable relationship with food and nourishment.
Emotionally, there is a sense that we are allowed to have needs, and that those needs matter. We can receive as well as give; we can take care of ourselves without feeling guilty, and accept help, attention, love or simply rest without immediately feeling that we need to give something back.
There is often a sense of “there is enough.” Enough time, enough love, enough resources and enough to go around. We don't need to rush, grasp or constantly strive, but can move through life with a little more steadiness and trust.
When our Earth element becomes depleted.
Our relationship with nourishment begins long before we sit down to eat.
As babies, we are entirely dependent on being fed, held, soothed and cared for. We have no choice but to receive. Ideally, this creates a very deep experience of being nourished simply because we exist, giving us an early sense that we are worthy of being cared for and that our needs are safe to have.
But life is rarely ideal. Parents have their own stresses, needs and limitations, and modern life doesn't easily make space for the slow, responsive care that either babies or parents need. Sometimes, very early on, we begin to learn that it is safer to give than to receive. Perhaps we become very attuned to other people's needs, or learn to be the easy child, the helpful one, the one who doesn't need much.
This is a pattern I see so often, especially in women: giving outwards while becoming increasingly disconnected from themselves. Over-giving, finding it difficult to receive, feeling guilty for resting, looking after everyone else and feeling exhausted.
From a Chinese medicine perspective, these can all be expressions of a Stomach and Spleen that is struggling to nourish and replenish us. Digestive problems, loose stools, bloating, sluggish digestion, cold hands and feet, bruising easily, foggy head, fatigue and cravings for sweet foods are all signs of an imbalance within the Earth element.
Earth and the busy mind
The Earth element isn't only responsible for digesting food. In Chinese medicine, the Spleen is also involved in the process of thinking and digesting information.
Going over the same conversation, replaying something that happened yesterday, trying to work something out for the hundredth time or worrying about what might happen tomorrow can all be signs of depleted Spleen energy, leaving us feeling as though we are constantly processing without ever arriving anywhere.
When the mind becomes stuck in a constant loop, one of the things I focus on as an acupuncturist is nourishing and tonifying the Spleen. This helps to settle the mind, bringing you back down into the body - out of your head and back to Earth.
Other ways to nourish your Earth element,
1. When you eat, just eat
This sounds ridiculously simple, but it's one of my favourite practices. Try putting your phone away and turning off the television, and instead notice the smell, texture, temperature and taste of your food.
Our digestive system responds to our environment, and when we slow down and pay attention, we're giving the body a much clearer message that it is time to rest, receive and digest. Think of it as giving your digestion your full attention rather than asking it to digest your lunch while you simultaneously digest the news, emails and whatever happened on Instagram.
2. Bring a little gratitude to your food
Before you eat, take a moment to notice what is actually in front of you. Where did it come from? Who grew it, cooked it or prepared it? How is it going to nourish you?
You don't need to turn this into a big ritual. Even a few seconds of appreciation changes the way your body receives. Rather than simply rushing food into your body, you are consciously acknowledging that you are receiving nourishment.
3. Slow down enough to taste your food
We're often so busy eating that we barely experience what we're eating. Try choosing one thing on your plate and really tasting it.
In Chinese medicine, the five tastes are understood to have different relationships with different organ systems. So there is something quite beautiful about slowing down enough to really taste our food. Rather than simply swallowing our lunch while distracted, taking the time to notice its flavours, textures and aromas allows us to be much more present with the nourishment we're receiving.
4. Give your digestion some warmth
As we move towards autumn, this is a lovely time to bring more cooked, warm and nourishing food into your meals. Soups, stews, roasted vegetables, porridge, curries and slow-cooked meals are all wonderful ways to support digestion as the weather cools.
Chinese medicine traditionally views digestion as requiring warmth and considers an excess of cold and raw foods potentially taxing, particularly if digestion is already compromised. This doesn't mean you need to give up salads forever; it's simply about noticing what makes your own body feel nourished, comfortable and energised, and allowing your food to change with the seasons.
5. Notice where you're giving too much
Where in your life are you constantly giving something that you don't really have enough of? It might be your time, your energy, your attention or your emotional capacity. Earth needs nourishment too, and sometimes supporting this element is less about what we add to our diet and more about where we need to stop pouring ourselves out.
Try asking yourself, “What do I need today?” and then, if you can, respond to the answer.
Maybe it means eating lunch sitting down rather than standing at the kitchen counter, saying no to something you don't have capacity for, asking for help, going for an afternoon walk or simply creating ten minutes where nobody needs anything from you.
And perhaps this is the deeper work of Earth
Supporting Earth isn't about perfect nutrition, perfect routines or never eating sugar. It is about creating the conditions in which we can receive nourishment - physically, emotionally and energetically - and learning to notice when we're depleted before we reach breaking point.
It might mean slowing down, softening the belly, taking a deeper breath or allowing someone else to look after us. It might also mean being kinder to ourselves when we don't get it right.
This kind of emotional nourishment can be deep work. Learning to recognise our needs, sit with feelings of guilt or unworthiness, and gradually become a safe and supportive presence for ourselves doesn't happen overnight. We don't have to do it alone, either. Sometimes we need other people to help us experience what it feels like to be held, heard and nourished before we can begin to offer that same experience to ourselves.
And perhaps that's why late summer feels like such an appropriate time to come back to Earth: to pause, gather ourselves in, notice what has grown and to ask, what would it feel like to let myself receive?
