Winter Wellness 2020

 Winter Wellness 

with Dr Sephanie Lipnicki, DACM, LAc

I want to share a poem that I first heard on the show Little Bear  - when my cousin’s son was little and I would watch him while she worked. Little Bear was a Maurice Sendak creation - of Where the Wild Things Are fame, and they shared this poem  - which always makes me think of the Winter Solstice - which is at the end of the week, the poem wasn’t Maurice Sendak’s, it’s actually anonymous:

Whether the weather be fine, 

Or whether the weather be not, 

Whether the weather be cold, 

Or whether the weather be hot.

We'll weather the weather, 

Whatever the weather, 

Whether we like it or not!

Anonymous

In NJ where I am, we  experience a change of seasons, so we need to weather the weather whatever the weather. But we can make it more tolerable by taking steps to stay by dressing appropriately, eating foods for the season, taking steps to exercise in a way that keeps us healthy, and making sure to choose the right supplements to stay healthy. 

When I wrote about Fall/ Autumn changes a few months back, I shared that taking steps to be prepared for weathering changes is so important. Some of those recommendations overlap in the Winter, except with more emphasis on - you staying warm.  In NJ we occasionally get those freak warm days  - even in December, but just because it is warm at 2 pm, doesn’t mean that at 4 pm when it is dark that you will still feel warm.

Make sure you have an extra sweater when you run errands, wear that hat to keep your noggin warm, and PROTECT YOUR NECK with a scarf. This is something I wish I could get my daughter - who is an amazing singer to realize - how important it is to protect your neck. 

I myself have a tendency to want to stretch out the time I can wear my flip flops (yes - we Acupuncturists have our own flaws), but keeping your feet warm and wearing appropriate shoes for the time of year is so important. 

Eating foods that are more warming in nature, and using herbs and spices that add warmth to foods is also a must as the light wanes and the nights get longer. Once the Winter Solstice arrives, mother nature moves towards the days getting longer again, but those nights stay long for quite some time. 

I like to recommend that patients add warming spices like cinnamon, ginger, cloves to their oatmeal or congee. In addition, teas that are more warming, like chai or ginger as opposed to cooling like mint or jasmine are better to sip. Staying away from adding ice to your beverages, eating things like ice cream, and less cold salads. Stick to hearty and warm soups that nourish and stick to your ribs on cold days. For my menopause patients, I cut them a little slack with the cooling foods as keeping them often balances out the heat shifts. 

Winter, like Autumn, is a great time of the year to make congee a part of your diet. It’s warm and sticks to your ribs (for the purpose of conserving space - I will share a congee basics as a separate blog so you have that info on it’s own).  I thought this would be the perfect recipe to share for the Winter. Click here for Congee Basics

I have microwaveables that I use to warm up my feet on cold days, sometimes I use them when I am reading, sometimes I do it before bed. Sometimes I microwave them and wrap them around my neck. One of mine is a neck sheep and the other my belly sheep. I make frequent use of these through the winter. We stock them in my shoppe - they’re super cute and fuzzy. 

This time of year is associated with the Water element in Traditional Asian Medicine. The emotion associated with the water element is Fear - when you consider winter brings the end of the year - both the gregorian calendar and the Lunar calendar  - there can be a sense of fear stepping into the unknown. Yet, the winter is a great time to look at where we’ve gone and where we are going. This is a great time to map out goals for the upcoming year - even if we feel traumatized by the events of 2020. 

AND, despite the chaos of 2020  - it is a good time to be thankful for the things we are grateful for in our lives. Colors associated with the water element are black and blue (not like a bruise - although many people feel bruised after this year).

For more ways to stay healthy, visit my Website, check out my YouTube Page - Natural Alternatives YouTube, my Practical Medicine Podcast Facebook and PMP Instagram page - where our Podcast is currently available - more platforms to come, Instagram for Natural Alternatives , and Natural Alternatives Facebook pages (oh boy that's a lot of places for you to get healthy info)!

In the meantime, be well!

Dr Stephanie