Summer Self Care
RITUAL: Self Care | SOLAR TERM: Da Shu | SEASON: Summer
July 23 - August 7
The twelfth of the 24 solar terms of the Chinese calendar is called Da Shu. Da Shu is the sixth solar term of Summer. It’s the solar term with the hottest days of the year and therefore is known for having “greater heat”. It’s preceded by a term of lesser heat and followed by the first term of the fall season.
Keep cool and stay calm, my friend.
In the long hot days of summer, it’s important to find ways to stay cool and calm. Find ways to cool your body, calm your active mind and keep your composure. The intense heat of the fiery element of this season can affect not just our physical body, but our thoughts and emotions.
Summer Self Care
Self care during the summer months looks very different than it does in the cooler and colder seasons of the year. Keeping cool - body, mind and soul becomes the priority. As you read through the following ideas, take note of the ones you’re already doing and which ones you might begin to incorporate into your Summer self care rituals as we head into the final week of July.
Cool
While staying out of the direct sunlight and drinking plenty of fluids is a great start, think about other ways for you to stay cool. If you don’t have air conditioning, place a bowl of ice in front of a fan. If you live in an arid climate, invest in a humidifier. If it’s too hot to read outside on the grass or in the hammock, take your book to a cool cafe or read at your local library. If you do get too much sun, apply some aloe vera gel to your sunburnt skin.
Think about the things you can do on an hourly, daily and weekly basis. Drink water with electrolytes to replenish minerals lost from sweating. Eat a raw carrot a day to reduce damaging effects of the UV rays and help eliminate metabolized estrogen. Give yourself a pedicure once a week, especially if you’re going barefoot or wearing open toes sandals more often.
Stay hydrated. Drink cool, not ice cold, water.
Stay inside. Avoid going outside during the hottest part of the day.
Eat hydrating fruits and veggies like melons and cucumbers.
Cut up all your favorite seasonal fruits to make a big fruit salad.
Prepare a chilled soup like gazpacho or vichyssoise, served at room temperature.
Make yourself a healthy slushy by blending cold or frozen fruit with citrus juice, like watermelon with a fresh squeeze of lime or mixed berries with orange juice.
Teach yourself how to make preserves from the bounty of summer fruit or turn your tomato harvest into jars of sauce you can use through the winter months.
Consider investing in a mini frig to keep your skin care products cool.
Keep your facial rollers in the freezer.
Go see a movie in an air conditioned theater.
Take a cool, not hot or cold, bath or shower.
Add a few drop of peppermint essential oil to a cool foot bath or cool washcloth.
Invest in a mini, handheld or wearable personal fan.
Run some cold tap water over your wrists.
Make yourself a cooling facial or body mist to use throughout the day.
Apply ice to your pulse points (temples, back of neck, wrists).
Learn how to make your own ice cream, gelato or sorbet.
Master the art of your favorite refrigerator pickles.
Make a yummy dessert, like a no bake cheesecake, frozen granita or refrigerated panna cotta.
Put some socks in the freezer.
Before bed, rub some peppermint lotion on your feet.
Calm
Summer is associated with the element of Fire. And the Fire element can be a bit wild and chaotic, unpredictable and erratic. Fire elements can be hot tempered and hotheaded.
To keep calm, pause before acting impulsively. Slow down your breathing. Be honest with yourself about how you are feeling. Reframe how you are thinking about an interaction or situation. Ask yourself if what you are telling yourself is true.
Shift your focus or change your environment. Do something else that is slower or meditative like reading, folding laundry or doing the dishes. Go outside to get some fresh air or go to another room in your house. Clear the energy in your space. Diffuse some essential oils.
Calm yourself. Make yourself a cup of herbal tea or drink a big glass of lemon and cucumber water. Eat something to stabilize your blood sugar. Sit down to meditate or visualize yourself in a calm, centered state. Have a mantra you can repeat silently that you know is calming and reassuring.
Calm your body. Put your phone down and drop your shoulders. Release any excess or pent up energy by exercising. Get up and go for a walk on the beach or jump on the rebounder. Put on some music that makes you want to move and dance. Lie down and stretch or practice progressive muscle relaxation starting with your feet. Do some yin yoga, vinyasa flow or a qigong session. Give yourself a massage or press on some acupressure points.
Share in the comments below how you plan to take care of your physical, mental and emotional wellbeing this Summer.
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Dara Eden is the author of HER Rituals for the Divine Feminine, a periodical guide created in December of 2021. The 8 Elements, her life’s work, provides guidance about how to honor the essential needs and highest values of your personal feng shui element. Inspired by an Internet challenge designed for men, she created 365WISE, a daily self-care practice that supports women in honoring their needs and listening to their inner wisdom.
In HER Rituals, she offers insights, ideas and intuitive guidance about ways to honor your needs, values and unique expression of the divine feminine.
HER Rituals is a Womb Wisdom KeepHER’s guide to cyclical rituals for sovereign women. It provides insightful information, inspirational ideas and intuitive guidance on daily and seasonal rituals you can practice as a form of self-care. Read about ancient wisdom and philosophical principles, holistic approaches and traditional skills, slow work and intentional living, embodiment practices and immersive experiences.
