by Kristen Mangione, LMT

Ahhh summer…. the hottest, brightest and sometimes most taxing season of the year. If you are like me, you love the intensity of this time. 

As a child I couldn’t wait for those summer days that seemed to last forever. Unlimited hours when my cousins and I would play in the bright sunlight, swim, run races through the fields around my grandparents’ farm and catch lightning bugs at dusk. Every day seemed a new adventure. 

In the 5 Elements of Chinese Medicine, summer is associated with the Fire Element. Fire, like the season, is all about intensity. If you look at nature, summer it is when the growth of spring reaches its peak. The blossoms are in full bloom and the greatest expression of themselves. 

Fire is a symbol of this. Magnetic, bright, hot and changeable, it has the power to warm as in a summer evening campfire; or blaze out of control as in the forest fire that starts with a tiny spark that catches everything in its path.

Chinese Medicine subdivides Fire into two categories- Absolute and Supplemental. 

Absolute is said to be like the flame, more changeable and unpredictable as it moves with the air. It is also charismatic. It is the energy tied to the heart and Shen, or Spirit, of a person. Seeing a person’s Fire energy expressed can be thought of as true self-expression, their spirit in action.

Supplemental is said to be like the blue part at the base of the flame, sustaining heat and keeping the flame grounded. It is said to govern things like immunity, circulation and body temperature. Not surprisingly, issues with blood flow, clots, varicose veins, as well as cold hands and feet, are supplemental fire related.

The transition from spring into summer can be a rocky one. Because Fire brings extreme heat we may experience heat related issues. Feeling flushed, heat rashes, exhaustion or simply experiencing a lower energy level from the rising thermostat are all signs of internal heat. 

If you think about warmer or Fire element climates, there is the built in break, or the Siesta. It’s typically at midday when the sun is at its hottest and is a natural adaptation for dealing with too much fire. During a siesta one traditionally retreats indoors and rests to cool down so you don’t burn out. You later reemerge as the sun heat wanes and continue your activities. We can take a page from the wisdom of Mediterranean, South American and Caribbean cultures for beating the heat. Learning to balance our activities with more strategically placed rest in this intense time is one way to achieve balance in the season of Fire.

More about the Fire element and strategies for thriving in the season of summer will be featured in the upcoming workshop Summer Heat and 5 Elements on Tuesday June 5 at Oriens. 

Kristen Mangione has been practicing and teaching Chinese Medicine and Shiatsu for a decade. She specializes in bringing a practical, easy to use approach to Eastern philosophy and writes regularly about the topic on her site www.zenmoves.org/blog. She currently practices Shiatsu at Oriens and also at ZenTouch in Hoboken, NJ.