Beauty as medicine and Fall Equinox: and so much more
Sara Sessions
what's new | something to consider | daily ritual | what's to do
What's new:
Beauty as medicine & Fall Equinox
Hello, friend. I bet September has been grounding, with those toe exercises for stability. Hope you've been practicing.
September has come and gone, and the Equinox has brought us a new season. A new season of shifts, changes and growth. Perhaps even opportunities just around the corner to grab. Active summer energy gives way to a quieter, reflective time for inner growth. Time to reap what you have sown while practicing moderation, harvesting a way to rebalance priorities through work-life balance, self-care routines and cooperation. With cooler days and more cocooning, this sounds wise.
Travel
I was fortunate enough to spend part of the month in the Portuguese islands, the Azores.
Being there, like the change of season, we chose to slow down. When we choose simplicity. When we choose release.
My harvest this year was beauty through sun, sea and land adventures. A true paradise, with Jurassic Park-style hikes and beauty literally around every corner, small farmer villages tucked along volcanic coastlines, and the quiet hum of island life. I soaked up sun and saltwater, hiked through lush green ridges, and explored São Miguel and Pico — two of the nine volcanic islands that make up the Azores.
Travel is essential for my well‑being. It reminds me of the power of nature in all its forms — how expansive views, movement, and sensation can bring us into awe. Sometimes beauty is so vast it brings tears to the surface. They call it the Stendhal syndrome.
THE MEDICINE OF EXPANSIVE BEAUTY
In the rush of daily life, our inner landscape can shrink without us noticing. But expansive beauty — a long view, a piece of art, a horizon that breathes — invites us back into spaciousness.
Research shows that these moments of beauty can:
• Ease stress and settle the nervous system
• Lift emotional well‑being and soften mood
• Strengthen memory, attention, and problem‑solving
• Encourage abstract thinking and broaden perspective
• Offer gentle psychological distance from daily pressures
Honouring beauty as a somatic resource — a way of widening the body’s capacity to hold life with more grace. A reminder that spaciousness is not a luxury; it’s nourishment.
So whether it's a walk in the park while noticing the changinleaves, the last canoe ride of the season, looking up atng beautiful autumn skies or star-filled nights, watching geese migrate, or simply pausing for a beautiful moment in your day — allow yourself that daily moment of noticing.
It might shift your perspective in meaningful ways.
Something to Consider:
Forest bathing (Shinrin-yoku)
As the forest shifts into its autumn palette — greens dissolving into golds, reds, and quiet browns — the body receives a kind of prescription. A sensory invitation into regulation. A reminder that nature changes slowly, and we are allowed to do the same.
Forest bathing is one of the simplest ways to return to baseline. No technique. No performance. Just presence — and the willingness to be held by trees.
And here’s where it connects to the work we’ve already begun with your feet.
Your feet are your compass. Your big toe is your anchor — the base of strong gait, balance, and orientation. When your feet meet the earth with awareness, your whole system organizes around that contact. Forest bathing amplifies this: the ground becomes textured medicine, each step a somatic cue that brings you back into your body.
Why it works: • The forest’s slow rhythm coaxes the nervous system out of urgency
• Autumn colours regulate the visual system and soften mental load
• Uneven terrain awakens proprioception — especially through the big toe
• Natural scents and sounds anchor you into sensory presence
• Walking becomes a conversation between your feet and the earth
How to practice: Walk slowly. Let your feet feel the ground — the roots, the soil, the leaves.
Notice how your big toe stabilizes each step, guiding your gait with quiet intelligence. Let your eyes linger on color. Let your breath match the trees. Let the forest widen you from the inside out.
This season, consider forest bathing a gentle prescription—a way to regulate, recalibrate, and reconnect with your body’s natural wisdom. Let beauty and movement work together to bring you home.
The Big Toe Spotlight
Small Member, Massive Impact
Did you know that your big toe is the primary stabilizer of your arch and the final point of thrust during yo
ur stride? When the big toe lacks mobility or strength, the body compensates by shifting the center of gravity, leading to imbalances that can cause chronic pain.
Daily Rituals for Stability
Walking on uneven surfaces can activate your feet's capacity to adapt and help your body's stabilizers work in alignment. The more you use your senses, the better your balance will be, and your big toe has something to say about that.
Foot flexion and extension through the ankle can help reduce stiffness in the joints, but also help manage the accumulated lymph stuck in the calves. Do this either seated, standing with your toes lifting you and flexing back to your face, or even in bed before you go to sleep for better rest as lymph flows and clears during the night. Hold each flexion and extension of the ankle for 3 to 5 seconds and breathe through to your capacity. The more you do it, the easier it becomes. This is also a great little reset for desk workers, as the calves work as a second heart.
A simple downward-dog-to-upward-dog movement can help stretch the fascia of the feet, as well as the fascia that connects them directly to your forehead. This is often the same line as the bladder meridian in Traditional Chinese Medicine. It also helps you find movement through the hips and knees, which can benefit the whole being. During changing seasons, it can be hard to keep up with our practices, but even a few of these moves each day can boost your energy and ease your day. Don't underestimate the simplest of moves.
In Conclusion
Whether you choose movement, forest bathing, walking in nature, or ankle and foot mobility, I hope you keep nurturing the incredible piece of machinery that holds your soul. Your body will always know the way when provided with the right environment. During times of transition or change, remember that nature always has a wise message to share.
If you're seeking more direct support through life's changes and adaptations, I would be delighted to welcome you for a coaching and bodywork session. Together, we can create a moment of reconnection, release, or integration.
You can easily book your session here.
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