As a health and wellness provider, trying to maintain both life and work responsibilities can be immensely overwhelming. The fast-paced nature of the current times we are living in also contributes added pressure and strain.
Every moment of the day seems to demand our attention, leaving very little time for the necessary pauses that offer clarity and peace of mind.
The state of the nervous system acts as a barometer, determining how we react to challenge and resistance. When stress is high, and we do not have enough stored in reserve, pressure builds and can lead to issues like anxiety or burnout. Over time, if issues are not addressed, longer-term illness can emerge, such as a lowered immune system or chronic inflammation, feeding back into the body’s sympathetic stress response and continuing the cycle.
Tending to our wellbeing and the interiority of our lives, is a non-negotiable, especially in the wake of upheaval—from climate change to global unrest and political authoritarianism.
“Caring for myself is not self-indulgence,” writes Black, lesbian, feminist, socialist, mother, warrior, poet Audre Lorde, “it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare.”
If you have children or young people in your life, imagine the example you are setting when you intentionally turn inward to give yourself the care and tenderness you deserve.
When we care deeply for ourselves, it signals to others that they, too, can do the same.
WHY A SEASONAL LIFE REVIEW CAN GIVE YOU CLARITY
Everything in nature has its own unique rhythm. There are seasons for growth, and seasons for release. Humans are intimately connected to nature: we are nature, and we, too, have unique rhythms that help to maintain internal harmony.
Nature and the earth, and therefore humans, are also a part of the Universe, or the Cosmos, which moves in cycles. Each year, we welcome the solstices and equinoxes, which mark the change between seasons from spring to summer and autumn to winter, and is in alignment with the calendar system that we use to track the passing of time.
Seasonal shifts are tied to the four anchor points of the year, which occur from January to March; April to June; July to September; and October to December, and represent the first to the fourth quarters, respectively.
Planning a seasonal life review can not only support your physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual wellbeing, but it can also help you reconnect to the rhythms and cycles within yourself, and in nature.
As a holistic life coach focused on supporting people through major transitions by reconnecting to nature, one of the ways I support my clients is through astrology. Remember the throughline I mentioned that runs between nature, cosmic cycles, and humans? Astrology provides an excellent visual representation of that link, and can also help us understand how to best care for ourselves based on where the planets were at the moment of our birth.
There are, of course, other tools one can use, including enneagram or human design, which provide equally helpful frameworks. In my practice, I also rely on neuroscience to help my clients navigate challenges as it provides a solid evidence-based foundation and compliments both my astrology, acupuncture and Chinese medicine education.
Using astrology as a framework for planning your seasonal life review means you have a built-in map that allows you to understand your energetic blueprint.
CHARTING THE DIRECTION OF YOUR LIFE
If you’ve ever been hiking or mountain climbing, you know it’s always important to have a compass to help with navigation and, in this case, your seasonal life review acts as that navigation tool. It tells you where you are, where you’ve been, and what direction you’re moving towards.
Every map usually comes with some kind of key or legend to symbolize specific geographic areas, and your natal chart is no different. Where a map uses triangles to represent mountains, in a birth chart a triangle represents a particular geometric relationship called a trine, which occurs when there is a 120 degree distance between two (or more) celestial objects. The key or legend, in your case, signifies the value-based goals and plans that you create as you move through your seasonal life review.
Again, you don’t need to use astrology to plan a seasonal life review, but it can be helpful as it includes key factors that are specific to your lived experience, and whatever transition you are facing. If you have other frameworks, methods, or strategies, use them! Anything that will prevent friction and encourage you to move forward with your review, is the way to go. Use whatever skills you have, and if you need further support, I am here to help.
HOW TO PLAN YOUR SEASONAL LIFE REVIEW
Now that you’ve decided to do a seasonal life review, you’ll need a strategy to ensure that you follow through on the commitment you’ve made to yourself.
SCHEDULE THE TIME
The first action is to schedule the time. Before you start thinking about which day you think will work best, I encourage you to take out your paper or digital calendar and look at what you have going on in the next three to six months, or the next two quarters. This way you can start thinking about your time in context to seasons and annual cycles.
When I am sharing this with clients, I will often recommend blocking off at least one full day, or two half-days to give yourself time to thoroughly complete a seasonal life review—espcially if this practice or the concepts are new to you.
DETERMINE YOUR INGREDIENTS
The next action for you to take is to determine your ingredients. I find it helpful to think of this phase like cooking: you’ll need all the ingredients for the mise en place first before you start building your meal.
When it comes to food preparation, sometimes there is a specific recipe or flavor profile we’re trying to achieve, which requires very specific ingredients. But for homecooks, more often, we are working with whatever is in the pantry, and shaping the dish from there. Either way, it’s necessary to know what you’re working with before you begin.
In this case, you’ll want to focus on feelings instead of flavors! I encourage you to write or draw how you feel now, and include any sensations, discomfort, or pain you are experiencing and where these are showing up in the body. Note the concerns or worries you have, too, then, follow up by writing or drawing how you want to feel, or what you want to better understand, by the end of your seasonal life review.
If you find it too challenging to express your feelings, you can start with whatever issue you are working on, and work backwards. For example, if you want to improve your quality of sleep, ask yourself: How do I feel when I don’t get enough rest, and how does that affect my mood and energy throughout the day? What factors are currently contributing to my feeling restless?
Sometimes, even though we know exactly what is required to make a shift, there is a gap. Often, this gap is signaling that something else needs our attention before anything else can be addressed. If this resonates with you, spend some time asking yourself deeper questions: Is there something I am putting off that is keeping my thoughts in a loop? Did I eat enough, or drink enough water throughout the day?
Be gentle as you move through this phase. The point is not to make yourself feel guilt or shame for not doing something, but to get curious about your interiority and how it is impacting the totality of your life.
DEFINE YOUR REVIEW STRATEGY
Now that you’ve determined the ingredients you are working with, the third action is to define your review strategy. There are many ways to approach this phase, and there is no one right way to go about it. For the purpose of this post, we’ll focus on how to use astrology to design your review. You do not need prior experience with astrology to follow this approach.
Your birth chart can be a helpful guide post for a myriad of reasons, and there are a plethora of techniques that can be applied to help you determine where to place your focus. In a previous post, I’ve written an entire guide for how to determine which planet is ruling your year, which includes an example chart for further context.
Given my area of expertise and training, I’ve created a free Seasonal Life Review Guidebook for you to use in this exercise. The guidebook includes five pages, which are based on the twelve houses, or areas of life, in astrology, and is designed to help you hone your vision for the upcoming season through a series of writing activities. You’ll assess where you are in the current moment, reflect on themes that emerge, and tease out values-based goals to create your vision.
WORK OUT THE LOGISTICS
The last phase is to work out the logistics of your review process. If you are taking a full day, or more, to complete the review, you might consider going somewhere outside of your usual work or office space. Some ideas include going to your favorite coffee shop or co-working space, booking a hotel room, or renting an Airbnb. You could also utilize the whole weekend, and create a staycation or retreat experience for yourself. (I think this idea sounds lovely!)
You’ll also want to think about the overall itinerary for your review to ensure you get to everything that you’ve prioritized, such as breaks, lunch, or other important activities. Just as you had to schedule time for the review, you may want to do the same for the actual review itinerary, either in your digital calendar or on paper.
CURIOSITY OVER PERFECTION
The first time you move through the seasonal life review and accompanying guidebook, it might feel awkward, or take a while. As you continue to utilize this exercise each quarter, it will get smoother. I promise!
You can think of each review as an experiment where you get to learn more about yourself more intimately, while also connecting with nature. I encourage you to give yourself grace and compassion.
A seasonal life review is where real insight and wisdom can flourish, so take the time you need. When it comes to doing deep inner work, being attuned to how you’re feeling, and how you want to feel, is more important than the finish line.
AFTER YOUR REVIEW
Once you’ve completed your review, I recommend you continue to read aloud to yourself what you worked on in the following two to three days. After a few days, you can release that routine and allow all that reinforcement to settle into your consciousness.
If you find yourself experiencing self-doubt or uncertainty, you can always go back and say aloud your vision to yourself again for added fortification.
When it is time to plan your next seasonal life review, either a week or two before the end of each quarter, you’ll start the process again with the guidebook I’ve created.
GENTLE REMINDER
You might be coming to this practice on the edge of burnout, on the brink of a major life transition, or longing change, and you may or may not have a clear idea of what you need to focus on. The fact that you’ve decided to review the inner landscape of your experience, to care for yourself, and to preserve your most precious resource, which is you, is immensely courageous.
I applaud your bravery and tenacity in choosing not to give up on yourself.
My hope is that this review process will become a practice that you return to throughout the year, and that it will continue to serve you through many seasons ahead.
