Thrive in your 40s, 50s, and beyond through Ayurvedic wisdom and the water element.
Here’s a myth ready to be shattered. The myth that says menopause is a time of decline and loss. Instead, your pre to post-menopausal phase is destined to be the one in which you finally have the chance to cultivate your most radiant life.
This by no means is a sentiment I’ve picked up from thin air. It is rooted in both Ayurveda and personal experience. This wisdom, which has withstood the test of time, is one I’ve been in close contact with since 2000.
You may be saying: “There is nothing radiant about this time when I am struggling more than I ever have.” I’d be doing the same if I were you. Yet, I do know your suffering. Beyond experiencing immeasurable pain due to hormonal fluctuations, I’ve also learned to transmute these all-consuming struggles.
So, what does it take to learn how to regulate the challenges that arise during this phase of life?
In this exploration of opening to a new perspective on finding your path to radiance, I encourage you to bring your curiosity here—To your femininity. The feminine is your antidote to the challenges that surface during this phase.
To understand the root connection between radiance and this phase of life, a basic foundational understanding of Ayurveda may be essential. But this is not the aim of this note. Instead, it’s an offer for an alternate path that you can begin exploring today, one that will get you moving toward greater radiancy. It’s a path you’re likely to find second nature already: Getting to know The Water Element!
Receptive, fluid, flexible, yielding, soft, weighty, and nourishing, water is your doorway into beginning to embrace a more intimate relationship with the feminine. Your femininity embodies the qualities (characteristics) of the Water Element. For this reason, it serves to regulate an environment that would otherwise tend towards dryness, stiffness, and deterioration.
Here are a few subtle ways of cultivating this more vibrant life.
Too much busy movement leads to systemic dryness, degeneration at a cellular level, mental fog, and emotional exhaustion; Water lubricates.
When we get carried away with expression, we trap ourselves in a distorted idea that expression and experience are the same thing; Water invites us into the depth of inwardly experiencing something so that it can then also be potentially expressed.
Too much Prana (life force) depletes Ojas (the essence of physical, mental, and emotional immunity); Water replenishes Ojas.
Are you beginning to get why putting on that “tougher than steel” shield is not sustainable? A shield does not come from you. So, it can’t help you regain a sense of safety or security. Yet, there is an infinitely more potent force that is inherently yours to support you in a vulnerable moment. Similarly, water dissolves preconceived notions and old ideas. This force is not only capable of dissolving the sharp edges of something as hard as a rock, but it creates masterpiece carvings—think of The Grand Canyon!
How to access it?
This depends upon your willingness to experiment with its qualities. That’s all!
Here are four ways to integrate a deeper connection with your feminine nature:
1. Receptivity — Cultivate this with a morning reflection.
Start each day by taking a few minutes to sit quietly, breathe deeply, and reflect on how you’re feeling. Ask yourself questions like: What does femininity mean to me? If your answer is something like, I have to be more observant of what drains or depletes me. Can you carve out a window for a check-in with that friend who encourages your growth and well-being also today?
2. Fluidity and Flexibility — Cultivate these via body awareness.
Engage in physical activities that evoke the qualities of water, such as dance, tai chi, or swimming. And the activities can also be free from movement, such as restorative yoga, a warm bath, or receiving a massage.
3. Yielding — Cultivate this via creative expression.
Painting, drawing, writing, music—what’s a favorite way for you to lose yourself? Set aside time for creative expression freely without judgment or any form of expectation. Let this inspire you to feel your emotions fully as you acknowledge and validate these without resistance.
4. Nourishment and Softness — Cultivate these via time in nature.
Observe how nature releases control via its rhythms and cycles. Take walks by a river or ocean, noticing how the water flows and changes. Let this inspire you to surrender more fully. Maybe just for today, you can choose not to plan every detail. Instead, allow space for spontaneity so that things can unfold naturally.
Ready to get started on giving life to this curiosity around becoming more intimate with these qualities?
Go ahead and select one of the examples above, or explore one of your own. Little by little, like the Grand Canyon, the qualities of the feminine will dissolve unnecessary suffering and help you access greater radiance.
Photo by Gert Boers
What if menopause was not an ending but a new beginning? Take a moment to breathe in the possibilities that may arise from this inquiry. Consider connecting with other women who are also harnessing this skill of the feminine. Online communities or local groups can be a powerful way to support and learn from one another.
As you close this article, remember that the journey to radiance is unique to each of us.
What does yours look like?
I can’t wait to hear!
With Love
