Autumn Hues

There are so many so many great things about Autumn that we wait all year for.....

—hot chocolates, delicious warming foods, a fire & time spent with friends and family. Let's not forget the new displays of boots that pop up in the windows of your favourite shoe shop!

Basically, Autumn is the season of comfort food and shoe shopping, but there's a lot more to it than good food and new fashion,. The cold weather creeping in brings changes in sunlight, lower temperatures, and sometimes a slight change in lifestyle. All of these changes could potentially have tangible effects on your body and mind, no matter how bulletproof you think you are!

Everything in our bodies, from our sleep patterns, to hormonal balance, to mood swings, can be affected by Autumn's shorter day sand longer nights. We all know that this is the time of year when we lose a bit of light during the day, especially after daylight savings rolls around. That can have some strange effects on us, like making us spend more time snoozing (but getting lower quality sleep) and making us more suseptable to anxiety or depression. But autumn has some positives about it as well, so don't write it off just yet. Besides, if nothing else, there's lots of warm casseroles and soups to be had that you don't want to miss out on!

Here are some things Autumn does for your body.

~YOUR MEMORY IMPROVES

Studies have found that, in the summer, the brain performs well with attention-centered tasks, but in Autumn, it takes on a different kind of efficiency. Your memory actually becomes sharper, since the part of your brain that's responsible for remembering things is firing off at a higher rate. You may even be able to concentrate better and be more productive overall!

~ YOU SLEEP MORE THAN USUAL

When autumn kicks off, it's normal for people to start hitting the snooze button more often than they did in the summer. It's actually classifiable as a condition called  hypersomnia, which is exactly the opposite of insomnia. With shorter days and longer nights, our circadian rhythm gets thrown out of whack, so our bodies need all the rest they can get! 

However, the quality of this long slumber isn't something to be excited about. Because our eyes are being hit with less ultraviolet rays during the day, our sleep patterns are disrupted for the worse. As a result, we may be sleeping for longer hours, but we wake up still feeling pretty sluggish in the morning...maybe a good excuse to have an afternoon nap!

~YOUR ANXIETY MAY INCREASE

For anyone who struggles with anxiety, Autumn can be a particularly trying time. Experts say that just about anyone can be affected by this particular seasonal change, because it comes with a whole lot of transition that makes you feel slightly out of control. 

Autumn anxiety can sometimes be interchangeable with seasonal affective disorder (SAD), a depression or anxiety that occurs in colder months, partly due to the reduced sunlight we encounter. If you are feeling anxious or depressed, seeing a spiritual counsellor or receiving emotional  healing (Hahnemann Healing) may assist you. 

~YOU MAY GET MORE DEHYDRATED

It sounds counterintuitive, but when the heat dies down, we actually run a higher risk of getting dehydrated. Confused? It actually makes a lot of sense — in the middle of the summer, we can't help but constantly toss back water because we're hot and sweaty and the sun is beating down on us. When the weather takes a turn for the cooler side, though, we forget to drink as much water and we start drinking more dehydrating beverages like coffee and tea.

To prevent this from happening, make sure you're sipping enough water during the day. Even set a few reminders on your phone for yourself if you have to.