Beetroot, anyone?

Have you ever seen a beetroot seed? Its the most insignificant prickle-like little thing that must be soaked in water  to soften for a good while before it can be planted into some good compost-rich soil. I like, immensely, the unlikelihood that his hard seed, which could easily be mistaken as a large crumb, would ever grow into something as magnificent as a beetroot. And, yet, nature works her magic to grow it into a vibrant purple bulb, resplendent in its red-veined leaves, and impregnating everything it touches with its colour.

In a somewhat sketchy analogy, we humans are more than a little bit beetroot-like ourselves. Shrouded in hard, inconspicuous coats to protect against a harsh world. But, when we are very gently allowed to soften, we start to flourish… maybe not into something quite so lavishly purple, but something just as beautiful and unique.

As a Naturopath, I work with some wondrous people; mostly women, but some pretty amazing men too. All of them humans, many of whom have hardened themselves to cope with the challenges of life. And this has resulted in their various maladies: anxiety, depression, headaches, fatigue, overwhelm, sadness. As they sit in front of me, telling how it is for them, I feel incredibly privileged. For, in their realness & vulnerability, I see them. They just don’t yet know how to unfold themselves from the constraints of their shell.

Start with the body.

This is my favourite bit. In the confusion and overwhelm, it’s so hard to know where to start. The body, wisely, gives us the clues. So, we start here. Some gentle cleansing with herbs, a lighter diet, some movement. This allows for a layer to be lifted. Then we start to glimpse a bit deeper…maybe the tension in the gut, or the overactivity of the nervous system, or the exhaustion. So we start to work with this. Always gently & mindfully. No two bodies are the same, I’ve learned that. Each one reveals itself slowly and in different ways. And there’s not one magic supplement thats going to make it all better. The gift of the body is that it calls us to attend to it. Initially it might just whisper, but that whisper gets louder & louder until we can’t not listen. Each body needs something different. Maybe something simple, like some more rest and a good zinc supplement. Others need a real overhaul of the food that going into it each day. Or a specific combination of minerals that will rebalance some of its biochemistry.

What I notice then is that, as the physical body starts to heal, so too does the mind. It’s really very beautiful. Sort of like beetroot, but not really.

Charlotte x