How Yang Sheng Practices For Living in Tune with Nature Support Us While Menopausing
In this third part of our journey into Yang Sheng, the art of nourishing life, we explore how these ancient practices can support us through the menopause transition and guide us towards living longer well.
In Taoist traditions, there’s no separation between the rhythms of nature and the rhythms of life. Every day, every season, and every stage of life carries its own energetic qualities.
Yet modern Western living often pulls us away from these rhythms. Artificial light blurs day and night. Work schedules override seasonal needs. Social expectations push us to perform at the same pace year-round, and the cost often shows up as menopausal symptoms, fatigue, and patterns of chronic imbalance.
Our modern world complicates this, but the more we can move in harmony with these shifts, adjusting our eating, sleeping, moving, and resting habits, the greater the chance is that we can ease our menopausal transition and cultivate resilience for the years ahead.
Health needs change based on our stages of life, and as we move into menopause, which is not just a biological shift, it’s an energetic one. We are moving into a more Yin time, when we need to cultivate inward energy and not expend all our energy outward, which is very Yang.
This week, we’ll explore how reconnecting with these natural cycles and adopting simple Yang Sheng practices can help us sync our inner landscape with the outer one.
The Five Seasons: Living in Harmony with Nature’s Rhythms
Life is a dance of constant transformation not just across years and decades, but in every month, every season, and every stage of our lives. In Chinese medicine, this flow is understood through the Five Transforming Powers: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water, each representing a phase of energy, a quality of being, and a way of moving through the world.
As women, we have an intuitive connection to these cycles. From puberty onward, we feel their rise and fall in our bodies, minds, and spirits, even when we don’t have the language for it.
From Wood to Fire to Earth: The Early Cycles
In our younger years, we live in the expansive energy of Wood, supple, curious, and growing. Wood transforms us from child to woman, unfurling our sense of identity and possibility.
Then comes Fire, igniting us with passion, creativity, and sexuality. It fuels connection and desire, lighting up our relationships and ambitions.
Eventually, Earth rises to meet us, grounding us in stability and seeking harmony. Here, we begin to weave together our creative energies, balancing giving and receiving, nurturing and being nurtured.
The Wisdom of Metal & the Power of Water
As we enter perimenopause, we begin to feel the pull of Metal. This is the season of refinement, a time to shed what no longer serves us, just as trees release their leaves in autumn.
Metal invites us to:
Go deeper, focusing on meaning, purpose, and substance.
Strengthen immunity, tending to our lungs, microbiome, and emotional resilience.
Awaken inner knowing, cultivating intuition, perception, and the "muscles of the soul."
In the post-menopausal years, we enter the profound stillness of Water. Here lies wisdom, depth, and the ability to flow with life rather than resist it. Water teaches us presence, patience, and the quiet power of contribution, the gift of supporting others and our communities from a place of wholeness.
Synchronizing with Daily Rhythms
Just as the seasons shape our energy, so does each day. In good health, the human body follows a natural rhythm, rising and falling like the sun. Traditional Chinese Medicine’s Body Clock divides the day into twelve two-hour phases, each marking the peak activity of a specific organ system.
When we work with these rhythms, our bodies thrive. When we constantly work against them, staying up late, skipping meals, eating heavy dinners, scrolling through midnight with blue light from our phones, we deplete our energy, weaken our organs, and invite imbalance.
The modern world has pulled us far from these natural cycles. Since the 1970s, we’ve been sleeping less, eating irregularly, and living under constant stimulation from artificial light, noise, and technology. But small, intentional changes can help us realign.
Practical Ways to Live in Flow
Here are gentle, Yang Sheng-inspired adjustments you can weave into modern life:
Morning (5am–7am)
Start the day with a glass of tepid water to awaken digestion and support natural detoxification.
At this time, the key digestive organs of the Stomach and Spleen are ‘in charge’ and your digestive system is at its strongest. Allow time for a nourishing breakfast, even if you prep it the night before.
Midday (11am–1pm)
Make your lunch a larger meal; your digestive fire is strongest now.
Choose warm, cooked foods over cold salads to protect digestive energy.
Step outside if you can, as natural light helps reset your internal body clock.
Afternoon (1pm–5pm)
Focus on tasks that involve sorting, processing, and organizing, as it supports your Small Intestine, which is working on distributing and absorbing nutrients.
Stay hydrated to support energy and focus.
Evening (5pm–7pm)
Shift into Yin-nourishing activities: gentle walks, yoga, or Qi Gong, rather than hitting the gym.
Keep dinner light to support restful sleep.
Early Night (7pm–9pm)
Spend this time connecting with family, friends, hobbies, or even networking when the Pericardium (part of the Fire element) is strongest
Evening( 9pm - 11pm)
The San Jiao (also part of the Fire element) associated with homeostatic function and balance peaks and it good time to make sure we keep everything in moderation. Begin winding down: take a warm bath or shower, listen to calming music, or read by soft light.
Energetic Patterns and the Menopause Transition
One of the most powerful ways to support yourself during the menopause transition is through food energetics, choosing and preparing foods that bring balance to your body in relation to the time of day, the season of the year, and your current life season. Food isn’t just fuel; it carries qualities (warming, cooling, moistening, grounding) that directly influence how we feel.
Rethinking Breakfast
In many Western cultures, breakfast is either skipped altogether or rushed through with something quick and sugary—cereal bars, pastries, or cold processed foods. These choices are often low in fiber, high in sugar, and ultimately deplete energy rather than sustain it.
By contrast, in many Asian traditions, the first meal of the day is designed to gently wake up the digestive system while also being deeply nourishing. Think congee (rice porridge) topped with vegetables, fish, or a softly cooked egg, or a light miso or noodle soup in broth. These meals are warm, grounding, and supportive for the day ahead.
Congee for Menopause Support
Congee doesn’t need to be limited to rice. Other grains can be used depending on your needs. During perimenopause and menopause, when many women experience dryness, heat, and sleep disruption linked to Kidney Yin Deficiency in Chinese medicine, millet is especially helpful. Millet is naturally cooling and sweet, helping to tonify Yin and clear heat.
You can top millet congee with:
Savory options: sesame seeds, black beans, seaweed, or egg—for nourishing the Kidneys and replenishing Yin.
Sweet options: seasonal berries, apples, pears, or a drizzle of local honey—for a lighter, hydrating, and comforting bowl.
Starting your day with a warm, substantial meal balances your microbiome, steadies energy, and helps prevent late-night overeating—which in turn improves sleep quality. This is especially important during menopause, as poor sleep is one of the most common and disruptive symptoms. A good breakfast can support a better mood, memory, immunity, and vitality throughout the day.
“This week, try swapping your usual breakfast for a warm, nourishing bowl of congee or miso soup and notice how your body responds.”
In Chinese medicine, how we cook is just as important as what we eat. Seasonal and local foods prepared with care, whether lightly steamed in summer, slowly braised in winter, or gently simmered in soups year-round, can bring balance to the body and ease the challenges of menopause. Aligning your meals with both the season of the year and your life season can be a simple but profound way to reclaim energy, resilience, and help you through this life transition.
Other Aspects of Living in Harmony
In Oriental medicine, movement is considered essential to prevent Qi stagnation. When energy becomes stuck, often the result of a sedentary lifestyle, it can manifest as repetitive thoughts, constant worry, or an inability to let go of concerns, a pattern that frequently intensifies during perimenopause and menopause.
We need to find ways to move that honour our energy cycles. Appropriate movement is not about pushing the body to exhaustion but about matching activity to one’s energy levels: on days of vitality, more vigorous exercise can help circulate Qi, while on lower-energy days, gentle practices such as walking, stretching, or qigong are more supportive.
This stage of life calls for discernment, clarity, and the ability to release what no longer serves us. Supporting this process extends beyond physical activity: it includes the clothes we choose to wear, which can either support or hinder our comfort and flow, and the relationships we maintain.
Every individual has their own nature, rhythms, and beliefs, and in midlife, it becomes increasingly important to recognize which connections enhance our energy and which deplete it. By cultivating healthy boundaries, women can align more deeply with the wisdom of the Metal and Water elements, engaging with others in ways that sustain balance rather than exhaust it.
Coming Back to Harmony
Reconnecting with nature’s rhythms, the five seasons, the daily cycles, and the stages of life is an act of self-nourishment. For women navigating midlife, perimenopause, or menopause, these small, intentional shifts are not just about reducing symptoms.
They’re about reclaiming vitality, restoring balance, and learning to live in deeper harmony with both ourselves and the world around us.