Listening to Your Body in the Heat
Have you noticed how differently the world behaves in summer?
The trees don’t rush.
The roses don’t apologise for blooming more slowly after a spell of intense heat.
Birdsong quietens in the middle of the day, only to return as the evening cools.
Even the bees seem to understand that some hours are made for resting beneath leaves rather than flying tirelessly from flower to flower.
Nature adapts.
It always has.
And yet somehow, many of us expect ourselves to carry on exactly as we do in every other season.
We continue filling the diary.
We apologise for feeling slower.
We wonder why our concentration isn’t quite as sharp.
Why we’re more irritable.
Why we’re waking through the night.
Why our ankles are swelling.
Why our hormones suddenly seem louder.
Why everything feels just that little bit... harder.
Perhaps your body isn’t struggling with the heat - perhaps it’s simply asking you to live differently for a while.
Every season asks something different of us
One of the things I love most about working with women is seeing the incredible wisdom the body already carries.
It knows when to gather inwards.
It knows when to expand.
It knows when to rest.
It knows when to move.
The difficulty is that modern life often asks us to ignore those signals.
The calendar rarely changes because the temperature has climbed.
Meetings still happen.
School holidays arrive with all their joy and chaos.
The washing somehow doubles.
Sleep becomes lighter.
The world feels louder.
And still, somewhere deep inside, the body whispers: “could we do this a little more gently?”
I sometimes think that summer is one of the few seasons that makes it almost impossible to ignore our physical selves.
You become acutely aware of your skin.
Of your thirst.
Of your breathing.
Of how much energy even simple tasks require.
Of whether you’re pushing or flowing.
The body moves closer to the surface.
Perhaps that’s one of summer’s greatest gifts.
It invites us back into ourselves.
Heat changes more than temperature
When we think about hot weather, we often think about sweat.
Or sun cream.
Or whether we’ll sleep tonight.
But warmth influences almost every system within the body.
Blood vessels widen.
Circulation changes.
Heart rate increases slightly.
The body works constantly to regulate temperature, using precious energy simply to keep us comfortable.
Hydration becomes more important because every cell relies upon water to communicate effectively.
Our brains become less efficient when we’re dehydrated.
Mood changes more quickly.
Headaches become more common.
Hormonal symptoms often feel amplified.
For women navigating perimenopause or menopause, this can feel particularly intense.
Hot flushes become more frequent.
Sleep becomes lighter.
Patience feels harder to find.
But even women who are nowhere near menopause often notice changes.
Those living with endometriosis may feel inflammation more keenly. (Yup!)
Women with PCOS may notice fatigue increasing.
Stress seems to sit closer to the surface.
The body isn’t being awkward.
It’s simply working harder.
Summer through the eyes of Traditional Chinese Medicine
Traditional Chinese Medicine has always fascinated me because it doesn’t separate us from the seasons.
Instead, it assumes we belong to them.
Summer is governed by the Fire element ant is associated with the Heart. With joy. Connection. Warmth. Laughter. Community. Expansion.
Think about how naturally life spills outdoors at this time of year.
Long evenings.
Garden conversations.
Children staying outside until dusk.
Meals shared around tables that somehow seem to taste better when eaten in the sunshine.
There is a beautiful expansiveness to summer.
But every strength has its shadow.
Too much Fire becomes overstimulation.
Restlessness.
Agitation.
Difficulty sleeping.
Mental busyness.
Feeling emotionally “hot.”
Impatient.
Frazzled.
Overwhelmed.
And if we’re not careful, we mistake these signals for personal shortcomings rather than seasonal messages.
The body isn’t asking us to become more disciplined.
It’s inviting us to create balance.
To cool what feels overheated.
To soften what feels overstretched.
Your body speaks in sensations
One of the beautiful things about somatic work is that it shifts our attention away from fixing and back towards noticing.
Instead of asking: “why am I struggling so much?” we begin asking “what am I feeling?”
Not emotionally. Physically.
Where does the heat sit?
In your face?
Your chest?
Your head?
Your feet?
Do your shoulders feel heavy?
Does your jaw tighten?
Do your thoughts speed up as the temperature rises?
Does your patience shorten?
Do you become quieter?
Or more emotional?
None of these experiences are random.
Your nervous system is constantly adapting to its environment.
Heat asks more of it.
Which means your body may ask more of you in return.
Not more effort. More listening.
Cooling isn’t just physical
When we think about staying cool, we often imagine fans, cold drinks, shade, air conditioning.
And all of those things help but sometimes what needs cooling isn’t your skin.
It’s your nervous system.
You’ve probably experienced this yourself.
The day hasn’t actually been particularly difficult yet by early evening everything feels too much.
Someone asks one more question.
The dog barks.
The washing still isn’t dry.
Dinner needs making.
And suddenly you feel like you’re boiling from the inside out.
That’s rarely about the washing.
Or the dog.
Or dinner.
It’s accumulated stimulation - your nervous system quietly saying: “I’ve reached my limit for today.”
When we begin recognising that feeling, something changes.
Instead of criticising ourselves for being “grumpy” or “irrational”, we begin responding with kindness.
We stop asking ourselves to push through and start asking ourselves what would genuinely help us soften.
Because perhaps that’s what this season has been trying to teach us all along.
Not how to endure the heat.
But how to move with it.
Five gentle ways to move with the season
If the body is asking us to live a little differently for a while, perhaps the question becomes:
How can I support it?
Not perfectly.
Not by adding another list of things to achieve.
Simply by making small choices that help us feel cooler, calmer and a little more at home in ourselves.
Here are a few of my favourites.
1. Eat with the season, not against it
One of the simplest ways we can support ourselves is by noticing what nature is already offering.
Traditional Chinese Medicine has long recognised that certain foods help disperse excess internal heat, gently cooling and nourishing the body without shocking it.
Think crisp cucumber, juicy watermelon, mint, pears, courgettes, leafy greens, berries and lightly cooked vegetables. Fresh herbs can make an enormous difference too - mint and basil both have naturally cooling qualities.
Notice that these are the very foods growing abundantly at this time of year.
Nature has exquisite timing.
Rather than heavy stews or rich meals that served us beautifully through winter, summer often asks for lighter nourishment. Colourful salads with good quality protein, chilled soups, grilled vegetables, fresh fruit and plenty of water-rich foods allow the digestive system to work a little less, leaving more energy for everything else your body is trying to do.
That doesn’t mean denying yourself the occasional barbecue or ice cream. It simply means asking yourself “what would leave my body feeling refreshed rather than depleted?”
2. Hydrate as an act of kindness
Most of us know we should drink more water.
The problem is that “should” rarely changes behaviour.
Instead, think about why.
Every hormone in your body relies on fluid to travel where it needs to go.
Every cell depends upon hydration to communicate.
When we’re dehydrated, even mildly, the brain becomes less efficient. Concentration dips. Headaches become more likely. Mood becomes less stable. Muscles tighten more easily.
And in hot weather, we’re quietly losing water all day long without always noticing. (I say quietly - it’s not been so quiet for me these last couple of days!)
Rather than waiting until you’re thirsty, try creating tiny rituals.
A glass of water before your morning brew.
Fresh mint or slices of cucumber in a jug on the kitchen table.
A reusable bottle that travels with you rather than one you keep forgetting upstairs.
If you’ve been sweating heavily, a natural electrolyte drink or coconut water can sometimes be kinder than plain water alone.
Again, not because you’re trying to be “good” but because your body is working hard for you so it’s time to repay the favour.
3. Invite your nervous system to cool too
Cooling isn’t only about temperature - it’s also about pace.
Heat naturally stimulates the nervous system, which is why we often feel more emotionally reactive during very warm weather.
One of the simplest things you can do is lengthen your out-breath.
Try this...
Sit comfortably.
Let your shoulders soften.
Breathe in gently through your nose for a count of four.
Then breathe out slowly for a count of six.
Don’t force it.
Just imagine your breath flowing out like cool water running over smooth stones.
Repeat five or six times.
Longer exhalations gently activate the parasympathetic nervous system - the part responsible for rest, digestion and recovery.
It’s one of the quickest ways I know to tell the body “you’re safe. You can soften now.”
4. Let scent change the atmosphere
Our sense of smell has a remarkable shortcut into the emotional centres of the brain.
Long before we consciously process a scent, our nervous system has already begun responding to it.
This is why certain smells instantly transport us to childhood holidays, favourite people or peaceful places.
During hot weather I often reach for cooling essential oils.
A drop of peppermint, diluted safely in a carrier oil, gently massaged into the back of the neck or across the shoulders can feel wonderfully refreshing.
Lavender is beautiful as evening approaches, particularly if your mind feels busier than your body would like.
Roman chamomile is one of my favourites when emotions feel tender, frayed or close to the surface.
5. Find somewhere cool without leaving your chair
This may sound wonderfully simple - because it is, and it’s surprisingly effective.
Close your eyes.
Take a slow breath.
Imagine yourself walking through a quiet woodland.
The sunlight dances through the leaves rather than beating down from above.
The air is cooler here.
You hear birdsong.
Perhaps there’s a small stream winding gently through the trees.
Walk towards it.
Take off your shoes.
Place your feet into the cool water.
Feel it moving around your ankles.
Notice the relief.
The freshness.
The softness in your shoulders.
The deeper breath arriving without effort.
Stay there for a few moments.
The remarkable thing about visualisation is that the brain often responds to vividly imagined experiences in surprisingly similar ways to real ones.
The body begins relaxing.
Muscles soften.
Breathing slows.
Heart rate settles.
Not because we’ve escaped reality but because we’ve offered the nervous system a moment of genuine respite.
(Oh and genuinely, if the calm, zen, cool river doesn’t work for you, just image yourself standing in the bring white antarctic with snow all around you. Close your eyes- see the whiteness - image the cold. My mum taught me that one years ago (guessing now she was having hot flushes!) and I’ve used it ever since.)
A gentle reflection
As you move through this week, perhaps ask yourself:
Where am I creating unnecessary heat in my life?
Not just physically. Emotionally. Mentally. Energetically.
Am I rushing when I don’t need to?
Am I saying yes when my body longs for slower?
Am I expecting winter levels of productivity in the middle of summer?
What would feel cooling today?
Not tomorrow.
Not next month.
Today.
Maybe it’s twenty quiet minutes in the shade.
Maybe it’s fresh strawberries for lunch.
Maybe it’s cancelling one commitment.
Maybe it’s an early night with the windows open.
Maybe it’s laughing with a friend long after the sun has begun to set.
Your answer will be different from mine. And that’s exactly as it should be.
The quieter path to happiness
I sometimes wonder whether happiness is less about adding extraordinary moments to our lives and more about noticing what each season quietly asks of us.
Summer doesn’t ask us to become someone different.
It simply invites us to soften our grip.
To move a little slower.
To notice the sweetness that already exists.
To trust that rest is part of living well, not a reward for living hard.
The trees already know this.
The birds know it.
The bees know it.
Perhaps it’s our turn to remember.
A gentle next step
If this week’s prompt has left you longing for a softer, more seasonal way of caring for yourself, I’d love to welcome you into The Lighter Way Collective.
It’s a gentle space for women who are tired of striving, tired of conflicting advice and ready to understand their bodies with a little more compassion, curiosity and joy.
Not more rules.
Not more pressure.
Just a lighter way.
You can find out more here.
Until next week, be gentle with yourself - stay coool (man)
