Seasonal allergies, known also as hay fever, are common enough and usually relatively benign. They can include sneezing, runny nose, hives, and other cold-like symptoms recurring around the same time each year. There are over-the-counter medications that can help short-term, and if your allergies are more serious you may want to talk to a doctor about treatments that can help. In the meantime, it could support your system to consider the spiritual meaning of allergies and hay fever and see if we can approach the problem more holistically.

Anxiety is one of the most common experiences we have as human beings. It can be a natural reaction to occasional stressful events, but for some of us it is a constant state. Many think of it as a version of fear, and fear may certainly be present with anxiety, but anxiety is more complicated than that. Anxiety has a few functions that can be helpful to understand. When we understand that anxiety can be a teacher, we may be able to soften it a little bit and find out what it’s trying to teach us.

All of our ancient ancestors ate intuitively with the seasons. Learn how to tap into these methods for greater health and well-being

Intuitive eating is a simple enough practice: It essentially means eating in accordance with the signals of the body. Eat what you crave when you are hungry, just to the point of fullness.

Because of the culture many of us live in, for some, this simple practice has become so challenging that they seek out dietitians who specialize in intuitive eating. This approach to eating would have been the way we consumed food before there were diets or ever-changing social media-fueled beauty standards; we would have eaten for pleasure and survival, and that’s about it.

While the female body has a deep connection with the cycles of the moon, anyone can work with the cycles of the moon for healing. Learn how.

Hormones affect everything from menstruation to digestion, immunity to skin health, and even weight loss or gain. Stress can have a major impact on our hormones, and we live in a culture that is highly stressful and doesn’t offer a lot of time for rest and recovery.

Some stress is normal and healthy, of course. But when stress is constant or we experience ongoing stress related to a past experience, that stress can become toxic. We can address stress with counseling, lifestyle changes, and other support (like a 40-day nervous system protocol). It’s also possible to support hormone health by working with the moon cycle.

This frustrating skin condition may have much to teach us about boundaries, anger, and irritation. Explore the spiritual meaning of eczema.

Eczema is a common chronic condition that can show up anywhere on the skin at any time. It’s generally noncontagious and nonlife threatening, but it can be extremely irritating, distracting, and itchy. It can go into remission for years at a time only to flare up at seemingly random times. See your doctor or health practitioner if you are concerned about your eczema and how to treat it.

But sometimes our bodies are communicating something to us through our symptoms. Learning about this communication could give us a sense of how to care for these conditions and help guide us on our life path, even if the issues themselves don’t resolve. So, let’s consider the spiritual meaning of eczema and see if we can understand a bit more about what the body might be trying to tell us.

When we take time out of our lives and focus on healing, chronic pain and illness may become easier to manage.

Chronic pain and illness are complex and incredibly challenging to live with, especially in a culture that expects us to be constantly productive. Chronic conditions are frustratingly mysterious, and while the medical system might be able to help us to a degree, we can often feel abandoned when we don't recover quickly.

We do know, however, that chronic conditions likely have some relationship to the nervous system. A balanced nervous system tends to support balanced hormones, healthy digestion, and a well-functioning immune system. What if we could reset the nervous system and find healing there?

Medusa may be remembered as a fearsome serpent creature, but upon deeper inspection, her story holds truth about ancient goddesses and the power they still have.

Medusa is an incredibly popular figure from ancient Greek mythology. She’s known as a snake-headed monster, so ugly she can turn you to stone with a single glance. But there’s more to Medusa than that. In fact, her myth may tell the story of what happened to an ancient goddess who was once the primary deity all over the world.

Laryngitis can be deeply challenging, but losing your voice can teach you valuable lessons about what you should be saying no to. Discover the spiritual meaning of laryngitis.

There are many reasons you may have laryngitis. It can be a symptom of a cold or flu, overuse of the vocal cords, or some other inflammation or irritation of the vocal cords. It essentially means you can’t speak. As always, talk to your doctor or health practitioner about any medications or interventions you may need. But in the meantime, let’s consider the spiritual meaning of laryngitis.

You might need to break the “rules” in order to fully heal yourself. Learn how healing is a radical act—one that might rock the boat in your life.

Healing is powerful. We do it to help ourselves and to make our lives feel even just a little bit better day to day. And when we change our patterns to be more loving to ourselves, we can’t help but become more loving to others, the land, and to our community. When we stop the cycle of certain intergenerational patterns related to trauma and pain, we heal not only ourselves but our ancestors and the future generations that come into contact with us. Healing is a powerful process, but we often encounter resistance when we choose to heal. As physician, author, and trauma expert Gabor Maté puts it, “Healing is a highly subversive act.”

Recurring headaches can be a sign that there are imbalances in both the body and mind. Learn more about the spiritual meaning of headaches.

Headaches are rather common and can be caused by a number of factors, and can range from slightly annoying to debilitating, especially if you suffer from migraines. Sometimes headaches can indicate an underlying issue, and if you’re concerned about your headaches, it’s a good idea to see your doctor to find out if there’s something else going on. In the meantime, let’s consider the spiritual meaning of headaches.

While the common retelling of Persephone’s story may seem heartbreaking, a deeper, more powerful truth lies within.

In the classical Greek myth “The Rape of Persephone,” Persephone, the daughter of the agriculture goddess Demeter, is abducted by Hades, god of the underworld. Demeter grieves Persephone so bitterly that the world stops producing food, and winter falls. In order to bring abundance back into the world, Persephone is returned to her mother, but because Persephone ate six pomegranate seeds while she was in the underworld, it is decided that she must stay in the underworld for six months each year, causing the cycling grief of her mother to bring on winter once a year.

Demeter was likely one of the pre-Hellenic goddesses who was worshiped before the northern Zeus worshipers arrived. “The Rape of Persephone,” as well as many other Greek myths we know today, may actually tell the story of this conflict: The masculine invaders work to subdue indigenous feminine spirituality, leading to uneasy alliances and unhappy marriages in myth.

Inspired by Tricia Hersey’s book Rest Is Resistance, Julie Peters shares her thoughts on the radical healing power of rest.

“A grieving person is a healed person. Can you guess why our culture does not want a healed person in it?”

I was stuck in a snowstorm in rush hour traffic when I heard this line from Tricia Hersey’s book Rest Is Resistance. As I listened to her powerful voice explaining in no uncertain terms that slowness is a powerful reclaiming of power in a world that disempowers us, I didn’t mind the traffic. I drifted with the snow, taking my sweet time to get home, letting Hersey’s words wash over me.

This line in particular has been haunting me: “A grieving person is a healed person.”

Instead of viewing the universe as a confusing, scary place, try seeing the universe like a social media algorithm.

Defining one’s spirituality isn’t always easy. If we are raised in a religious context, the rules are laid out and all the answers are provided for us, usually by a book or an authority figure who can tell us why there’s suffering in the world and why bad things happen to good people. Believing in something outside of those dominant narratives can be a bit more challenging—we still want to know why horrible things happen, why praying doesn’t always get us what we want, and why it hurts so much to be a human being so much of the time.

I’ve been thinking about ways of getting together as a group to feel into the moon phases, explore some Tarot, and connect groups in a healing capacity. And I think I’ve got it—let’s start a coven!

A coven is a gathering of witches. The word “witch” can mean a lot of things, but all it means to me is someone who taps into their own intuitive powers and the powers of the natural world. Being a witch doesn’t have to require initiation, a leader, or any religious doctrine—in some ways, it rebels against all that. It’s a practice of inner connection that doesn’t need an authority figure.

What do you think laziness means? Most of us think of it as idleness, especially when something needs to get done. The image of a “lazy person” is of someone sitting on the couch watching TV or scrolling through their phone when the garbage needs to be taken out. Laziness is associated with procrastination, an inability or unwillingness to complete the task required. Most of us also think of this as a bad thing.

What if it’s not? What if laziness—sitting on the couch scrolling on your phone, unable to get up even though the garbage needs to go out—is a natural human need? What if it’s even more than that: a resistance to productivity, a rebellious act of rest?

We’re all familiar now with COVID-19, also known as the coronavirus. Most of us have encountered it intimately, whether through infection, vaccination, or both. But it’s a new virus, and such a strange one—it shows up often as a cold or flu, but sometimes as vomiting and diarrhea. It can have some strange symptoms, like loss of taste and smell, pink eye, light sensitivity, mental fog, rashes, menstrual changes, and “COVID toes,” where your toes turn purple. For some people, the COVID-19 infection is no big deal, while others get hit hard for weeks or even months, and we know that it can threaten our lives.

There are many layers to why we get sick with one thing as opposed to another. There isn’t always a rhyme or reason to it, but understanding the energetic signature of a certain illness or injury can help us align ourselves with what’s best for us spiritually, physically, and psychologically. If you are sick, talk to your doctor or health practitioner about your best course of action. But we can complement that health advice by looking at things from a more spiritual perspective and see if there’s anything we can learn from the illness. What is the spiritual meaning of COVID-19?

Broken bones force us to slow down and seek medical help, but they can also offer us spiritual lessons about what’s happening in our lives.

A broken bone is a powerful experience. When a bone is broken, we are forced to stop doing things the way they were done before. Depending on the type and placement of the break, a broken foot means we may not be able to walk at all. While attending to the advice of your doctors and other practitioners, let’s consider the spiritual meaning of a broken foot.

“A grieving person is a healed person. Can you guess why our culture does not want a healed person in it?” 

I was stuck in a snowstorm on rush hour traffic when I heard this line from Tricia Hersey’s book Rest is Resistance. As I listened to her powerful voice explaining in no uncertain terms that slowness is a powerful reclaiming of power in a world that disempowers us, I didn’t mind the traffic. I drifted with the snow, taking my sweet time to get home, letting Hersey’s words wash over me. 

Endometriosis is a complicated but common condition. When Western medicine offers no explanation, you may want to explore the spiritual meaning of endometriosis.

After exploring what the Western medical model has (or doesn’t have) to offer, what might endometriosis be trying to tell us from a spiritual perspective? What if we could listen to its messages and help manage our symptoms better or improve our general wellness through that knowledge? What is the spiritual meaning of endometriosis?

When the medical system fails to heal chronic illness or chronic pain, we may find solace in a spiritual understanding of our lived experience.

When we’ve exhausted the support we can access from the medical system, it may be time to think about a spiritual understanding of a chronic illness or injury. What might our bodies be trying to tell us that we do not yet understand? What is the spiritual meaning of these chronic issues? Let’s practice some ways to learn the language of illness and injury so we can understand them (and ourselves) better.