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Autumn has arrived here in the UK.
Just this morning before I began this article, I stood in a field watching the sunrise and the sky was full of the most beautiful colours. Perfect peaches, bright blues and a pink so vibrant it cast a glow to all it touched. As I stood there marvelling at the beauty Mother Earth had given me that morning, I saw my first sighting of the triangular shape of geese leaving us to fly south. The slight breeze rustled the old Ash tree and its leaves fluttered down to me as I stood gazing at the sky.
Autumn is maybe the only season where the idea of letting go is happening all around us. The trees are dropping their leaves, plants are giving up their berries and nuts, animals are gathering food in preparation for the colder months and birds are beginning to leave our shores for warmer climates.
Nature is changing. It is letting go of one season and moving into the next.
Yet humans, who are just as much a part of nature as the trees, animals and birds, don't always find change quite so easy. We hold onto things. Plans, expectations, routines and sometimes even the idea of how we thought our lives were going to be.
Maybe this is where slowing down comes in.
In a modern world that rarely stops, taking time to slow down and notice what is happening around us can give us the space to notice what is happening within us too. And sometimes, when we give ourselves that space, we can begin to see what we might be ready to let go of.
In this article, I want to explore the art of letting go, and how slowing down, spending time in nature and using essential oils can help us to pause, reflect and make space for whatever comes next.
Because just as the trees don't cling to their leaves simply because they are afraid of change, maybe there is something we can learn from them about letting go too.
What can autumn teach us about letting go?
When I think about “letting go”, I think of how dramatic it sounds. Abandoning something. Moving on. Clearing everything out. It can feel overwhelming or even scary because we may feel that we have failed at something if we are moving on, or that we are abandoning an idea we had, whether by our own choice or because it is out of our control.
But autumn offers another version.
A leaf falling isn't a failure. The tree is preparing to preserve its energy and protect itself through the tougher months.
The geese leaving for the winter months aren't giving up. They are responding to the changing season, travelling to places where they can find the food and conditions they need before returning when spring arrives.
The hedgehog preparing to hibernate isn't giving up either. Its natural rhythms tell it that winter is a time to retreat, rest and conserve energy, ready to emerge again when the warmer months return.
Suddenly, this doesn't sound quite so overwhelming or scary. It is simply part of a cycle and a natural rhythm.
And letting go might mean:
- accepting that something has changed
- releasing an expectation
- making space for rest
- allowing a busy period to come to an end
- noticing what we're carrying unnecessarily
And you don't have to force yourself to find something to let go of just because it's autumn.
But if there is something there, maybe autumn can be a little reminder that it's OK to let things go. It doesn't need to fill you with fear or angst. Sometimes, simply turning to nature can help us accept that change is part of life.
Autumn, slowing down and the nervous system
I've written in a previous article about how summer can be an incredibly busy season. Longer days, six-week holidays, holiday clubs, catching up with friends — the list is endless! It can often feel like a whirlwind of constant doing.
Then suddenly autumn arrives. Schools re-open, holidays are done and the days are getting shorter. You may notice the change in pace, or maybe that just feels like wishful thinking!
But part of letting go is allowing summer to go too.
We don't have to keep chasing those long evenings, squeezing every last bit out of the daylight or trying to keep the pace of summer going. Autumn arrives and, if we let it, it can invite us to change our rhythm too.
The evenings are darker, the weather is cooler and we naturally spend more time indoors. In our own way, we too can retreat a little, just as much of nature around us is doing.
Enjoying these moments of peace can be helpful for our nervous system. When we're constantly in “doing mode”, we can miss these little moments of stillness without even realising it.
What would happen if we just sat for five minutes and enjoyed that much-deserved cup of tea or coffee?
How do you feel when the light outside begins to dim, you switch on a lamp, pull a snuggly blanket around you and really savour how it feels as you settle underneath it?
Or you pop some autumnal essential oils into a diffuser, sit down and simply breathe in their comforting aromas.
This is how we can savour the autumn season. By allowing ourselves to notice these little moments of peace rather than rushing straight on to the next thing.
Autumn gives us lots of ordinary opportunities to practise this in our daily lives.
Walking through leaves. Making a cup of tea. Lighting a candle. Cooking. Smelling an essential oil.
None of these things need to become another task on the to-do list. We can simply slow down enough to notice them.
And maybe that's another little lesson autumn can teach us about letting go. Sometimes we don't need to actively do anything. We can simply stop holding onto the season that has passed and allow ourselves to move with the one that has arrived.
Using scent as an anchor
Aromatherapy is a beautiful practice because it gives us an immediate sensory experience. We breathe in an aroma, notice how it smells and, sometimes, a familiar scent can even stop us in our tracks and take us somewhere else entirely. A smell can bring back a memory, remind us of a person or place, or simply make us pause for a moment.
This makes scent a lovely companion to mindfulness. When we pay attention to an aroma, we have something simple and immediate to bring our attention to. Rather than thinking about what happened yesterday or what needs doing tomorrow, we can simply notice what is happening right now.
An aroma might become an anchor for a moment of calm attention.
There are lots of essential oils that lend themselves beautifully to autumn, and these are six of my favourites.
Cedarwood Atlas has a warm, woody and earthy aroma. It has a lovely grounded quality and works beautifully when we want to create a feeling of being connected to the earth and present in our bodies.
Red Mandarin is sweet, bright and cheerful, with a familiar citrus aroma. I particularly love it at this time of year when the daylight disappears earlier and we are spending more time indoors.
Frankincense is rich, resinous and slightly mysterious. Its aroma lends itself beautifully to quiet reflection, meditation and moments of contemplation.
Juniperberry has a fresh, green and fruity aroma with woody, balsamic undertones. There is something about its crisp, green scent that feels particularly at home in autumn, especially as the leaves begin to change and the air gets cooler.
Indian Sandalwood has a warm, sweet and deeply woody aroma. It is a beautiful oil for creating a sense of stillness and is often used during meditation, making it a lovely companion when we want to quieten the mind and simply be present with the moment.
And then there is Ginger, with its spicy, warming aroma. It brings a little heat and energy to an autumn day and is lovely when you want something cosy without feeling sleepy.
You don't need lots of different oils to enjoy aromatherapy this season. Sometimes just one familiar aroma is enough to help you stop, breathe and notice the moment you are in.
A little aromatherapy ritual for letting go
If you'd like to bring some of these ideas into your home, you could try a simple autumn diffuser blend.
Autumn Letting Go
- 4 drops Mandarin
- 2 drops Cedarwood Atlas
- 1 drop Frankincense
Add the oils and water to your diffuser or candle burner, settle yourself somewhere comfortable in your chosen room and diffuse your blend for a maximum of 20 minutes.
You might like to use this time to consider:
- What am I feeling right now in this moment?
- Am I carrying anything that feels heavy?
- Is there anything I can put down, even temporarily?
- What would I like to make space for this season?
You don't need to come up with an answer to any of these questions. Simply notice what comes to mind and then return your attention to the aroma of the oils.
The essential oils aren't there to make the answers appear. They are simply part of creating a sensory cue that tells us it is time to pause and give ourselves a little space.
Sometimes that is enough.
Autumn Grounding
- 3 drops Indian Sandalwood
- 3 drops Juniperberry
- 1 drop of Ginger
For a slightly deeper, warmer autumn aroma, try combining Indian Sandalwood, Juniperberry and Ginger. The woody notes of Sandalwood and Juniperberry sit beautifully alongside the spicy warmth of Ginger, creating a blend that feels very much at home as the evenings draw in.
What do you notice first?
The freshness of the Juniperberry, the warmth of the Ginger or the rich woody aroma of Sandalwood?
You could use this blend while sitting quietly, reading, journalling or simply enjoying five minutes without reaching for your phone.
Autumn is a season of transition
Nature doesn't stop when autumn arrives. It simply changes what it is doing.
Energy is directed towards what is needed now, rather than what was needed in summer.
We can do the same.
Maybe there are things we are carrying that no longer need quite so much of our energy. Maybe something has changed, and we are still trying to hold onto how it used to be. Or maybe we simply need to accept that one season of our lives has come to an end.
Letting go doesn't mean that something didn't matter, and it definitely doesn't mean that we have failed.
Sometimes it simply means recognising that things have changed and allowing ourselves to change with them.
Autumn reminds us that we are part of this natural rhythm too.
Maybe we can embrace that rhythm and simply let go of the things which no longer serve us.
Kirsty Summerbell
Consultant Aromatherapist
