By ONE SEED founder and functional nutritionist, Liz Cook.
I come alive in spring.
I am quite affected by prolonged periods of cold and dark - I guess I probably fall into the Seasonal Affective Disorder camp toward the end of winter.
So when that spring sunshine finally shows up, and the air is starting to fill up with the aroma of new spring blooms, my heart and my mind make a shift.
While self care is important in all seasons, what I love about spring self-care is the sense of renewal it instills. So I lean into that with a few spring-specific practices to help re-energise my body, soul and mind.
Here are a few of my favourites:
1. Full body exfoliation
In anticipation of bringing out the summer dresses and shorts, I love to scrub away that dull winter skin using my own homemade concoction of plain old fine table salt, olive oil and peppermint essential oil. I make it into something of a paste in a small bowl, and then use it in the shower once my skin is warmed up and saturated. Leaves my skin velvety soft and smooth, and freshly invigorated by the peppermint.
While you don't really need a body oil or lotion to follow, if I want a little extra, I like to use our Rose Petal Elixir Body Oil all-over. It adds and extra layer of deep-down nourishment, and I love the smell of the rose petals in combination with the peppermint oil from the scrub. So springy!
2. Dusk walks on the beach
Admittedly I'm fortunate enough to live a stone's throw from the beach, but even if you're a good half hour from the ocean, it's worth taking the drive down there in time for dusk and sunset. There is something spiritual and restorative about beach sunsets at the best of times, but in spring they seem to hold the promise of a new season, and it fills me up even more.
I'm not a big one for mediation (can't sit still for too long!), so beach sunsets are my meditational practice. Best 20 minutes of the day.
I always do this in bare feet as I find having my toes in the sand really helps me to feel grounded and connected.
3. Reviewing my supplements
Spring is a great time for all forms of spring cleaning (just cleaned out 2 bags of clothes from my wardrobe!), but something we often forget to do is look through our supplement cupboard/box and review what we are taking, what we should be taking, and what is no longer relevant.
For me, it's a chance to reconsider the current state of my health, and think if there is anything I could use a little extra help with, or if I even need to take a break from supplements for a while and maybe hack my diet a little more.
This is best done with your nutritionist or naturopath. A great chance to get your health back on board.
4. A new spring fragrance
I love ushering in a new season with a new scent, don't you? While as a perfumer I don't often wear perfume myself, I love the feeling of new beginnings that is found in a bottle of Freedom. I also love to go back into the lab and put together a custom scent (which you can do, too, in our Scent Bar).
This spring, I'm feeling like a combo of pink grapefruit, raspberry, rose petals and clean musk.
