We believe that true skin health is deeply connected to the rhythms of nature. Every season brings its own challenges and gifts. Our nourist ambassadors inspire us daily by sharing their wisdom on how to move with those shifts.

So we’re excited to give the stage to Sandra, also known as Coach Sassy. With her holistic approach, she shows how seasonal transitions affect not only your skin, but also your body and mind. In this blog, she invites you to embrace autumn as a moment to ground, nourish, and reconnect with yourself.

 

23 september 2025 - 4 min reading time - Sandra Guns / Coach Sassy

 

Autumn as a shift in body, mind & skin

Crossing the seasonal threshold

So that was summer, in all its beauty. Autumn has made its entrance. You’ve probably felt it already: shorter days, crisper mornings and evenings, a bit more rain and wind, with the sun still breaking through now and then.

We’re in a transition. And it doesn’t just happen outside of you. You are nature. You’re made of the same elements as everything around you. So why would autumn only show itself outside of you?

We are not synthetic. Our biology is wired to move with the seasons. Your mental processes shift, your energy, your digestion, even your skin. Everything is cyclical.

Summer was about abundance and light. More social contact, holidays maybe, the big harvests of fruit and vegetables, the colors of nature. Now autumn pulls us back. The trees let go of their leaves, preparing for the quiet of winter. And we feel that just as strongly. Energy drops, emotions intensify, mentally the air changes.

Ayurveda: the Vata season

In Ayurveda, we speak of three doshas: kapha, pitta, and vata. Each season carries a dosha-energy, and autumn belongs to Vata.

Vata is air and ether. Dry, windy, cool, mobile; exactly what autumn feels like.

• Skin: dryness, cracks on your hands or heels, more sensitivity.
• Body: cold hands and feet, cold nose, restless digestion, lighter sleep.
• Mind: nervousness, easily overwhelmed.

If you already have a lot of Vata in your constitution, this season amplifies it. Anxiety, sleepless nights, or jittery energy can all increase.

The Ayurvedic invitation: find balance. For every yin there is a yang.

• Warm soups and stews instead of raw salads
• Oil massages with sesame or almond oil
• Warm baths, forest walks, slower breathing, meditation
• Warming spices like cinnamon, ginger, cardamom: soothing both digestion and skin

Astrology: from Virgo to Libra and Scorpio

Whether you look at Vedic or Western astrology, autumn opens with Virgo/Libra themes and ends in Scorpio.

• Virgo (Kanya): care, health, routines, refinement. The perfect time to adjust your habits and reset your rhythm.
• Libra (Tula): balance, harmony, beauty, relationships. Seeking equilibrium, visible in your skin and your wellbeing.
• Scorpio: depth, transformation, detox. A season of letting go, emotionally and physically.

Astrology uses different words for the same truth: autumn is a time to adjust, to seek balance, and to allow deeper transformation.

TCM: the Metal element

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, autumn belongs to the Metal element.

• Organs: lungs and large intestine, both strongly linked to the skin.
• Emotion: grief and letting go.

Effects:

• Dry lungs → more coughing, drier skin
• Large intestine out of balance → skin issues and lower immunity
• Unprocessed grief → showing up in the lungs or bowels

Practical translation:

• Foods: pears, radish, nuts, white cabbage, ginger
• Breathing exercises, fresh air
• Self-care: giving space to sadness and melancholy instead of pushing them away

Skin as Autumn’s mirror

The skin is often the first place you feel the shift of autumn. Drier, tighter, more sensitive, sometimes even eczema-prone. Just as the leaves dry out and fall, your skin can feel more fragile.

This is not a mistake or a failure. It’s a seasonal signal: your body asking for more nourishment, warmth, and protection.

Skin rituals for autumn:

• Soften → gentle cleansing, richer creams
• Ground → oil massages, warm baths
• Slow down → less scrubbing, more hydrating
• From within → nourishing foods, because the inside reflects on the outside

nourist & your nature

Just as you are not synthetic, neither is nourist. We are made to live cyclically, to move with the seasons and with nature. The same is true for your skin.

What your skin needs in July can be totally different from October or December:

• Oily in summer
• Redness in autumn
• Dry like parchment in winter

Your skin changes. You change. Sometimes because of imbalance, sometimes simply because of the rhythm of the seasons. And your routine is allowed to move with you.

That’s exactly what nourist does. No one-size-fits-all, but attuned to your actual skin concerns in the moment. nourist follows your rhythm, the way nature does. It doesn’t try to fix or smooth things over, but moves with your skin and supports it through every phase.

I choose brands that step away from the synthetic, that return to what is natural. nourist embodies that for me: clean formulas, tuned to your skin, embedded in the bigger rhythm of nature.

Your invitation this autumn

Ayurveda, astrology, and TCM - three traditions, three languages - all pointing to the same thing.

Autumn asks us to let go, to ground, to nourish, to slow down. Your skin, your emotions, and your mental state mirror that larger rhythm. This season isn’t a problem to fix, but an invitation to move with nature.

And nourist moves with you. Not by imposing something synthetic, but by following the cycle. By giving your skin what it needs, here and now.

 

 

Meet Sandra, also known as Coach Sassy

Sandra, a passionate guide who helps people transform their health and lives from the inside out. After turning her own journey of burnout and imbalance into one of confidence, vitality, and purpose, she now empowers others to do the same. With her holistic approach, she combines science, hormonal balance, energy work, and practical coaching to show you how to truly thrive.

Sandra doesn’t believe in quick fixes, she teaches you the skills to take back control of your body, your mindset, and your life. Through 1-on-1 coaching, retreats, and online programs, she offers tools and guidance that create real, long-term change. You can also catch her daily inspiration on social media and hear her raw, honest voice on her uplifting podcasts.

If you’re ready to rise above old patterns and step into your most authentic, energized self, Coach Sassy is your wing woman every step of the way.

Fun fact: back in 2021 I joined a 1-on-1 program with Sandra myself and learned so much about what makes my body thrive and gives me energy. I’m happy to call her a proud nourist ambassador four years later.