I’m in the recovery phase of shingles. [1] For those of you who’ve had it, you know it’s not fun and quite painful. For those who haven’t, I hope you never get it.

You may be wondering what shingles has to do with overusing your masculine side. Shingles presents with a red rash that follows your nerve endings. It typically starts on your trunk and goes down one side of your body. For me, it started at my lower back and went down the right side of my body, the masculine side.

What’s the difference between our masculine and feminine sides and masculine and feminine energy?  The table below illustrates the differences.

Feminine Energy (Yin) BEING & GIVING	Masculine Energy (Yang) DOING & RECEIVING
Creative	Linear & Logical
Intuitive	Analytical
Receptive	Assertive
Collaborative	Competitive
Emotional	Rational
Passionate	Determined
Empathetic	Objective
Allows for “flow”	Goal-directed
Associated with left side of our body	Associated with right side of our body

As leaders and change-makers, (and you may be a leader in your family, community, workplace, business), it’s important that we use both sides of our body and both types of energy. When we don’t, our body, mind, relationships, and” success” at home and work are negatively impacted. For example, if we are constantly in our masculine energy, over time it leads to illness, lack of fulfillment, restlessness and unhappiness. Conversely, if we are dominated by feminine energy, we can become needy, resentful, ill and insecure.

It is important to note that a balance between yin and yang does not necessarily mean 50% yin and 50% yang. It means learning to create your own unique mix so that your happiness is amplified and your success (how you define it) is enhanced.

How does this apply to my recent bout of shingles? I realize I have been “breaking” one of my “rules” related to working. I have a “rule” that I typically turn off my computer before having dinner. That way I have a few hours before retiring to share time with my partner, relax and ideally not think about work. I realize lately I’ve been on the computer after dinner sometimes till 9:30 pm or later. I also typically leave spaces in my agenda to take daily walks in nature.  I have been “falling down” a bit on that one as well.

So how can you balance your masculine and feminine sides?

• Spend time in nature five or more days a week. Often a 20-to-30-minute walk enables you to return to work re-energized with increased focus and creativity. If this is new to you, start slowly and do three days a week for 20 minutes and gradually increase the time.

• Unplug from technology for at least one entire day each week (Saturdays work best for me). I’ve found this strategy truly re-energizes me and others I’ve shared it with.

• Get at least 7 hours sleep a night and go to sleep at the same time each night (if possible). Sleep is necessary to rejuvenate and repair our bodies and having a regular schedule supports deep and healing sleep.

• Instead of leaping out of bed each day and “hitting the ground running” make a conscious effort before you get up to quiet your mind and scan your body from the top of your head to the tips of your toes. Notice any tension or discomfort; breathe into these areas and consciously release and let go of the tension.

• Meditate regularly (ideally daily) for 10 to 20 minutes. There are a number of digital products available to help you do this. I have found Deepak and Oprah’s 21-day meditation experiences helpful as they focus on a key theme, and each day break down the theme. In addition, beautiful nature sounds, and music play in the background to assist you in relaxing and staying focused.

• Practice yoga at least three times a week. A style of yoga I’ve found particularly helpful in balancing the right and left sides of my body is yin yoga. It is a meditative form of yoga done in a warm room and focuses on holding poses for up to five minutes. This “untangles” our connective tissue which grows “fuzz” during the night. If we don’t stretch and untangle our connective tissue, it results in reduced movement and flexibility and ultimately in contractures. Check out Dr. Fuzz on YouTube.

• Eat a healthy diet rich in fresh, colorful, unprocessed foods at each meal.

I welcome your suggestions on what you’ve found helpful to “balance” your masculine/yang and feminine/yin sides and energies.

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[1]   For anyone who has had chickenpox, you have the possibility of getting shingles sometime in your life. It’s caused by the herpes zoster virus which stays in your body and presents itself as shingles when your immune system is compromised.