Propaganda We don’t fall for here at Meraki: 10 wellness trends that eastern medicine isn’t clapping for

Let’s be real.

The wellness world is full of trends.

Every scroll on Instagram serves up another "must-do" routine, supplement, or lifestyle hack promising to change your life by tomorrow morning.

And while we’re all for evolving conversations around health, beauty, and self-care at Meraki, we walk a different path.

One that’s ancient, grounded, cyclical, and intuitive. Rooted in Eastern medicine where wisdom is measured in centuries, not viral videos.

So, here’s a little love letter (slash spicy truth bomb) from us to you.

These are the 10 wellness trends we don’t fall for and why we lovingly say no thanks.

1. “No Days Off” Culture

Hustle is not a badge of honour. Burnout is not a personality trait.

In Chinese medicine, rest is medicine. Your body (and nervous system) needs moments of stillness. Yin is not weakness, it’s wisdom. At Meraki, we honour the cycle of doing and being.

We don’t glorify depletion.

2. Cold Plunges Every Morning (No Matter Your Cycle or Constitution)

Look, we love a good cold dip for the right body.

But if you're a cold, depleted, anxious, menstruating woman with low yang energy and adrenal fatigue? This is not your medicine.

Eastern medicine reminds us: not all bodies need the same thing. Know thyself before you shock thyself.

3. Intermittent Fasting for Every Body

Skipping breakfast and surviving on caffeine until noon might be trendy…But from a TCM lens, your digestive fire (spleen yang) needs warm, regular meals.

Especially if you're trying to balance hormones, regulate cycles, or support fertility. Fasting can create more depletion in yin bodies not less. Check with your doc or practitioner first!

4. One Supplement to Fix Everything

We love a good supplement, but Eastern medicine is not about slapping a band-aid on a symptom. It’s about looking at the root, the pattern, the why.

Adaptogens, greens powders, and magnesium alone won’t fix chronic stress or liver qi stagnation. Sometimes you need acupuncture, herbs, and a good cry or simply much needed sleep.

5. “Fix Your Hormones in 5 Days” Programs

Hormones don’t need to be fixed. They need to be heard.

If your cycle is irregular, your skin is flaring, or your moods are swinging - that’s your body communicating.

Eastern medicine doesn't try to shut your body up. We listen, decode, and work with your whole system over time.

6. Gua Sha for Sculpting Only

Gua Sha isn’t just a “natural Botox alternative.”It’s a deeply therapeutic practice from Traditional Chinese Medicine that supports lymph flow, fascia release, and organ health especially when done with intention.

At Meraki, we don’t just chase cheekbones. We treat the whole terrain.

7. 10-Step Skincare Routines with a Side of Overwhelm

Overloading your skin barrier and nervous system with too many steps = confusion for your body.

Eastern medicine teaches simplicity, consistency, and flow. At Meraki, your skin is seen as a reflection of your internal health; digestion, stress, liver, hormones and not just a canvas for actives.

8. “Just Cut Out Gluten, Dairy, and Joy”

Food is medicine, but restriction without reason leads to more harm than healing.

Unless there’s a clear pattern (like dampness, phlegm, or heat - AKA intolerances occuring in the body), we’re not about cutting everything out. At Meraki, we believe in warming, nourishing, seasonal food and not fear.

9. Manifestation Without Nervous System Regulation

You can vision board all day, but if your liver qi is stagnant, your digestion is shot, and you’re wired but tired… it’s going to be hard to call anything in.

We believe in mindset work paired with grounded, embodied healing. Regulate your system. Heal the root. And then watch the magic unfold.

10. Healing That Ignores Your Cycle

Your energy shifts weekly. Your needs change with your bleed.

Eastern medicine worships the cycle. We don’t try to override it with the same intense workouts, meal plans, and morning routines every day.

At Meraki, we honour your phases: follicular fire, luteal inwardness, all of it.

So What Do We Fall For?

✨ Slow, seasonal living

✨ Nourishing foods that support your spleen and kidneys

✨ Restorative rituals that tune you into your own rhythm

✨ Heart-led healing that goes beyond trends

✨ Long-term vitality over quick fixes

✨ Women living cyclically, not chronically exhausted

✨ Real conversations, real healing, real results

We’re not here to shame or shut down trends. Some are helpful, even beautiful for the right body, at the right time, in the right season.

But here at Meraki, we’re not chasing the next big thing.

We’re coming back to ancient wisdom. To healing that lasts.

So if you’ve been exhausted by the ever-changing shoulds… welcome home. You were never meant to heal in a rush. You were meant to return to yourself.

With love + herbs,

Casey & the Meraki Team xx