September Reset: Habits, Patterns, and Fresh Starts
For September, I chose habits as the theme. It just makes sense. It’s “Back to School” season, astrologically it’s Virgo season, and in Jewish tradition, it’s Rosh Hashanah. No matter how you cut it, this time of year calls us into reset mode. Each of these events encourages us to embrace a fresh start and take a closer look at how we’re walking through our lives.
What are the things we do every day? And where are they really taking us?
Life is Built in the Small Things
Our lives aren’t defined by a handful of major achievements or failures. Instead, who we are is formed in the tiny ways we show up—day after day. Our personalities, our resilience, our joy, and even our stress are shaped by what we do on repeat.
Karma is often misunderstood here. It’s not about morality—it’s about habits. The word “karma” literally translates to “action,” and it describes how one action leads to the next. Once actions get strung together, they form a samskara—a pattern.
Maybe it’s dating partners who feel a little too familiar from your past. Maybe it’s reaching for sugar when stress hits. Or maybe it’s meditating because you learned it in college and still return to it whenever life gets heavy. You are a collection of patterns. We all are.
Understanding Our Patterns
If we want to change a habit, we first need to understand the pattern behind it. How long have you been doing things a certain way? How deeply is it ingrained? Some habits shift easily. Others are so embedded they feel almost impossible to untangle—like an addiction.
As we dive into this month’s theme, my invitation is simple: approach with gentleness. If breaking a habit feels nearly impossible, it’s not a sign of weakness—it’s a reflection of how deep the roots of that pattern go.
The good news? Change is always possible. It happens when our desire for a new outcome outweighs our attachment to the familiar.
Habits, Mental Health, and Neurodivergence
If you’re neurodivergent—or if you live with anxiety, depression, or burnout—you already know that building habits isn’t as simple as buying the right tracker or downloading the perfect app. For many people, it’s a chemical challenge. Motivation relies on dopamine, and if your brain has a deficit, it can feel like climbing a mountain with a backpack full of rocks.
Here are a few tools I love to “take some rocks out of the backpack”:
Gamification 🎮 → Reward yourself, check things off, make tasks fun.
Back-up plans (B & C) 📝 → Not every day is full battery. Build flexibility into your routines.
Body doubling 👯 → Sometimes just having someone present while you work is enough to get moving.
Even if you’re not neurodivergent, these strategies can support anyone navigating mental or physical health challenges.
Rethinking Productivity
What if the old model of productivity—always doing more—wasn’t actually healthy? At YoJo, we believe less is more. In 2025, so many of us are neurologically, emotionally, and physically exhausted.
The biggest threat to success isn’t laziness—it’s pushing too hard, living in stress mode, and flooding our bodies with cortisol. The truth? What doesn’t kill you does drain your life force. It inflames your body, agitates your mind, and wears down your nervous system.
Sometimes losing weight isn’t about working out harder, but doing more restorative yoga.
Sometimes productivity isn’t more hours, but fewer hours when you’re fully rested.
Sometimes better relationships come not from more time together, but from showing up present and undistracted.
The world doesn’t need more burnout. It needs more calm, present humans with regulated nervous systems.
Seasonal Habits: Shifting with Nature
And here’s the thing: habits are seasonal. What worked in the summer might not serve you now. In Ayurveda, summer is Pitta season (fire + water), full of energy, heat, and light. We thrive with spontaneity, movement, and play.
But fall is Vata season (air + ether). It calls us to ground, rest, and find stability. Our bodies crave more sleep, slower routines, and foods that comfort and root us.
So if your summer habits feel off right now—ditch them. Trust yourself. Adjust. Habits are containers, not cages. Let them change with you and with the season.
Closing Thoughts
As we move through September’s theme of habits, remember: a habit is only as good as its results. If a “healthy” practice leaves you depleted, it’s not serving you. Let go of habits that no longer feel aligned and lean into the ones that genuinely nourish your life.
This season, give yourself permission to reset. To rest. To listen. And above all, to trust yourself.
Warmly,
Jessa and the team at YoJo 🌿