Finding South: The Grounding of Your Compass
- Siobhan Gray
- Sep 24
- 5 min read
By: Siobhan Gray, MD
Think back to a night you barely slept. The next day, did you crave a salad or did pizza sound a lot easier? Or remember when your body ached so much you skipped that hike with friends? When your foundation is depleted, it’s nearly impossible to live as your best self.
I know this from experience. For years I worked night shifts in the ER. I was young, tired, and constantly stressed. Between patients, I’d grab cold pizza from the nurses’ station, or at sunrise I’d convince myself I “deserved” a beer. Sometimes I’d head with the crew to our favorite greasy diner, ordering what we jokingly called a “dirty spoon breakfast.” Night after night, those choices became years. Slowly, I was left feeling depleted, achy, and overweight. I looked in the mirror and wondered where the athlete I used to be had gone.
What I didn’t realize at the time was that I had lost touch with my South—my roots.
What South Represents
In The North Framework™, South is your foundation. It represents the unseen systems that fuel everything else: your metabolism, your strength, your nutrition, your sleep, your recovery. Just as a tree cannot thrive without strong roots, you cannot thrive without a grounded, resilient South.
When South is neglected, the cracks show up everywhere: low energy, brain fog, irritability, cravings, or fatigue. And over time, those cracks widen making it harder to pursue your purpose (North), to be present and mindful (East), or to connect deeply with others (West).
But when South is strong, the difference is undeniable. You wake up with steady energy. Food choices feel easier. Movement becomes joy rather than obligation. You recover faster, bounce back more quickly, and feel grounded enough to chase your purpose and nurture your relationships.
Why South Matters in Real Life
South isn’t an abstract concept; it’s the physiology that shapes your everyday experience.
When sleep is short, your brain struggles with impulse control. That’s why pizza always sounds better than salad after a sleepless night. When your muscles are weak and achy, you don’t just miss workouts, you miss experiences, like that hike with friends or running around with your kids. And when you’re chronically fatigued, you can’t bring your best self to relationships, creativity, or even simple joy.
South is what allows you to show up everywhere else in life.
The Science of Roots
Science backs what most of us feel in our own lives: when the foundation of health is weak, everything else wobbles. Sleep is one of the clearest examples. Studies show that even a single night of sleep deprivation alters hormones that regulate appetite—ghrelin rises, leptin falls—leaving us hungrier and craving high-calorie foods (Spiegel et al., 2004). Over time, poor sleep doesn’t just lead to weight gain; it affects glucose control, blood pressure, and mood regulation.
Movement and strength are another essential root. Regular exercise is one of the most powerful predictors of longevity. It improves mitochondrial health, lowers chronic inflammation, preserves muscle mass, and supports brain function (Booth et al., 2012; Pedersen & Saltin, 2015). In fact, muscle itself is now recognized as an endocrine organ, secreting myokines that influence metabolism and immunity.
Nutrition ties directly into both energy and mental clarity. Diets rich in whole foods, protein, fiber, and healthy fats stabilize blood sugar, while ultra-processed foods are strongly linked to obesity, cardiovascular disease, and depression (Hall et al., 2019; Lane et al., 2023). What you eat literally fuels or depletes your capacity to think, move, and feel.
And finally, recovery, often the most neglected roo plays a decisive role in resilience. Chronic stress activates the HPA axis, raising cortisol in ways that disrupt sleep, impair memory, and increase abdominal fat (McEwen, 2007). Practices that activate the parasympathetic nervous system like deep breathing, mindfulness, or time in nature help restore balance, lower inflammation, and enhance long-term health (Thayer et al., 2012).
These aren’t fringe ideas. They are the biological realities of how roots determine resilience.
The Ripple Effect
South doesn’t exist in isolation. Strong roots nourish the entire tree.
With South strong, North (purpose) feels possible.
With South strong, East (presence) is accessible—you can actually be mindful.
With South strong, West (connection) deepens because you have the energy to show up fully for the people you love.
Daily Roots: The Work of South
Strengthening South doesn’t happen overnight. It grows in the small, invisible choices of everyday life: choosing real food that nourishes rather than depletes, prioritizing sleep even when it means saying no, building strength and protecting muscle as an act of longevity, and allowing time for recovery so your body can heal and adapt.
These habits aren’t glamorous. They don’t earn applause. But over time, they deepen your roots so that you can weather the inevitable storms and still grow toward the light.
Closing Reflection
I look back now and see that those night shift years taught me something important: when South is weak, the whole tree suffers. But when South is strong, everything else in life becomes possible.
So I’ll leave you with this: Where do your roots feel strongand where do they need deeper tending?
Because the truth is simple: with strong roots, the tree thrives. And with a strong South, so will you.
References
Booth, F. W., Roberts, C. K., & Laye, M. J. (2012). Lack of exercise is a major cause of chronic diseases. Comprehensive Physiology, 2(2), 1143–1211.
Hall, K. D., Ayuketah, A., Brychta, R., et al. (2019). Ultra-processed diets cause excess calorie intake and weight gain: An inpatient randomized controlled trial of ad libitum food intake. Cell Metabolism, 30(1), 67–77.
Lane, M. M., Lotfaliany, M., et al. (2023). Ultra-processed food consumption and mental health: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Nutrients, 15(4), 870.
McEwen, B. S. (2007). Physiology and neurobiology of stress and adaptation: Central role of the brain. Physiological Reviews, 87(3), 873–904.
Pedersen, B. K., & Saltin, B. (2015). Exercise as medicine—evidence for prescribing exercise as therapy in 26 different chronic diseases. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 25(S3), 1–72.
Spiegel, K., Tasali, E., Penev, P., & Van Cauter, E. (2004). Brief communication: Sleep curtailment in healthy young men is associated with decreased leptin levels, elevated ghrelin levels, and increased hunger and appetite. Annals of Internal Medicine, 141(11), 846–850.
Thayer, J. F., Åhs, F., Fredrikson, M., Sollers, J. J., & Wager, T. D. (2012). A meta-analysis of heart rate variability and neuroimaging studies: Implications for heart rate variability as a marker of stress and health. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 36(2), 747–756.
Further Reading
If you want to explore more about how sleep, nutrition, exercise, and recovery shape your health, here are some excellent resources to strengthen your South.
Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker, PhD — a deep dive into the science of sleep and why it’s essential for health and longevity.
Outlive by Peter Attia, MD — a practical look at how to apply longevity science in real life, with a strong focus on exercise and metabolic health.
The Joy of Movement by Kelly McGonigal, PhD — explores how movement improves not just physical health but mood, resilience, and connection.
Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain by John Ratey, MD — explains how exercise impacts learning, mood, focus, and long-term brain health.
Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle by Emily and Amelia Nagoski, PhD — insights on stress, recovery, and why closing the stress cycle is essential for wellbeing.
Resources to further connect:
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