Ayurveda literally means “the science of life and longevity.” It is the oldest system of healing in the world. It must be doing something right to have weathered the test of over 5,000 years! Ayurveda is ancient wisdom with cutting edge perspective. It offers simple, safe and effective techniques to harness your body’s potential to be healthy, prevent disease and to recover from illness and imbalance(s) when they do occur. The mission of Ayurveda is to ensure a long, healthy, happy and fulfilling life for You.
Ayurveda has always been a personalized medicine. There are no one size fits all cures in Ayurveda. Each patient is seen as unique and therefore the approach to optimizing your health and wellness must be specifically tailored to your uniqueness.
Equally important is promoting self awareness on the part of the patient. When it comes down to it, no one can know your body any better than you. By discovering your body type which in Ayurveda we call your – dosha -, its strengths, weaknesses and your body’s particular warning signs you are empowered to take charge of your health. This understanding enables you to prevent illness by adopting a diet and lifestyle ideal for you and grants you the insight to learn your body’s cues for warning you of impending imbalances.
Next Ayurveda puts the one and only you in the context of nature and your surroundings to get a holistic perspective. This context includes everything from the weather to your schedule to your relationships. The knowledge of Ayurveda is based on constant natural laws (like hot balances cold) and the idea that you are a reflection of the world around you and vice versa. If the climate you are in is hot and dry, you are going to be hot and dry. Similarly, if your energy is heavy and depressed, you are probably going to project that into your environment. This context is always somewhat in flux as life is dynamic. Finding balance isn’t a permanent state but something that you are constantly reacting and adapting to in order to maintain. What might be good for you in summer months, may not be ideal come fall.
Seems simple, right? The foundational aspects of Ayurveda gradually become as instinctual as putting on a sweater when you’re cold. The deeper aspects of the science provide more intricate means for addressing life long health management including recovering from disease and regenerating bodily strength through diet, lifestyle, herbs and hands on treatments.
Ayurveda offers a lens through which to see health. Its approach is simple, intuitive, safe and effective. Whether you are dealing with a chronic illness or simply want to remain healthy – Ayurveda can help! Its integrative approach provides useful, everyday tips on how to best keep balanced and thriving.
How do I know?
I first encountered Ayurveda in 2001 through a friend whose grandfather was an Ayurvedic doctor in India. I was living in the cold, wet climate of Vermont at the time and my lifelong chronic sinus issues had reached an all time high. When I’d get sick, my friend Sewa would call me up and ask me a ton of questions and then bring over these hot drinks for me which I called magic potions. I’d drink them, go to sleep and wake up feeling so much better. I asked him what was in them and told me he couldn’t just tell me the ingredients – that it was a way of understanding called Ayurveda. With his guidance, I was able to adapt my diet and lifestyle to completely heal my lifelong chronic sinus issues using Ayurveda. I’ve never had a sinus infection since!
How is Ayurvedic assessment unique?
Ayurveda delineates 3 distinct energies that operate in the body called doshas. When you are making good choices for your body, these energies are in balance and maintain health. When you are not making good choices for your body, these energies go out of balance and initially give you warning signs like indigestion or a stuffy nose to let you know that you’re not giving your body what it needs. If these warning signs are ignored, the doshas have the potential to create disease and ultimately cause irreparable damage to tissues. You all have all 3 of these forces at play in your body, however, you each have your own unique cocktail of them and so balance looks different for each one you.
Whereas Western medicine takes a more quantitative approach to assessing your body, Ayruveda takes a qualitative approach. Each of the 3 doshas have certain qualities associated with them. When assessing health, we look at which qualities seem most elevated and bring in the opposite qualities to balance them.
For example:
Symptoms of excess hot include inflammation & irritation. These symptoms could be caused by anything from too much time in the sun to eating too many spicy foods or drinking too much alcohol. There are many more possible causes, but these are meant to give you a sense of Ayurveda’s logic.
To balance excess heat, we bring in cool via cooling foods like cilantro, cucumber or bitter greens. We might use cooling herbs like neem, fennel or mint. We might also bring in cooling practices like staying out of the hot sun or breathing exercises that cool the body and release excess heat.
There are 8 main qualities that we use to assess clients, foods, herbs, lifestyle practices, etc.
Heavy / light
Dull / sharp
Cold / hot
Oily / dry
Examples of Heavy
Sleep
Animal products like meat
Depression
Examples of Light
Green veggies
Exercise
Insomnia
Examples of Dull / Slow
Feeling tired after you eat / sluggish digestion
Rich foods like dairy
Difficulty in comprehension
Examples of Sharp
Fast digestion
Quick witted – able to think on their toes
Spices like black pepper
Examples of Cold
Cooling foods like avocado, cucumber, coconut
Winter
Congestion / stagnation
Examples of Hot
Summer
Chili peppers, cayenne
Inflammation
Examples of Oily
Soft, smooth skin
Mucus
Water retention / edema
Examples of Dry
Constipation with rabbit pellet stools
Dehydration
Anxiety
The Doshas
Vata – Ether + Air
Vata is dry, cold, light, mobile, subtle and clear. Those who are Vata predominant tend toward anxiety, gas/bloating, constipation, poor sleep and are often underweight and undernourished. They are creative and easily influenced by their surroundings. They typically have weak digestion and should avoid beans, raw food and skipping meals.
Pitta – Fire + Water
Pitta is hot, sharp, light and oily. Those who are Pitta predominant tend toward inflammation, anger, acne, rashes and diarrhea. They are intelligent, practical and typically have strong digestion. They should avoid spicy and fried food as well as skipping meals.
Kapha – Water + Earth
Kapha is heavy, slow, stable, cool, and oily. Those who are Kapha predominant tend toward congestion, sluggishness, oversleeping and weight gain. They are strong, stable, calm and dependable. They typically have slow digestion and should avoid dairy, wheat, sugar and overeating.
We all have all 3 doshas within us, but different ones predominate. Some folks have one predominant dosha, some have 2 and some have all 3 equally predominant. Use the test I shared to assess where you are in the spectrum.
The importance of daily routine and self oil massage
A daily routine helps relax the nervous system and keep the body functioning smoothly. While the mind loves surprises, the body is nourished by routine. A daily routine sets the foundation for success and well being. A good place to start with this is to aim to eat, wake and sleep at the same time daily. Ayurveda places a lot of emphasis on how you begin your day as this sets the tone. Jumping out of bed and racing out the door creates a much different energy than waking early with enough time to stretch, shower and eat a warm meal.
Ideally you wake before sunrise and take time for self care such as self oil massage, yoga / breathing exercises / meditation / prayer or something along these lines that work for you. Early morning before eating is considered the ideal time to exercise.
Lunch should be around midday and provide your biggest meal. Dinner should ideally be eaten before dark. It’s best to get to bed by 10pm to avoid getting a second wind that could keep you up past midnight. The body does a lot of detoxification while you sleep and it’s best to allow it to begin this process around 10pm.
Abhyanga is the practice of self oil massage and should be done regularly to boost immunity and slow the effects of aging. The skin = gate to nervous system. Oil keeps you moist providing a protective, insulating barrier and keeps the body supple – combating the inevitable dryness that increases with age. Massage ensures good circulation of lymph and blood and helps you tune into your body more deeply.
Make sure the area where you do your self massage is warm. You can warm the oil as well. Begin at the head and work down to the feet with long, vigorous strokes on the long bones and circular strokes on the joints. Allow the oil to sink in as long as possible and then shower to open the pores and allow the oil to penetrate more deeply. Vata types generally do best using raw sesame oil, Pitta using coconut and Kapha using olive.
Ayurveda makes it easy to understand how what we eat, do, think, feel and expose ourselves to affects us. Empowered by this holistic perspective, we can uncover the root causes of imbalance and create a clear roadmap toward health and healing.
What does working with me look like?
I want to leave you with what it looks like to work with me as a practitioner.
Before meeting, I have clients fill out an intake to assess their health goals, current habits and common symptoms. I review these before we meet.
Our first session is usually an hour to 90 min in person or via skype and we go over the intake form, getting additional information and fleshing out the picture of your current diet and lifestyle.
I then educate clients on the Ayurvedic perspective on what is happening in your body and introduce some ways we might approach it.
We then come up with a realistic plan which can include dietary, lifestyle and herbal recommendations to implement over the next 1-3 weeks and schedule a follow up to assess how the plan is going, what’s working, what’s not, etc. We update / adapt / expand the plan as necessary.
Typically I meet with clients 3 times initially and then they can check in as needed.
