Is SHIRODHARA Ayurveda's Sleep Aid?

In a world where sleep has become such a precious commodity, could the prescription for better slumber be shirodhara instead of a tablet?

Vaidya Ruchi Gulati, MD(Ayurveda), thinks so. “I believe that sleep is the next big health issue, and that Ayurvedic massage shirodhara is a natural complement to sleep,” Ruchi says. “People who don’t necessarily have a sleep disorder tell me, ‘I’m really noticing a lot of benefits from Shirodhara. I’m even sleeping better.’ I hear it all the time, so it makes sense to me.”

From snoring clients to post-massage testimonials, anecdotal evidence abounds. But does Shirodhara massage therapy have an actual, demonstrable impact on sleep? Although answers remain ambiguous, both Ayurvedic physicians and massage therapists are asking the question. And for some people, at least, that means the massage table could be the next best place to search for missing Zs. “Sleep is something I’ve always had an issue with,” says one of Sukh Ayurveda client. “Not only did I have a lot of anxiety, but I’m also a night owl. I wasn’t sleepy at 9 or 10 o’clock. I was sleepy at 1 o’clock. So I’d have a lot of trouble falling asleep. I’d just lie there, and my anxiety would kick in.”

When she was a girl, she suffered from an undiagnosed anxiety disorder that routinely kept her up at night. By treating her anxiety and improving her sleep hygiene, Vaidya Ruchi Gulati eventually was able to resolve her sleep issues.

Sleep Setbacks

Most adults need 7 to 9 hours, although some people may need as few as 6 hours or as many as 10 hours of sleep each day. Older adults (ages 65 and older) need 7-8 hours of sleep each day. According to a 2018 study of more than 10,000 people, the body's ability to function declines if sleep isn't in the seven- to eight-hour range.

Unfortunately, According to a study conducted by a consumer products giant, nearly 93% Indians are sleep-deprived. The changing lifestyle and intrusion of modern gadgets have only aggravated the situation ..
Read more at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/46547288.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

Inadequate sleep is associated with an increased risk of mental distress, as well as numerous chronic health conditions, including obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke.

Sleep isn’t just nice, then. It’s a necessity. Sleep is the time when our body is repairing itself; if you’re not getting enough deep sleep, then you’re compromising your ability to repair damage that’s been done to your body. Sleep deprivation also can interfere with memory, impair immune function, and interrupt the body’s production and regulation of hormones and neurotransmitters. Of course, everyone experiences sleep disruption at some point. When sleeplessness lasts for longer than a few days, however, what began as a sleep disturbance instead becomes a sleep disorder.

Although prescription sleep medication can be helpful for short-term sleep fragmentation, it can also have significant negative side effects like falling and daytime sedation

Therefore Vaidya Ruchi Gulati at Sukh Ayurveda  prefers integrative therapies whenever possible—including Shirodhara. “I think shirodhara can be a very valuable part of a comprehensive care plan esp Pain or stress is the cause.”

Ayurvedic Strategic Lifestyle Changes for Lowering Cholesterol

Ayurveda emphasis that a disciplined diet and exercise plan can help lower LDL and improve HDL.

Here are a few time tested strategies that u may adopt to bring total cholesterol lower and keep it that way

1. Walking 2 miles in 30 minutes 3 times a week constitutes a moderate level of aerobic exercise. That may be enough to raise your HDL cholesterol by 1 to 3 points (higher is better) and lower your LDL cholesterol (lower is better).

If you can't get in a 30-minute block of exercise all at once, do a few minutes of exercise here and there throughout the day (climb the stairs at work, walk around the block on your lunch break, park and walk). Researchers have demonstrated that exercise even without weight loss can have a positive impact on improving cholesterol levels. It is the amount of activity, and not necessarily any changes in fitness or intensity of exercise that is important for cholesterol improvement and decreasing the risk factors for heart disease and stroke.

2. Do deep breathing exercise for 10 min daily. It helps refresh your system and is an effective distress technique too.

3. Drink 6-8 glasses of water daily

4. Quit Smoking. Smoking lowers HDL cholesterol levels and increases the tendency for blood to clot

5. Avoid alcohol.

Diet

6. Start your day with fresh fruits and high soluble fibre grain such as oats

7. Eat plenty of vegetables, esp green leafy vegetables, fruits and whole pulses. Certain foods really do have health benefits for controlling cholesterol and overall heart health beyond providing basic nutrition.

·        Broccoli

·        Fish or fish oil 

·        Green leafy vegetables

·        Oranges or orange juice

·        Carrots

·        Garlic 

·        Fiber Oats/oat bran/oatmeal

8 Take enough good fat in food, don’t avoid fat. Sesame oil, olive oil, rape seed oil are healthy.

9. Garlic- one or two cloves before your breakfast is beneficial in boosting HDL

Turmeric and Curry leaves can be used as spices in various foods.

Isabgol (psyllium Husk) at bedtime is also beneficial in boosting HDL

Medicine

10.Arjuna, Guggulu can be added as medication on Ayurvedic physician advice

Conventional Aspects

The NCEP National Cholesterol Education Program has recommended a therapeutic lifestyle-change diet, which should be incorporated in the treatment of all patients. The following are recommendations:

·        Patients should reduce their intake of saturated fats to less than 7% of their total calorie (energy) intake. Their cholesterol intake should be reduced to less than 200 mg/d. Trans fatty acids (the HDL-lowering, LDL-raising fats) should be kept to a minimum. Polyunsaturated fats should constitute up to 10% of total energy intake, and monounsaturated fats, up to 20% of total energy intake. Total fat intake, therefore, should be in the range of 25-35% of total energy intake.

·        Carbohydrates (complex carbohydrates from grains, whole grains, fruits, and vegetables) should constitute 50-60% of total energy intake.

·        Patients should consume 20-30 g/d of fiber.

·        The protein content should be approximately 15% of total energy intake.

·        In order to maintain a desirable body weight and to prevent weight gain, the total amount of energy consumed must be balanced in terms of energy intake and expenditure.

Do the bleak winter months drop you into a depression?

Welcome readers!!!!...If you have noticed difficulty in waking up in the morning,nausea,tendency to oversleep or overeat?.Or lack of energy ,difficulty concentrating on or completing the task?And or withdrawal from friends or feeling of hopelessness.?And all this is happening when winters are around for last two years or more?If answer to these questions is ‘yes’ then it’s time to consult your psychologist,may be you are heading towards Seasonal Affective disorder.In it’s beginning stage,it’s not severe,but if ignored,it may get worsen with transforming itself in major depression disorder(MDD).Here are some solutions provided to you as per Ayurveda,a science that told everything about life style ,be it a day to day schedule or activities as per seasonal variations.

7 ways to avoid SAD naturally

1 Do a lot of physical exercise,like brisk walking.

2 Suryanamaskar is strongly recommended as the best physical exercise.

3 Take a lot of time out in direct sunlight at least one hour a day.

4 Avoid day sleeping .

5 Eat healthy and balanced diet.

6 In case of nonavailability of sunlight,Atap Sevani.e.sitting in front of artificial fire with spine facing.

7 Take out time for positive self talk,Replace negative arbitrary thoughts with positive and motivating ones. You may  even share with like minded people.

Happy Ayurveda!

Ayurvedic Massage Therapy for Diabetics

Type 1 and Type 2 diabetics can all benefit from the relaxing effects of professional massage therapy. Everyone knows that living with diabetes involves a certain amount of stress. Because the human body is designed to respond to stress with a fight-or-flight response, stress tends to raise blood sugar levels.

Massage is useful in relieving stress, even for non-diabetics. It lowers the heart rate and blood pressure while relaxing muscles and increasing endorphins, all of which results in a sense of well-being.

Circulation and Neuropathy

Many diabetics have poor circulation, and Elakzhi or Patrapinda swedanam massage therapy are known for promoting increased circulation. Regular massage helps move blood through congested areas of the body, flushing lactic acid from your muscles and enabling more oxygen-rich blood to flow in.

Neuropathy is another possible side effect of diabetes, and massage has proven helpful in triggering an endorphin release that raises your pain threshold. Elakzhi or Patrapinda swedanam massage therapy release serotonin and oxytocin in your body, which can relieve chronic pain.

Blood Sugar Awareness

Dr. Ruchi Gulati, recommends taking precautions to avoid hypoglycemia during a massage. Of course that's a good policy during any activity, from driving to swimming, but it's especially important during massage therapy - because deeply restful relaxation might make symptoms of an insulin reaction easier to overlook.

Make sure to tell your professional SukhAyurveda Massage therapist about the possibility of hypoglycemia, and how you handle it (with glucose tablets, a soft drink, or some other preferred method), so you can relax and enjoy the calming effect of your relaxing massage session.

Happy Ayurveda!

Ayurvedic Approach to Chronic Pain

Chronic pain can often be caused by a variety of imbalances that have become deeply embedded in the physiology over years. True healing of these imbalances requires a comprehensive approach, using several healing modalities.

Through its unique assessment of causal imbalances at the basis of a condition and its wide range of time-tested recommendations, SukhAyurveda provides the most comprehensive natural approach for chronic pain available today.

  

The Root Causes of Chronic Pain

According to Ayurveda, the following are the general types of imbalances at the source of most chronic conditions, including chronic pain:

1. Toxins accumulating in tissues and blocking circulation.
2. Poor nutrition.
3. Poor digestion.
4. Imbalance of the nervous system.
5. Accumulation of physical and mental stress.
6. Lowering of natural resistance and immunity.
7. Disruption of natural biological rhythms.

The common modern medical approach that matches drugs to symptoms does not completely address many of these factors. As a result, modern medicine often cannot fully remove the disorder and the condition becomes chronic. Chronic means that the condition persists over time even with the best modern medical treatment.

SukhAyurveda Program for Chronic Pain

SukhAyurveda therapies are not only effective at removing the imbalances at the basis of chronic disorders but also have no significant side-effects. The goal of this Ayurveda approach is to enliven the body's natural healing and self-repair ability not only to help cure chronic pain, but also to prevent disorder and create the highest state of health and well-being.

1) Removing the Buildup of Toxins and Impurities

Most chronic disorders start when toxins accumulate in tissues and begin to disrupt the delicate biochemistry there. Toxin buildup can also obstruct the channels of circulation and elimination. This blockage prevents proper nutrition from reaching the tissues and blocks the processes that cleanse them of impurities.

SukhAyurveda Consultant provides natural recommendations to remove and help prevent toxin accumulation from:

a.     Hard-to-digest food

b.    Poor digestion

c.     Poor elimination

d.    Improper metabolism

e.     Mental and physical stress

SukhAyurveda Rejuvenation Therapies

The most powerful treatments for removing toxins and opening circulation are the SukhAyurveda Rejuvenation Therapy treatments. This treatment program includes of massage, heat treatment and mild herbal enema. These three treatments are given in combination every day for 5 to 21 days create the ideal internal physical environment for healing.

SukhAyurveda Rejuvenation Therapy treatments address the problem of toxin accumulation by systematically:

• Loosening impurities that have become embedded in tissues and helping liquefy them for easy absorption into the circulation and eventual elimination.
• Softening and opening the channels of circulation and elimination so proper nourishment can reach the tissues and impurities can be more easily eliminated from them.
• Activating the elimination process for the most thorough cleansing of the entire physiology.

Ayurvedic Oil Massage

Ayurvedic oil massage is used in treatments to aid the cleansing process. SukhAyurveda Consultant chooses specific Ayurvedic oil that is individually prepared for your condition.

Ayurvedic oil massage provides a deeply soothing and balancing effect for the entire physiology. The motion of massage creates heat and friction which enhance circulation and help cleanse affected tissues of chemical impurities that could be causing symptoms of chronic pain. The oil and herbs cleanse and nourish the tissues to aid in their repair and development.

The various herbs that have been boiled into base oil, and the oil itself, are specifically chosen for their effectiveness in removing the imbalances at the basis of your condition. The oil helps the balancing process by allowing the herbs to more deeply penetrate the affected tissues.

This program involves two types of Ayurvedic massage:

• Abhyanga massage is a gentle yet firm body massage from head to toe using warm blended oils chosen according to your dosha. The oils gently applied over the body as two therapists perform synchronized massage movements to give you a deeply relaxing and rejuvenating experience.

• Hot Herbal Poultice Massage This centuries-old treatment consists of a therapeutic massage using warm poultices filled with healing, fragrant herbs and spices from India. Warm oils are applied over your body. Then, utilizing the poultice, your therapist massages your body in slow rhythmic movements. Indian massage techniques are used to trace the energy pathways, pressure points, and lymphatic drainage. Every touch induces a new level of relaxation and healing. The fragrant therapeutic nature of the oils, poultice, and massage making this a heavenly, sumptuous experience that will leave you feeling rejuvenated, refreshed and wonderfully relaxed.
  
  

2) Proper Nutrition

SukhAyurveda Consultant provides detailed understanding of which foods to favor and avoid for your condition. Avoid foods that are hard-to-digest, clogging to the physiology and aggravating to the functioning modes that are already imbalanced in you. Favor foods that are easy-to-digest, nourishing, cleanse the physiology, strengthen digestion and balance your body's inner intelligence.

One of the great strengths of the Ayurveda dietary approach is that it contains knowledge of how to have a light, easy-to-digest diet that still is both satisfying and nourishing. Many individuals have easily followed this diet and have improved their digestion and energy while also reducing their symptoms.

Ayurveda herbs

Herbs are considered nutritional supplements in Ayurveda. Their purpose is to restore balance to the specific functioning modes whose malfunctioning is causing your condition. SukhAyurveda Consultant selects the appropriate herbal formulas for aiding the healing process; strengthening digestion and helping the body purify itself of toxins and free radicals.

Free radicals are a specific class of chemicals that are highly irritating to the physiology. Scientific research has found that free radicals contribute to a wide variety of disorders. When appropriate, SukhAyurveda Consultants recommend Ayurveda herbs that research has shown contain powerful anti-oxidants and free radical scavengers.

Traditional Ayurveda theory says that herbs are most effective after a person completes an internal cleansing program. The cleansing and rejuvenation treatments are the main focus at SukhAyurveda. Once cleansing program is finished, maximum benefits are achieved from herbal program.

3) Creating Strong Digestion

Our ability to properly digest food is as important as what specific food we eat. Incompletely digested foods create toxins and impurities that are eventually absorbed, travel throughout the physiology, localize in tissues and disrupt their functioning. This process plays a major role in a wide variety of chronic conditions, including chronic pain.

SukhAyurveda Consultant provides recommendations for strengthening digestion including information in the following areas:

• Proper use of spices and cooking oils.
• Herbal preparations for improving digestion.
• Important differences between breakfast, lunch and dinner foods.
• A simple system to determine a balanced diet.
• Digestion-enhancing foods to favor.
• Digestion-depressing foods to reduce.
• Eating behavior for maximum digestion.
• Proper food combinations to avoid indigestion.
• Non-dietary regiments to improve digestive strength including exercise, specific Yoga asanas and breathing techniques.

4) Balancing Nervous System Activity

The nervous system controls most bodily functions, and almost every chronic condition is affected in some way when the nervous system activity becomes imbalanced. According to Ayurveda, the physiological principle at the basis of nervous system stability and activation is called Vata. Because nervous system imbalance contributes to chronic pain, from the Ayurveda perspective Vata imbalance is an underlying cause of the condition and needs to be reversed.

SukhAyurveda contains a wide variety of time-tested Ayurveda recommendations to help restore balance to Vata and remove the symptoms caused by its aggravation. These include specific diets, herbs, cleansing programs, Yoga asanas and Yoga breathing exercises.

5) Stress Management

Excessive mental, emotional and physical stress can worsen the symptoms of many chronic disorders, including chronic pain. This is due to hormonal changes and other biochemical responses to stress that can imbalance the nervous system and depress the healing ability of the body.

Enhancing the body's ability to recover from stress is an integral part of our approach to health and well-being. The following programs help reverse the body's response to stress:

• Ayurveda massage and heat treatments
• Yoga asana postures
• Meditation

6) Lifestyle and Daily Routine

One of the most important factors for maintaining healthy functioning is to have a lifestyle that does not disturb natural bodily rhythms. When we eat, sleep and exercise in constantly fluctuating and disturbing patterns, the body loses its natural balancing cycles and cannot cleanse or heal itself as effectively. Therefore, regularity in our daily routine can be extremely effective in reducing physiological imbalance at the basis of chronic pain.

SukhAyurveda Consultants reviews daily routine and creates a daily schedule that will increase balance in physiology and aid in healing of the body.

7) Exercise and Flexibility Education

SukhAyurveda considers proper stretching and flexibility exercises to have a very positive effect on circulation, nervous system function, the body's healing response and the treatment of many chronic conditions.

We offer Yoga classes every day and teach simple but profound set of postures that you can practice daily to improve circulation and create a healthy flexibility throughout the body. We also instruct you in individualized Yoga breathing practices that create a state of restful alertness in mind and body.

8) Strengthening the Body's Natural Healing and Self-Repair Mechanisms

Ultimately every treatment approach must depend on the body's natural healing ability for a real cure of the condition. SukhAyurveda's approach is not to attack the disorder with something from the outside, like drugs or surgery, but to attempt to enliven the innate healing response of the body.

The healing response is one of the most complex and coordinated activities within the human physiology and often cannot be strengthened significantly without a comprehensive natural approach.

Taken together, all the SukhAyurveda programs described above aim to create the ideal mental, physical and behavioral environment for healing.

Happy Ayurveda!

Free Ayurveda Consultation Day

Step-by-Step & How-To Guidelines

for Great Health

Free Ayurvedic Consultation Day

Vaidya Ruchi Gulati, B.A.M.S., M.D. (Ayurveda)

On Sunday 26^th of June