Energy Science 8 Natural Remedies for Constipation
In general Vata due to the elements of Space and Air presents when imbalanced as gas Gas or air when present has the capability of drying This dry quality tends to be most prominent in the colon and so colonic contents and the lubricating element of the colon get dried out The contents don't slide along leading to further drying The result is a slow down of the normal transit time through the colon leading to constipation
Constipation and Natural Remedies
The energy science of Ayurveda offers a guideline that a healthy functioning state of the colon is a bowel movement first thing in the morning and then a stool 2h after eating From this definition most of us are constipated to some degree or another
Constipation is a Vata issue and it may be that due to the PV nutritional format(nf)Pitta has risen and is blocking Vata leading to an increase in the Vata energy The nf is never ever the problem....it's the shifts, releases, and the imbalances that lead to changes in patterns I would do one or all of the following:
1 Begin using soaked overnight prunes or raisins(can use them as snacks not with meals) or apples bananas peaches pineapple juice based on the nf 
2 Eat more fiber....oatmeal wheat bran oat bran
3 Use triphala(T3) on a every night basis...you can make a decoction(5min boil of the herb in cup of water) at night or straight up powder(churna) and wash it down with warm water....link http://goo.gl/RMD8ny....I think the churna is superior to tablets(vati)
4 If you get loose with the T3 switch to bhumyamalaki at the same link 3 There is a T3 tincture if your agni is poor at the same link
5 2t of ghee with warm milk at bedtime is a gentle way to help with constipation
6 Castor oil can be used if the constipation is obstinate but not for long period of time as it can cause dependency One way to prevent this dependency is using castor with warm milk at night
7 Boil 1T of flaxseed in 1c of water for 3minutes then drink including the seeds
8 If there is absolute constipation for 3 days, don't use purgatives The better approach is to use basti(medicated herbal enema) to initiate steps of regulating the system You can use T3 tea as described above just more volume with more T3
Read More
The Buzz of Vata
Vata, the energy pattern of movement in the energy mindbody physiology, has the qualities or vibrational frequencies of cold, light, mobile, light, dry, rough,subtle, clear These qualities are important because they help identify the energy of Vata when it is prominent in our physiology.
For example, we have all had the experience of the racing mindbody. The whole body seems to be heightened and energized, that is buzzing or what I am referring to as the Vata Buzz.
When needing to get things done, this type of energy is great to have.
But a couple of observations. Vata Buzz is a sympathetic outflow, that is, it is part of the fight or flight response and when activated for prolonged periods of time can promote fatigue and wasting.
Another characteristic for people who are Vata predominant(more Vata than Pitta and Kapha energy patterns) is that their mindbodies cannot sustain long periods of the Buzz even though they would love to because they love mobility. Those of us like this cannot endure like Kapha and Pitta.
As we might expect certain foods bring on the Buzz. Coffee is the common drink that most associate with the Buzz but any food or drink that produces the mobile, light, subtle, and clear qualities will bring on the symptoms of the Buzz.
How to bring down the Buzz? Create more parasympathetic or peaceful things in life to calm the Buzz.
Eat grounding foods such as root vegetables
Avoid the pungent, bitter, and astringent tastes or just go to foodsheal.com and see the PV format
Take a hot tub bath before bed
Get more rest
Do a centering exercise for 5 minutes in the morning before beginning the day
Consider meditation
Recognize that the Buzz is addictive
Until next week To health as a Skill Love DrBill
Read More
Medicinal Effects of Honey
Each of the energy patterns of VPK have specific qualities.... Vata has cold light mobile dry rough subtle clear; Pitta hot light spreading sharp/penetrating liquid oily; and for Kapha heavy slow/dull cool slimy/smooth liquid dense soft hard static cloudy/sticky In the energy science these qualities are universal, that is, they make up all of our observable world, including ourselves
So when the environment is hot our mindbody becomes hot as well and you seek cold for comfort Similarly when you eat food that is hot such as salsa then your mindbody becomes hot The windows to your mindbody's energy field is through its senses of the above qualities Honey is a unique food from an energy science point of view and is far from a simple sweet treat
The Qualities of Honey and Summertime
The energy science of Ayurveda says that everything can be medicine when used appropriately so we need to know about the qualities of honey to use it as food Honey has qualities that can aggravate each of the energy patterns but is most most appropriate for the slow/dull cool slimy/smooth and static Kapha because of its heating qualities
The hot characteristic of Pitta will be aggravated by honey so PK people should not use honey all the time It also follows that during the hot summer months honey should not be used due to the heat
Guidelines for Honey as Medicine
Since honey has a heating quality it can help with clearing Kapha imbalance Mucous is the signature symptom of either Kapha imbalance or release and the mucous of the common cold is an experience that we can all relate to But when Kapha’s qualities show up in disease you can experience the heavy slow/dull and static qualities
Honey guidelines
The best time to use honey is during the cold winter months
Honey and ghee should be used in equal volumes NOT equal weights(toxic if you do)
NEVER cook honey(toxic if you do)
Honey will NOT be heating if used in basti since you’re not digesting it
Use honey in moderation (1 to at most 2x per week during summer)
Don’t use honey with fruit
Honey can be used with herbs to carry it to the lungs or kidneys
Honey is best used in cool mucous Kapha conditions
Honey is best used with warm to hot water
Read More
Weight Reduction Without Cost But With Guidance
Understanding the energy science model helps us avoid the numerous pitfalls that are present in trying to successfully manage a weight reduction program In this video I cover those with you
Read More
Stress Reduction: 7 Valuable Energy Science Tools
Meditation is a tool to help quiet the mind and therefore the physiology since the mind and body are intimately spliced...we cannot separate them What is mind is body and what is body is mind There are published scientific articles regarding not only the scientific understanding of meditation and its physiologic consequences but also attesting to its long term benefits
In Ayurveda the energy patterns of Vata(energy of physiologic movement) and Pitta(energy of transformation or metabolism) are involved in stress Both of these energy patterns are involved in stress and engages the control dramas of Vata which is flight(run away) or Pitta(fight) or a mixture of the two energy patterns
But there are many things that can be done to reduce the body's response to stress from an energy science point of view These methods or techniques are ways to quiet the mindbody and hence improve its ability to handle stress
Stress and Retraining the Nervous System
The accumulation of stress events that are not dealt with adequately leads to a heightened level of stress over and above baseline This increased sympathetic nervous system activity puts us in a altered physiologic state where we are then more responsive to simple stress events that would not ordinarily trigger us(crying child puts us over the top) This is called "chronic stress syndrome" but is nothing more than a primed sympathetic system that is operating over and above what is appropriate Done for long periods of time it can lead to adrenal fatigue
Our reaction to an event in our environment as a perceived threat can engage the flight or fight response This mental response to "out there" prompts a part of our nervous system named the sympathetic nervous system The opposing part is the parasympathetic nervous system It turns out that the former is engaged in times of stress(fight or flight) and the latter is engaged during periods of relaxation
Everyone experiences stress in their lives but it's how we deal with it that's important So retraining our nervous system out of hypervigilance or "fight or flight response" and to teach it to be calmer in the face of that "perceived threat" whatever it might be is the key to dealing with the stress
7 Energy Science Things That You Can Do To Reduce Stress
The energy science of Ayurveda and the yoga tradition state that it's not just one thing that we do to help deal with stress but a multiplicity of things that we can do to invoke a more calm(parasympathetic) response to events that occur to us in our environment
Nutrition Amazingly when we eat foods that produce imbalance it brings about a minor stressor but a stressor nonetheless Over time as discussed earlier this loads the sympathetic nervous system, raising its level of activity
Herbal support There a number of Ayurvedic herbs that can lend support to the nervous system that are called rasayanas These are a special group of herbs that can provide strengthening support to an overloaded system
Pranayama These are breathing practices that can have a calming effect to the autonomic nervous system by increasing the activity of the parasympathetic nervous system which happens to be in very high concentration anatomically in the diaphragm
Nasya At the upper part of the nasal cavity is a plate that has direct access to the brainstem Named the cribiform plate this provides herbal access to the nervous system so that they can provide strengthening support to an overly fatigued nervous system
Asana practice Done properly by focusing on bodily sensations, asana practice can be meditative and hence reduce the mind's tendency to respond in a sympathetic way
Meditation is an energy science tool to quiet the mind In so doing it produces a parasympathetic response, that is, a calming effect Done over time(at least 3mo of practice) it will retrain the nervous system so that it is not so reactive to events in our environment
Watching thoughts as clouds This practice helps us disengage our internal world At times our thoughts become so real for us that we think they are us! But we are not our thoughts we are the observer of our thoughts Thoughts are like hotel guests....they come and go but we as the observer....we never change When we watch the thoughts come and go as clouds we disengage from the mind
By and by introducing each of these tools can be life changing and help you conquer stress Just begin with 5 minutes and you'll see benefits and want to spend more time
Read More
Detoxification and Pranayama
Last week I discussed why pranayama or breathing exercises can be helpful as part of the energy science solution in helping with all diseases As I have explained in the past, in contrast to the matter science approach to disease, the energy science approach uses a multimodality approach in treating all the qualitative imbalances such as mobile(V), rough(V), hot(P), dull(K) and often times heavy(K)
Pranayama as I explained last week burns ama which is a result of poor agni These breathing techniques each build on one another to enhance the agni of every tissue level in the body When ama is released from the tissues then the qualities can move back to the GI tract for elimination through various methods
The Pranayama Sequence
The sequence is important as it progressively mobilizes Kapha and ama by increasing tissue agni or heat in the tissues from the grossest(bone muscle) to most subtle tissue layers(nervous) Due to the removal of ama this sequence becomes a form of detoxification For those of you familiar with pranayama practices these terms will be familiar but the sequence and how the pranayamas are done is what makes this sequence energetically medicinal For those unfamiliar with these there are places on the internet you can view them or if interested we could set up a demonstration to get you started Start low and gradually build to maximum number
Bastrika forceful inhalation forceful exhalation 10-100(5 min)
Kapalabhati passive inhalation forceful exhalation 100-1000(10 min)
Anulom villom forceful inhalation forceful exhalation using alternate nostrils 10-60(5 min)
Agni sar retention with abdominal pumping 5-10 reps
Bhramari known as bumblebee breath this is done with a specific mudra to enhance attention and the process 5-17 reps
Utjayi inhalation with right arm raising coupled with forceful exhalation using only the chandra channel 5-17 reps
Shitali Shitkari breath to cool particularly the nervous system down after heat generation of the above 5-17 reps
Utgeet breath to seal the practice 5-17 reps
If you want a demonstration DVD you can get it at this link http://goo.gl/mO6BbT
Read More
