Less Worry, More Happy

Life Should Be Happy

We are here on Earth but a short time; it seems a waste to spend it any other way.

Being happy is something that is individual to each person and in turn, each person has a responsibility to them self to find what makes them happy.  In short, everyone is responsible for his or her own happiness.

Doing what you like and liking what you do. People that like what they do are are usually happier, live longer, healthier and more productive lives.

When you start to talk to people about being happy you start to realize the many different ways that people experience happiness.  It could be their children or grandchildren; maybe it’s their pet or a walk in the city. Whatever it is that makes you happy, make sure and do more of it.

I asked Dr. Jay what made him most happy about what he does and he answered without hesitation that he loves to teach.  Sharing is what makes him happiest about being the Director at Kerala Ayurveda Academy. He loves to interact with the students and make sure they understand the concepts that he is teaching them.

Recently Dr. Jayarajan was the keynote speaker at the AAPNA conference in Las Vegas, the topic was cancer. Every aspect of cancer was addressed from preventative measures to rejuvenation after cancer treatments.  The event was informative and really gave everyone a closer look at a more natural way of thinking about Cancer.

Cancer affects everyone either directly or indirectly.  If someone were to ask a crowd several questions about who was affected by cancer, after only 3 questions just about everyone would have their hand up.

1. How many of you have had cancer?
2. How many of you know someone who has had cancer
3. How many of you know someone who has a friend or relative with cancer

Stress is the main cause for disease and being unhappy is stressful. It seems that if we can find a way to be happy and manage our stress then we could spend less time thinking about getting sick with life threatening illness.

Ayurveda is about living a happy life: one way to accomplish that is to learn how to manage stress.  Life can be stressful: learning how to relax is part of finding happiness.

Ayurveda suggests different techniques to help people to feel calmer both inside and out.

Learning how to meditate is a great way to de-stress and it’s not complicated.

Simply find a quiet spot to sit where you will not be interrupted and focus on how it feels to breathe. What your throat feels like, how the oxygen feels in your blood, just keeping your attention on inhale and exhale. If you feel a thought come to you, gently sweep it away and refocus on your breathing. Sometimes it is beneficial to repeat mantra or word sequences with each inhale and each exhale.

Have you ever noticed that when people talk about being healthier, they also talk about being happier too? When you live a healthier life, you feel better and that makes you happier.

It only takes a moment to stop, don’t worry, and be happy

Call today and find out how you can learn how to de-stress and live a happier life, learn about Ayuveda

1-800-562-1540
Blog post by Shelli Thompson

Fremont Wellness Center, A Center for Inspiration

Kerala Ayurveda Academy opened the doors to its first wellness center in Fremont CA in September 2013.

The inauguration was held during the Grand Opening weekend where Dr. Frawley led the ribbon cutting ceremony along with Shambhavi, esteemed Ayurvedic doctors, the CEO, scientists, practitioners, alumni and students.

Many events were held to celebrate The Grand Opening weekend beginning with the first student and Alumni reunion.   An auspicious ceremony of lighting the lamp, chanting mantras and sharing with friends, teachers, and well-wishers was the highlight of the event captured in many hearts and photo sessions.  All those who attended came from many different locations, near and far to proudly support and celebrate this groundbreaking event.

We enjoyed the evening touring the facility and feeling inspired!  Kerala Ayurveda Academy’s vision was to establish a center for Inspiration for the community, students and practitioners to offer the best possible care and to empower individuals where their wellbeing is concerned.  We were truly inspired as we shared in a delicious meal and each other’s company.  We also reveled in the positive energy flowing through the new Wellness Center.

The inauguration led to a planned workshop on Soma and Shakti.  Dr David Frawley, now an advisor with Kerala Ayurveda Academy, discussed how Ayurveda and Rasayana therapies enhance the wellbeing of everyone.  We discussed how Prana is the subtle food or energy for the mind and senses, and its ultimate power of rejuvenation.  He further emphasized the importance of yoga in the modern world and the play of agni and soma.  His talk also went into the essence of balance, purification and revitalization, and also the four light centers in the human body.   He finally conducted an interesting question and answer segment.

Then the beautiful Shambhavi taught us about Shakti and about the 4 “A’s”

• ·      Attention
• ·      Affection
• ·      Appreciation
• ·      Acceptance

And how emotion derives from need. Throughout the weekend she taught us mantras of protection and healing, spoke of Sthira Shakti or the power of stillness, about composure and consistency and depending on the person’s conviction, Compassion and Responsibility.

When Soma is born of Shakti and that soma is held, it makes the person receptive to the grace of the cosmic universe. Receptivity allows us to perceive grace and the bliss of divinity.

In the afternoon of the first day we heard from Dr. Suhas Kshirsagar as he spoke about “Achara Rasayana” (behavioral medicine) and it’s unique concept in Ayurveda. There are certain behaviors that bring about Rasayana in the human body such as truth, nonviolence, personal and public cleanliness, mental and personal hygiene and many more behaviors that are of the same nature. He also discussed Rasayana foods, herbs and herbal preparations.  This information was especially helpful when it was combined with the information of the morning sessions.

The first day of the workshop was exhilarating. Many of us dined together and discussed the presentations and the anticipation and excitement we all felt about the following day.

The final day continued with Dr. David Frawley again as we discussed more Rasayana in connection with Pranayama.  As always the discussion was interactive and interesting. We learned more mantras and enjoyed them together with Shambhavi.  Many of us felt our legs tingling as the energy rose in the room.

The afternoon was a change of direction from what was originally planned. During lunch we had a meeting with the participants of the workshop to find out how KAA can support them in their practice of Ayurveda.  Many topics were discussed and noted.  It is so important to support one another; meetings like this are crucial for the growth of practitioners and their practices as well as KAA in order to improve the curriculum and the experience of the student participating.

Finally, Dr. Jayarajan gave a presentation on his expertise, clinical application of Rasayana for prevention and management of disease.

The workshop covered everything about wellbeing.  All of us came away with a better understanding of Soma and Shakti and it relationship to health.  We learned about the connectivity of our actions, herbs, sounds and techniques that can be used and combined with different methods for a holistic and individualized approach to health and wellbeing.

Blog Post by Shelli Thompson

Finding Natural Ways to Prevent Weight Gain and Stress

Life can be pretty crazy

The fast pace of life can really sneak up on you and before you know it you feel like you are on a roller coaster. 

How do we get back to doing what we want to do instead of what others need us to do?  One day we wake up and we aren’t living life, life is living us and it is spiraling out of control.  Fatigue, excess weight, and stress become a daily focus.   Even simple things we enjoyed before become a challenge.

Focusing on others instead of yourself, forgetting to drink that extra glass of water, skipping exercise and then avoiding a walk, over eating and indulging in the wrong sorts of foods, eating when there is no appetite just to fill the time, getting stressed out at work AND at home, not getting enough rest, high expectations and the list goes on and on.

Situations like these can put your life out of balance and open the door for diseases, with their roots in stress like Obesity and Diabetes.

How do we get to this spot?  It starts so gradual that you don’t notice it and then BOOM! One day it hits you like a brick on the noggin.  Where does it all start?

We start by reintegrating our priorities.

It seems like so much work to get things going back in the right direction, we wonder if the effort is worth the results.

To that I say yes and most certainly YES!

What are some natural ways to manage imbalances that could cause weight gain, increased stress and diabetes?

1.By putting one foot in front of the other and head out the door for a walk.  This is a simple solution; you are born with the equipment to do just that!

Your walk will increase your metabolism, allowing your body to burn off excess energy before it converts over to “reserves”, it will help you to digest your food and convert it into energy and tissue and it will make you feel light and energized for your next task. 

2. Your next improvement can be implemented at the same time.  Drinking more water will help to flush toxins out of your body, will help to maintain a healthy weight and because many of us are dehydrated, it will hydrate your body so it can operate at an optimum level.  Start by adding just one extra glass (8oz.) of water a day of pure, clear clean water; this is one more small improvement that is simple and natural.

3. Learn to breathe correctly.  We breathe all day every day and rarely think about it and yet it is the most important thing we do.  We can survive without food for some time and without water for a while but without oxygen you will die within 10 minutes (in most cases).

Many of us breathe into our chests and fail to use the entire organ, trapping stale air in the lower lobes of the lungs.  This affects our thought process, our ability to think correctly, our energy levels and our memory because it decreases oxygen levels. 

In the long run this will affect overall health and create imbalance in our bodies.  Sit up straight, and breath from the diaphragm, which is below your lungs, feel the air going in and out, be conscious of how wonderful it feels.

Who is more important to you than you?  Nobody will take better care of you than you so it’s up to you to do that.  On that note, nobody is more convincing to you than you.  You can talk yourself out of exercising and right into a trip to Starbucks and it doesn’t take too much effort.

You will learn more simple and natural ways to take care of your health and the health of your family at Kerala Ayurveda Academy where we teach you to take charge of your own health and wellness in a more natural way, helping you to become more aware of your balanced body and mind and how to manage imbalances that may lead to diseases.

Remember to take care of you first and that will give you the energy to take care of everything else.

Blog Post by Shelli Thompson

How Can Ayurveda Help to Lower Your Stress Levels?

Stress

sometimes it gets to the best of us, there’s no way around it and sometimes it creeps up so slow we don’t even recognize it for what it is.  Stress comes from many places, externally, internally, from our diet, our thoughts, and emotions it can be easy to be overwhelmed.

Ayurveda is an ancient medical system dating back over 5,000 years; one of the oldest chronicled medical systems. Ayurveda believes that ALL disease is stress related. How do we control the stress in life, especially if we don’t recognize it for what it is?

Today the pace of life is incredibly fast, machines do much of the physical work that we used to do.  Many people run from job to activity and other things so fast, they rarely take time out for a spare moment.

This is where stress begins and we fail to recognize it

The key is in the “spare moment” of your busy day. There aren’t many spare moments so the moments you take need to make a difference. After a stressful day, it is generally not relaxing to watch a crime drama or play a game that gets your blood pumping. Here is a list of Stress reducing activities that you can do in a short amount of time to replace activities that may otherwise “pump you up” instead of calming you down.

1.   Take a walk outside
2. Yoga
3. Breathing exercises or Pranayama
4.  Meditation
5. Fresh, local and organic diet (relieves digestive stress)
6. Visualization
7.  Regular Exercise
8.  Faithfulness or devotion

The MOST important thing is to take time out for YOU.  It may be an entire day; it may be a few stolen moments however the time devoted to you will bring lasting results with lowered stress levels.

Look at your day and see where you can take some time; it may be that you get up just a little earlier or take that walk after dinner. Schedule times in that belong to you and make good use of your time to de-stress by trying one or more of the suggestions above.

Kerala Ayurveda Academy Teaches Ayurveda in a very Authentic and relevant way that makes sense in our modern times.  Find out about our Workshops, Classes and Certifications, products, services and so much more.  The more you learn about stress levels and how they affect your health, the more you can pro-active about reducing stress in your life.

1-888-275-9103

Click HERE for more information about Kerala Ayurveda Academy
Blog Post by Shelli Thompson 

Useful Herbs in the Treatment of Heart Diseases

Useful Ayurvedic Herbs in the Treatment of Heart Diseases:

1. Alfalfa (Medicagosatina): The congestion of the arteries can be reduced with help of juice of Alfalfa. The juice has better effects if it is taken along with the juice of a fresh carrot.

2. Arjuna (Terminaliaarjuna): Arjuna has properties in increasing the stimulation to the heart. Its bark is used in Ayurveda for this purpose.

3. Digitalis (Digitalis purpurea): The digitalis herb is renowned all over the world for its benefits in heart care. The herb can stimulate the activity of all muscle tissues, including those of the heart. It improves the nourishment of the heart and rejuvenates the heart from its basic wear and tear. The digitalis herb also helps incorrecting problems that may occur in blood circulation to the heart.

4. Ephedra (Ephedra gerardiana): The ephedra has fantastic heart stimulating properties. It is especially beneficial in strengthening hearts that are damaged due to infections of pneumonia and diphtheria.

5. Garlic (Allium sativum): Rasona or garlic is most important substance helpful in alleviating vatadosha controlling blood pressure. It can break down the cholesterol accumulated in the coronary arteries. Having a few cloves of raw garlic every morning can also reduce the possibility of a heart attack.

Alternatively, a paste made of about 1gm of garlic should be mixed with a glass of buttermilk. Drink this buttermilk twice a day. It will bring your blood pressure down. Garlic lowers cholesterol and triglyceride that have impact on heart disease

6. Onion (Allium cepa): Scientists have proved the properties of the onion in allaying heart attacks. It also reduced thrombosis of the heart and reduces the accumulation of blood cholesterol.

Keep watching this space for health tips and much more, visit us at www.ayurvedaacademy.com

Hypothyroidism, An Ayurvedic Prospective

Hypothyroidism is a condition where the Thyroid gland is not secreting optimum amount of hormones, there are various causes.

The Thyroid’s main function is to maintain metabolism in the body.  Modern Medicine mentions the gland as early as the first century AD and states that its purpose is to lubricate the larynx.  The Thyroid was finally named in the 1600’s, at that time it was thought of as a beautification organ that filled the hollow spaces of the neck located on either side of the larynx. The thyroid was also thought of as a sort of valve that prevented excess blood flow to the brain.

Ayurveda had a different description.  Although the thyroid is not mentioned in the Vedic Texts however a disease called Galaganada is comparatively similar.  

Galaganada is described by Susutha as two big or small swelling in anterior angle of the neck.  Charaka mentioned it as a single swelling.

In the vedic texts there are specific nidana (causes) listed.  People that eat predominantly fish are at more risk.  Cold damp densely treed environment is listed as a contributor.  Water stagnation and heavy rains are also listed.

Hypothyroidism is not a localized disease, it affects many organs and systems due to it’s hormonal influence and that fact that it is responsible for kindling our bio fires or Agni.

When hypothyroidism is due to genetics it is considered “adibala Pravritta” and is considered Asadhya or non-curable.

If the condition is congenital it is considered “Jalakunbhi Pravritta Vyadhis” and this condition is preventable is if Pathya (things that are good) is followed during pregnancy and apathya (things to avoid) is also followed.

Pathya (do’s)

Coconut oil, Kelp, beetroot, radish, parsley, potato, oatmeal, banana’s are good.

Exercise 15 to 20 minutes per day minimum

Reduce stress

Yoga- Specifically:

shoulder stands. This puts pressure on the thyroid gland which has a large supply of blood.  Applying pressure will allow the thyroid to release stagnant hormonal secretions to function more normally.

Other Yoga poses (asana’s) to practice:

Marsyasana (fish pose)

Halasna (plough pose)

Sun salutations

Backward bending Poses (asana’s)

Apathya (avoid)

Cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, sweet potato, lima beans, pearl millet, corn.

Smoking

Heavy foods.

Symptoms of Hypothyroidism are non-specific and include a wide range encompassing many different systems.  Because of the non-specific nature of the symptoms, many times hypothyroidism goes undiagnosed.

The symptoms of hypothyroidism include but are not limited to the following because there is no stand alone characteristic symptoms:

vertigo, weight gain, mood swings, fatigue, lethargy, slow memory and thinking, intellectual disturbances, menstrual disturbances, rough dry skin, horse voice, muscle stiffness, constipation, cramps, weakness, thin brittle falling out hair, intolerance to cold weather, goiter, swelling of the neck.

As you can see the symptoms can be quite diverse and that is what leads to the mis-diagnosis.  Hypothyroidism is considered a Vata and Kapha vitiation which can make it tricky to treat.

The thyroids job is to control and regulate our metabolism and it does that by producing thyroxine and that is the spark for our metabolism.  Thyroxine stimulates the mitochondria of our cells.  The amount of stimulation from the Thyroxine determines how quickly our cells do their work.

Hypothyroidism is a result from inadequate production of Thyroxine  due to a structural or a functional decline.

One of the main causes of hypothyroidism has been found to be a lack of Iodine.  Herbs containing Iodine are therefore suggested such as shigru and jalakumbhi.  Iodine levels vary from state to state, the most Iodine depleted soil is located in the mid west and great lakes region, Michigan being the leader.

Herbs that work at the glandular level and are considered hypothyroid herbs:

• Gulgulu
• Ashwagandha
• Trijataka
• Trikatu
• Triphala
• Varuna
• Brahmi
• gokshura
• punarnava
• shilajit

Foods that contain Iodine are highly suggested:

Dried Seaweed

cod

fortified iodized salt

baked potato with peel

milk

shrimp

baked turkey breast

cooked navy beans

tuna canned in oil

boiled eggs

cranberries

organic strawberries

coconut oil

essential fatty acids, omega 3’s and 6’s

At a metabolic level the following is helpful:

deepana, pachana, ushna, teekshan, sukshma, lekhana herbs to increase metabolism.

Always talk to your Doctor before a drastic change in diet or activity levels.  The encouraging word about Ayurveda is that is is natural and safe, it is also complimentary.

For more information about Ayurveda click here

Blog Post by Shelli Thompson