The Tea on Health - September
One of the significant differences in seeing an ayurvedic practitioner versus a traditional/western approach to health is the amount of time an ayurvedic practitioner will spend on intake of a new client. It’s important to fully understand the history and current conditions that are occurring in the body. From an ayurvedic perspective many conditions that may seem unrelated from a western perspective actually indicate different imbalances in the body. For example, dry skin, insomnia, ringing in the ears, and anxiety; may all be indicative of a vata imbalance, which is essentially too much dryness in the body. Finding ways to hydrate the tissues inside and out with treatments, diet, herbs, and oils may easily resolve chronic issues in a client with a simple inexpensive approach that has no side effects.
Ayurveda is based on physics. The third rule of physics is every action has an equal and opposite reaction. When we consider our diets and the cold, dry foods going in, such as sandwiches, chips, and crackers; it’s very easy to see how dry foods, transfer to dry sluggish digestion, which can correlate to constipation and other uncomfortable conditions. After years, these chronic conditions can change the quality and texture of the colon, much like the lungs of a smoker can be tainted and congested by years of tobacco use. Colons can become dry, brittle and unresponsive to bowel movements requiring clients to rely on enemas, colonics, and chronic use of laxative products that only further destroy the quality of the colon. An ayurvedic practitioner is trained to find the root of chronic conditions and slowly balance the body with the assistance of diet, herbs, and treatments.
During an ayurvedic consult you will be asked about current bowel habits and your tongue and pulse will be examined. You’ll discuss your current sleep, food, and lifestyle patterns. Most importantly, an entire image of your individual health and wellness will be created and a path to your health goals will be created on the initial visit.
As an ayurvedic practitioner in the area for a relatively short period of time, I have seen several success stories in my practice. I’ve had a type 2 diabetic that was not having the needed success lowering his A1C with Metformin only, and doctors had recommended he supplement with another prescription. We started a diet evaluation, made minor changes to his current diet, continued his Metformin and started on an herb specifically for lowering blood sugar. His numbers dropped from 7.5 to 6.7 in a little over a month. I’ve also seen several local clients have success with treating anxiety and insomnia with herbs rather than commit to long-term, pharmaceutical treatments that have potential side effects. Anxiety and insomnia can be treated with success that starts after a few days, rather than relying on pharmaceuticals that can require weeks to increase serotonin, melatonin or some other chemical in the body.
There is no downside to attempting to treat something initially with herbs rather than over-the-counter or pharmaceutical treatments. The cost of an herb generally ranges from $10-$25 and they’re not habit forming. If there isn’t a significant shift, there is always the option to see a physician or other health care provider.
As a practitioner, I completely support and encourage western medicine when needed, but feel we’ve had a pendulum swing that has resorted to over-prescribed medications that can have unnecessary financial expense, as well as unnecessary risk to our liver, kidneys, and overall health as a population.
If you’re considering a consult, I’m currently running a Groupon offer of $99 for an initial consult and one treatment or $189 for an initial consult, two treatments, and includes fall cleansing herbs. I will honor this pricing regardless of if you purchase the Groupon or not. Please contact me at 310-614-3669 to schedule an appointment at either my Albany office located at 430 SW Washington Street or my home office in Brownsville at 620 Oak Street.