6 Tips To Find Balance The Ayurvedic Way This Summer
Keep your health in balanced by understanding the way your body aligns with the cycles of nature and daily regimens you need to include...
Does the summer heat really get to you? Does it upset your digestion or bring on skin conditions such as boils, rashes, psoriasis, eczema and acne and leave you feeling frustrated and impatient? This is most likely because your Pitta (the Ayurvedic mind-body type) is more dominant.
Here Narissa Moeller, Ayurvedic Lifestyle Consultant, Therapist and Journalist, talks us through Ayurveda, the ancient health science that aligns your body with the cycles of nature, explaining the daily and seasonal regimens you can easily include into your life to keep your health in a balanced state.
The Three Essential Doshas
There are three essential doshas, or mind-body type that are present in everyone that you first need to get to know. Vata, Pitta and Kapha. Each of us has characteristics of all three, but usually one or two is more dominant.
Vata types are generally thin, bony, light-weight, cold and dry. Vata being cold and dry, is likened to Autumn and early Winter.
Pitta types are moderate in build, hot and fiery in body and personality therefore are likened to Summer.
Kapha types are larger in build, solid, and cold. Kapha being dense and wet, is likened to later Winter and Spring.
Summertime can bring about imbalance to a Pitta individual’s already overheated physiology due to the heat. As Pitta governs digestion and metabolism, it can lead to symptoms such as hyperacidity, reflux and diarrhea.
Increased Pitta can also bring about hot flushes, red eyes, headaches, high blood pressure, gallbladder problems, liver disorders, gastric ulcers and skin conditions such as boils, rashes, psoriasis, eczema and acne.
Emotionally it can trigger anger, frustration and impatience.
So how to balance Pitta this Summer? Check out these simple tips below:
1. Keep cool.
Obviously. Avoid hot temperatures and keep in the shade. Pitta types have sensitive and generally pale skin, prone to freckles and sun spots so you want to cover up. Topically, neem, sandalwood, turmeric, and aloe-vera are all good for pitta skin for their cooling and anti-inflammatory properties. Sandalwood paste applied to the head is great for headaches!
2. Avoid pungent, sour, salty tastes and oily foods.
Yep, it’s best not to add too much spice to your cooking. You might also find red meat, tomato, soy sauce, alcohol and coffee are too heating and de-hydrating and can create further inflammation in the body. Plenty of fresh seasonal fruit such as apples, grapes and watermelon, leafy green veggies and coconut water are cooling and good for pitta.
3. Eat regularly, Especially Lunch.
Between 10am and 2pm is Pitta time. It’s the hottest part of the day and when digestion is at it’s strongest (remember Pitta governs digestion). Make lunch time your biggest meal of the day and don’t skip it. Hunger Pitta’s become angry when they don’t eat.
4. Allow For Leisure Time
Try not to over-work or over-exercise and be aware of when you’re pushing yourself too far. Pitta types are driven, competitive and hard-working and know how to push themselves to the edge. Remember to take a break. Apply stress-release techniques into your life such as deep breathing and meditation. Cycling, swimming, walking barefoot on the grass and yoga are all very helpful to cool, ground and de-stress.
5. Daily Body Massage.
Massage brings about the same benefits as daily exercise such as increased blood flow and lymphatic circulation and is great for the skin. Apply a cooling oil such as coconut to remove excess body heat. You can learn the Ayurvedic self massage technique here
6. Look After Your Eyes.
The eyes are the seat of Pitta and when aggravated they can become red and inflamed. Apply rose water pads to cool them off.
