Some stereotypes are never outdated — rain-washed leaves and sky bring out the hopeless romantic in us; making us rush into the kitchen to fry pakoras to eat with chai as soon as it starts raining. Year after year, despite painful traffic jams, there’s something about rains that brings a smile. Speaking of smiles, what if you can make your body internally happy too during the rains?
Experts of the ancient alternative Indian medicine system, Ayurveda believe that monsoons are the best time to sign up for a healing Ayurveda therapy and give the body a much-needed internal overhaul. While healthy people too can enjoy the multiple benefits of Ayurvedic therapies during monsoons, those suffering from various bone and nervous issues can get the maximum benefit out of an Ayurveda routine in this season.
Tackling the doshas
According to Ayurveda, the body has three doshas including Vata, Kapha and Pitta and it is during the monsoon season that vata dosha becomes dominant. Explains Anuj Singh, the spa manager at ITC Sonar’s Kaya Kalp, “During the monsoon season all the doshas or the bio-energies are usually imbalanced in the body. Especially an imbalance of vata dosha, may lead to various health disorders hence Ayurvedic treatments, even the Panchakarma therapies, are recommended to boost the immune system of the body.” Adds Dr Manoj Kutter, Medical Director & CEO, Atmantan Wellness Centre, Pune, “This is one of the periods where your body will be maximum susceptible to infections which is why you get problems when the monsoon starts. Your body will have an excess of pitta (a dosha associated with heat) and that’s why you’ll have a tendency to grow more vata (air).
Body & mind
A detox might be a term loosely used in almost all aspects of life now but it is significant when it comes to cleansing body rituals. Monsoon is the time when the body’s immunity goes low and therefore intermittent detoxification is recommended. “Overall, the strength of the person will be less and will be more prone to diseases. Ayurveda treatments done during this time can go a long way in strengthening the body’s immunity,” says Naad Wellness’s chief Ayurveda Consultant, Dr Hrishikesh Ashok. According to experts, an Ayurveda detox plan truly tackles the body’s doshas and helps treat them. Explains Ritu Srivastava, spa manager at The Royal Spa ITC Grand Bharat, Gurugram. “While the tridoshas are present in all human beings, the optimum level of the tridosha differs based on the body’s constitution. Ayurveda helps to reduce, restore and maintain these optimum levels by offering a multitude of natural remedies and treatments using ingredients extracted from plant-based and mineral-based natural sources.”
Tackling ailments
With people becoming more sedentary over the years, lifestyle-related disorders are clearly on the rise. Be it diabetes, obesity, joint pains and the likes, almost every disease is linked to desk-bound lives. Ayurveda doctors believe therapies conducted to tackle these ailments during the monsoons help manage such diseases very well. Devraj Singh, Cluster General Manager, Uttarakhand at The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL) says nervous conditions like diabetic neuropathy can be treated very well with the help of Ayurveda. Apart from this, arthritis and rheumatoid joint-related issues are also tackled very well during this time,” he adds.
The magic of Ayurveda
While Ayurveda has a plethora of therapies to do wonders, there are a few perfect for the monsoons. Anuj Singh of ITC Sonar lists them here. Shirodhara is a significant therapy working through the deepest levels of one’s being. Warm, medicated oil is poured continuously on the forehead, helping to connect and rejuvenate the energy systems within the body. This specialised treatment helps to improve blood supply, thus increasing the supply of nutrients and oxygen to the tissues and promoting unblocking of nerve impulses to help relieve
mental tension. Abhyanga is a traditional massage performed by two therapists using the long stroke technique. This therapy is a delightful way to relax the body and allow the mind to drift away, using a traditional blend of oils to awaken the inner mind. Following a full body massage with dosha-specific oils, a therapeutic treatment is done with a massage using warm poultices filled with healing herbs and spices from India. Warm oils are drizzled over your body. Then, using the poultice, the therapist massages your body in slow, rhythmic movements in Choornaswedana. This helps to increase circulation, speeds up the elimination of toxins, relieves muscle pain and stiffness, rheumatism, arthritis and sports injuries. Padabhyanga is a gentle and sensitive foot massage with herbal oil or ghee. This therapy is soothing, revitalising and helps to balance various disturbances of the nervous system.