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Ayurvedic Perspective of Stress Management

Dr. L. MAHADEVAN, BAMS, MD

10 Practical Steps in Ayurveda for Healthy Living

• Understanding Ayurveda with its values
• Understanding Ayurveda with its values
• Understanding your prakruti (dosic, mind-body constitution)
• Living in tune with your constitution
• Selecting diet in relation to your body type
• Following vedic routine (dina carya)
• Following seasonal routine (Ritu carya)
• Exercise (vyayama), etc.
• Abyangam (oil massage) as a preventive measure
• Sat vrttam (lifestyle and behavioral pattern), Daiva vyapasraya chikitsa (spiritual and religious therapies as per classics)
• Nitya rasayanam – intake of herbal medicines for prevention.

Stress

• Stress is physical, mental, or emotional strain or tension. Tension is mental or emotional strain, suspense, anxiety, or excitement. Anxiety is a reaction to a real or imagined threat, a general feeling of uneasiness or dread.
• Stress can be brought about by a traumatic accident, death, or emergency situation.
• Stress can also be a side effect of a serious illness or disease.
• There is also stress associated with daily life, the workplace, and family responsibilities.
• Scientists know that many types of stress can activate the body's endocrine system, which in turn can cause changes in the immune system.

Stress in General

• Can't cope, can't concentrate, feel hopeless, helpless, depressed and tired.
• Often irritable and angry, can't control your temper.
• Eat too much or too little, eat erratically.
• Have trouble sleeping, don't get enough sleep, or sleep too much and still feel tired.
• Smoking in excess, more than normal intake of alcohol, caffeine or drugs.
• Have frequent headaches, backaches, and stomach aches.
• Cut back on exercises.
• Family tensions run higher than usual. You and your spouse fight more often.
• Not interested in sex.
• Get coughs, colds and allergies.

Ayurveda

• Ayu + Veda – science of life, the oldest healing art continuously practiced for more than 5000 years.
• It treats the person as a whole and stresses prevention over cure without neglecting the cure.
• Ayurveda defines a person as a replica of the macrocosm and advises living in tune with nature.

Health in Ayurveda

• Health in Ayurveda is defined as "svasta" meaning established in the self.
• It is the state of harmony experienced by the self on physical, mental, and spiritual levels.
• The fundamental principles that govern health are called tridosas – vata, pitta, and kapha.

Tridosas

• The tridosas represent the five great elements: Akash (Space), vayu (Air), agni (Fire), ap (Water), and prithvi (Earth).
• Vata is composed of air and ether elements.
• Pitta is composed of the fire element.
• Kapha is composed of earth and water elements.

Ayurvedic View of Stress

• According to Ayurveda, stress affects the agni (digestive fire), which in turn affects digestion, metabolism, and ultimately the body’s tissues.
• When agni is disturbed, various dhatus (body tissues) such as plasma, blood, muscle, fat, bone, and nervous tissue are affected.
• Above all, ojas (the body’s defense mechanism) is depleted.
• Hidden stress leads to cellular damage and can produce a wide range of diseases, both chronic and acute.
• Vata is highly reactive to stress and may disrupt the balance of other doshas.

Features of Vata Prakruti

• Thin, lean personality with dry skin and hair.
• Erratic digestion and metabolism.
• Highly restless; disturbed sleep.
• Short-term memory challenges.
• Emotional insecurity, fearfulness, and anxiety.
• High earnings with quick, sometimes unwisely, expenditures.
• Preference for oily, sweet, sour, and salty foods.

Prone Diseases - Physical

• Body pain (myalgia)
• Weight loss
• Cold intolerance
• Chronic fatigue syndrome
• Constipation
• IBS
• Other diseases affecting the brain, heart, and nervous system

Prone Diseases - Psychological

• Dementia
• Insomnia
• Fear and phobias
• Anxiety
• Delirium

Features of Pitta Prakrutis

• Moderate body weight and strength
• Heat intolerance
• Sharp hunger
• Aggressive and irritable temperament
• Preference for cool environments
• Judgmental and intelligent

Prone Diseases - Physical

• Chronic fatigue syndrome
• Acid peptic disease
• Excessive sweating
• Dizziness
• High blood pressure
• Autoimmune diseases

Prone Diseases - Psychological

• Anger
• Aggressiveness
• Intolerance
• Disturbed sleep

Features of Kapha Prakruti

• Obese and gains weight easily
• Good strength, oily skin, and dense hair
• Calm, steady, and agreeable temperament
• Excellent long-term memory
• Stable and logical
• Preference for spicy foods

Prone Diseases - Physical

• Diabetes
• Weight gain
• High cholesterol
• Indigestion
• Respiratory problems
• Allergies
• Hypothyroidism

Prone Diseases - Psychological

• Depression
• Laziness
• Excessive sleep

Dina carya (Daily Regimen)

• Get up at brahma muhurta (3 AM to 6 AM)
• Attend to your natural calls (urination, defecation)
• Clean your teeth using natural twigs and herbal powders
• Scrape your tongue to remove mucus for enhanced taste
• Gargle with cold water and splash your eyes
• Perform nasya with anu taila followed by warm water gargling and smoke inhalation
• Regular nasya improves shoulder strength, prevents sinusitis, and promotes hair growth
• Practice regular exercise according to your personality
• Engage in prayers and meditation
• Maintain regulation over sex and sleep

Diet

• Heed the calls of nature before eating
• Ensure proper hygiene (wash hands, face, and feet) before meals
• Sit in a clean, isolated area to eat
• Face the direction of the sun during meals
• Offer prayers and express gratitude for food
• Chew food well with reverence and love
• Share food with others
• Eat with focus—avoid distractions like TV or conversation
• Consider your meal as a sacred offering (yagna) to the inner fire
• Include rice, wheat, barley, tender radish, grapes, green gram, jaggery, ghee, milk, honey, pomegranate, and triphala in your daily diet
• Fill half your stomach with solid food, one quarter with liquids, and leave the remaining quarter empty
• Avoid curd at night
• Ensure your meal contains all six tastes
• Avoid foods preserved from the previous day (except curd, ghee, honey, buttermilk)
• Consume sweet and oily foods first, followed by sour and spicy, and finish with bitter and astringent tastes
• Ensure food is served warm
• Eat food that is appropriate to your body, age, season, dosha, and health condition

Activities After Meals

• Take betel leaves (tambulam), walk about 100 steps, then lie on the left side
• Avoid driving, swimming, or exerting yourself immediately after meals

Six Seasons

Sisira	Late Winter	Mid January to March
Vasantham	Spring	Mid March to May
Grisma	Summer	Mid May to July
Varsha	Rain	Mid July to September
Sarad	Autumn	Mid September to November
Hemanta	Early Winter	Mid November to January

Season and Taste (For Utilization)

Season	Taste
Spring	Sweet, sour, salt
Winter and Rainy	Bitter, astringent, pungent
Summer	Sweet
Autumn	Sweet, bitter, astringent

Strength and Seasons

Strength	Seasons
Maximum	Early and late winter
Moderate	Autumn and spring
Minimum	Summer and rainy

Oil Massage

• Daily oil application on the head and body is a part of Indian culture.
• Processed sesame oil is commonly used for Vata and Kapha.
• Coconut oil is beneficial for Pitta.
• For Vata, oil massage is advised every day; for Pitta, on alternate days; for Kapha, once a week.
• Avoid oil baths in cases of indigestion, cough, cold, diarrhea, fever, menstruation, conjunctivitis, post-emesis, purgation, and infectious diseases.
• Application of oil on the head, ears, and feet is essential.
• Take a warm water bath 15–30 minutes after the massage.
• Avoid cold water baths, ice creams, curd, sex, daytime sleep, alcohol, sun exposure, and exertion on the day of massage.

Benefits of Oil Bath

• Controls Vata, promotes strength and sleep, overcomes fatigue, aids growth, prevents aging, mitigates pain, and promotes hair growth and vision.

Qualities of Rasayana

• Improves appetite, digestion, and assimilation; enhances metabolism.
• Improves muscular tone and retards skin aging; promotes regeneration of epidermal cells.
• Ensures normal sleep and regular bowel habits.
• Relieves vague aches and pains.
• Promotes healthy vigor and well-being.

Special Treatment for Management of Stress

• If the guidelines fail, consult an Ayurvedic doctor for treatments like shirodhara (continuous oil pouring over the scalp), shirovasti (oil retention on the scalp with a cap), and nasya (nasal application). Herbal medicines like manasamitram, brahmi, asvagandha, vaca, sankapuspi, jadamamsi are effective.