Live More Worry Less: Ayurvedic Perspective On Anxiety
Do you experience anxiety?
If not, you probably know someone who does.
Anxiety, and even panic attacks, are becoming so common that people are viewing them as ‘normal’. However, anxiety is a sign of an imbalance of mind, body, and spirit.
With so many treatment options available out there, maybe you’ve never considered Ayurveda. The thing is, Ayurvedic medicine is a powerful healing option for anyone experiencing anxiety. And there are few if any harmful side effects. Let’s investigate why this natural treatment is useful, after we look at the basics of anxiety and anxiety disorders.
What Are Anxiety Disorders?
It’s normal to feel low levels of anxiety sometimes. Anxiety that is temporary and happens occasionally can be a useful form of stress that motivates or protects you from future harm.
Anxiety disorders are different though.
They involve persistent feelings of stress, worry or fear that keep coming back. Symptoms of anxiety can impact everyday activities, making it difficult to participate in school, work, social gatherings and relationships.
If you think you are experiencing an anxiety disorder, you’re not alone. It’s the most common mental health condition as well as depression.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is frequently diagnosed by mental health professionals. It involves persistent, excessive and potentially disabling worry about life in general. The worry feels uncontrollable and usually impacts daily activities and relationships.
Other anxiety disorders include:
Phobias
Panic Disorders
Agoraphobia
Social anxiety disorder.
Anxiety and Ayurveda
Ayurveda (or Ayurvedic Medicine) is a traditional Indian medical system. It has been the science for “right” living for more than 5,000 years, so I tend to trust it. Treatments aim to harmonize the 3 doshas (Vata, Kapha, and Pitta) to create physiological, mental, emotional, and spiritual health.
In Ayurveda, anxiety is a Vata dosha imbalance.
Vata is the ‘air’ element associated with mental and physical activity. When balanced, Vata supports movement, flow, creativity and mental clarity. However, imbalanced Vata can result in excessive movement, difficulty sleeping, lack of focus, confusion and obsessive thoughts. Is this sounding like your current state right now?
Vata is the mobile element in Ayurveda. It has the same qualities of the Fall season; dry, light, rough, mobile.
Anxiety is an expression of excess vata in Mano vaha srota, the channel of the mind.
To put it plainly, it means you have a windy mind.
When it comes to bringing back to balance a dosha that is in excess, we follow the Ayurvedic principle of “like increases like, and the opposite balances.”
With anxiety we are working with having too much of vata dosha, this means we need to incorporate opposite qualities to bring the mind back to a place of balance. We need the qualities of Earth, the qualities of Kapha Dosha; juicy, heavy, sweet, soft, and static.
This is the first Ayurveda key to using the qualities we see in nature as vital healing tools.
Overactive Vata leads to nervous system overactivity. Anxiety is also associated with a hyper-excited nervous system, as this is what triggers the release of hormones that lead to headaches, shortness of breath, heart palpitations, shakiness and more.
Ayurveda uses foods, daily routine, herbs, movement and physical applications to help regulate the Vata dosha.
Anxiety Treatment in Ayurveda
Ayurvedic medicine uses a holistic approach to treat anxiety while honouring the individual’s uniqueness and current state of imbalance. In a general sense though, here is what anxiety treatment in Ayurveda can look like:
1. Manage The Disease
Your practitioner will take a full case history to understand what triggers your anxiety. They’ll recommend dietary, lifestyle and environmental changes, and identify ‘hidden’ factors that may be worsening symptoms.
2. Panchakarma
This is a cleansing and rejuvenating program for the body, mind and consciousness. It involves medicated liquids/oils, ghee, and head and body treatments to remove ‘Ama’ (toxins and undigested metabolic wastes) and decrease symptoms.
3. Herbal Therapy
Ayurvedic herbs that balance Vata are essential. Ashwagandha (Withania) is believed to be one of the best herbs for balancing Vata, with many studies investigating its effectiveness in anxiety. Combining Ashwagandha with pungent spices and ghee (clarified butter) is a traditional Ayurvedic remedy for those who suffer from anxiety. The spices increase the absorption of the ashwagandha, while the ghee is a good source of healthy fat.
4. Yoga
The body, mind, spirit principles of yoga are used to reduce anxiety symptoms, balance the doshas and promote deeper feelings of peace.
This treatment protocol relates to anxiety treatment in Ayurveda in Canada. However, the same strategies are used in India (the home of Ayurvedic medicine), as this trusted healing system has been used internationally for thousands of years.
Relieving Anxiety – DIY Tips
Here are some DIY tips you can try to help ease your anxiety:
1. Keep an "impressions" journal
Often, we only attribute the process of digestion to our physical body. However, the mind too must process and digest everything it takes in through the senses. Conversations, tv shows, music, podcasts - anything we take in through our 5 senses must be sorted and assimilated or removed as waste from the mind.
Similar to how you would keep a food journal, I invite you to begin keeping an "impressions" journal. This is a daily record of what you are taking in consciously through the senses.
The word, "impression" has so many meanings - sense, view, imprint, mold, imitation - to name a few. At the end of the day, impressions are the food your senses are taking in, and when you think about it your eyes, ears, nose, mouth and hands are almost always feeding.
While you may not be able to control everything about your anxiety, you can begin to elevate your awareness around what elements provoke it. Consciously keeping track of your symptoms over time gives you insight into possible triggers.
Include everything in your journal from what you ate/drank, where you were, who you were with, the time of day, what you heard and any of your physical symptoms.
2. Ritualize your eating schedule
“Breakfast is the spiritual meal. Lunch is the joyful meal. Dinner is the gentle meal.”
Imagine this: Your digestive system is like a wood-burning stove that needs tending in order to properly heat your whole body and support all of its internal functions. Keeping digestion strong throughout the day means feeding your fire with not only good food but also good timing. We know that the brain and the gut are physiologically connected, thus, taking the time to eat at regular intervals throughout the day is a simple tool for managing anxiety.
Set a goal to eat breakfast between 7-9a. Eat something warm, well spiced and easily digestible.
Eat a meal with heavier qualities at lunchtime between 11a-1p, when Agni (the digestive fire) is strongest.
For dinner eat a meal with lighter qualities between 4-6p to optimize metabolic functions.
3. Focus on your breath
Sama Vritti (balanced breath) is a basic breathing technique for beginners that you can do anytime, anywhere. Practicing Sama Vritti will calm your body and focus your mind.
How to do it: Sit in a comfortable, cross-legged position with your back straight, or lie down for a more restorative practice. Close your eyes and bring your awareness to your natural breath. Just observe, and do not change anything at first. When you’re ready, begin to inhale on a count of 4, and exhale on a count of 4, matching the length of your inhale and exhale. As you practice more, experiment with counting to higher numbers—just make sure your inhale and exhale stay the same length. Continue breathing this way for several minutes, or until you feel your mind and body relax.
4. Mindfulness Meditation
This is a credible DIY therapy for anxiety and depression. It involves a) focusing on the present moment, b) noticing how you feel and any symptoms that arise, and c) allowing these feelings and symptoms to pass without judgment. With practice, mindfulness meditation helps with stress management and symptom control. Give this exercise a try RAIN Meditation
5. Prioritise Sleep
It’s important to prioritize quality sleep. Try to get to bed by 10 pm at the latest and wake up by 6 am. Lack of sleep can make you feel anxious. Aim for 7-9 hours each night. Note that staying away from devices for at least 1 hour before bedtime can help you fall asleep faster.
6. Worry Activity
Write a list of your worries, put a timer on for 10-15 minutes and allow yourself space to worry as you need.
Write down the solutions to resolve and fix the list of concerns/worries.
Write down the goal date(s) of resolving your list of concerns/worries.
Practice this daily if need be, giving yourself the space to worry and then put it all on the “shelf” or store it in a “box”. When a thought comes in that is on your list of worries throughout your day remind yourself that you already spent time worrying about such and such and lay it to rest for the next Worry Session!
If you’re ready to try Ayurveda for anxiety, I would be happy to serve you!
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