Transform Your Wellbeing with Ayushakti

Ayurvedic Insights for Health & Wellness

Welcome to a new journey of healing with Ayushakti. Here you will discover Ayurvedic herbal remedies and holistic health wisdom to help you upgrade your everyday experiences, restore naturally, and achieve equilibrium in life so that you can live with more energy and happiness.

Ayurvedic Inspirations & Articles

Find inspiration for leading a balanced and healthy life with our new blog posts about herbal remedies and lifestyle tips.

Blood draws, MRIs, vaccinations, synthetic prescriptions—these practices are commonplace in Western medicine. And while they’re undoubtedly beneficial and lifesaving for millions of people, they can have their drawbacks, too.

After dealing with difficult side effects and impersonal treatment plans and not seeing improvement, many people become dissatisfied with their medical care. Some begin looking for alternative options, but most have no idea where to turn.

Now, imagine receiving care from a system based on harmony, connection, and balance. It’s focused on building health naturally using the body’s inherent structures. It doesn’t have frightening side effects, and its methods have been practiced for thousands of years.

This is Ayurveda, an Indian-based medical approach that can help people manage their symptoms and find true peace without worrying about side effects or synthetic medications and procedures.

Ayurveda’s General Approach

Ayurveda, which translates to “knowledge of life” in Sanskrit, takes a comprehensive approach to the human body. This means that no matter your health complaint, a Vaidya—or Ayurvedic practitioner—examines every possible factor that could play a part. From your mental health and sleep quality to your diet and exercise habits, Ayurvedic healers believe in a holistic health perspective.

Ayurveda is an ancient Indian system. Some sources claim its practices to be over 5,000 years old. As such, it’s not based on the newest health fads or emerging medical technologies. Rather, it’s based on a unique understanding of the body and its life forces that contribute to overall health.

Ayurveda teaches that everything in the universe is connected and has a natural balance. When something within your body becomes unbalanced, diseases and illnesses can enter. Because of this, Ayurveda is much more focused on preventing disease than restoring health, but it does have protocols for helping people manage their symptoms during sickness.

There are eight branches of medicine within Ayurveda:

  • Internal medicine (Kaayachikitsa)
  • Ear, Nose, and Throat (Shalakya Tantra)
  • Toxicology (Vishagara Vairodh Tantra)
  • Surgery (Shalya Tantra)
  • Psychiatry (Bhuta Vidya)
  • Fertility, Conception, and Aphrodisiac Therapy (Vajikarana)
  • Rejuvenation and Geriatrics (Jarachikitsa and Rasayana)
  • Pediatrics (Baalachikitsa)

Ayurvedic healers recognize the deeply personal nature of the human body: everyone’s composition, or Prakriti, is inherently unique. Additionally, everyone’s daily habits differ. This means that what works best to promote health for one person may be almost completely ineffective for another.

To compensate for this, Ayurvedic Vaidyas are very focused on custom-designed treatment plans for each individual—a very different approach than we tend to see in Western medicine. Many treatment plans can include an internal purification regimen, specialized diet, Ayurvedic herbal supplements, yoga, meditation, and massage therapy.

Ayurveda’s Principles: The Doshas

Learning about Ayurveda’s principles can feel like stepping into a mystical world that’s far different—yet somehow more grounded and natural—than what we’re used to.

According to Ayurvedic teachings, all things in the universe, including ourselves, are made from the five elements: fire, water, earth, air, and ether. Everyone is born with a unique combination of these elements that give us our life energies, or doshas. A person can be dominant in one of three combinations of doshas: vata (ether and air), pitta (fire and water), or kapha (earth and water).

When our doshas become unbalanced, we can experience illness in both the mind and the body. A Vaidya can help you understand your dominant dosha and create a customized plan to help you rediscover balance.

Vata Dosha

The vata dosha is responsible for essential body functions like cell division, breathing, circulation, and heart and intestinal functions. Those who are vata dominant tend to be intelligent and creative. They may experience mood swings and find it easy to lose weight.

If you are vata-dominant, you may experience overstimulation, anxiety, and forgetfulness when you become unbalanced. Physically, you may have asthma, heart and skin problems, or arthritis.

An Ayurvedic healer might recommend specific meditations, massages, and a regular sleeping and waking schedule to find balance. Vata-dominant people may also better manage their symptoms by eating warm, mild foods and avoiding cold or spicy foods.

Pitta Dosha

The pitta dosha is responsible for digestion, metabolism, and hormones that affect your appetite. Pitta-dominant people tend to have the confidence and competitive nature of a leader, with a muscular build.

When a pitta-dominant person becomes unbalanced, they can become overly competitive, angry, and impulsive. Unbalance can also manifest in conditions such as high blood pressure, chronic indigestion, heart disease, and Crohn’s disease.

Ayurvedic practitioners can help pitta-dominant people restore balance by prescribing slow yoga, moderation, and a diet full of cool and light foods like cucumbers and salads.

Kapha Dosha

The kapha dosha assists with the body’s muscle growth, strength, weight, and immune system. Those whose dominant dosha is kapha can be patient, calm, and accepting. They generally prefer a consistent routine and maintaining expectations. They may also easily gain weight.

Those who are kapha-dominant may experience procrastination, fatigue, stubbornness, and depression when they become unbalanced. They may also suffer from asthma, cancer, obesity, and diabetes.

An Ayurvedic healer might help a kapha-dominant individual to rediscover balance by recommending cardiovascular exercises, yoga sun salutations, and a diet rich in fruits and vegetables.

Ayurveda in the U.S.

Currently, Ayurveda looks different in the U.S. than in India and other parts of the world. Although Vaidyas receive formal degrees in Ayurvedic medicine, the U.S. does not recognize this training. Because of this, the Shalya Tantra (surgical) branch of Ayurveda is not practiced in the U.S., and healers are not recognized as doctors.

Despite this, Ayurveda continues to gain popularity in the country as more and more U.S. citizens discover its benefits and principles grounded in nature. Its highly customized protocols for purification regimens, diets, herbal supplements, and exercises for the mind and body draw more attention each day.

A Natural Alternative

In spite of the U.S.’s lack of recognition in the knowledge and training of Vaidyas, Ayurveda’s teachings provide a natural, comprehensive alternative—or supplement—to Western medicine. Its principles, grounded in thousands of years of refinement and understanding of the human body, provide a calming, restorative healthcare route for millions worldwide.