Ayurvedic Practices to Support Mental Wellbeing

Mental health is a hot topic in today’s busy, fast paced world, and for an alarming reason. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 8.5 million Australians aged 16-85 have experienced a mental illness at some time in their life, with 4.3 million experiencing mental illness in the 12 months prior to the study. The most common form of mental illness experienced throughout the 12 months prior included Anxiety Disorders, Affective Disorders and Substance Use Disorders. Whilst these statistics may be alarming, they are certainly not surprising. Busy is the new normal in today’s society and we all fall victim to the stress and anxiety brought on by financial pressure, raising families and rapidly changing technology.

There’s never been a better time to invest in self-care to balance your mind and body, but what type of self-care will help you to decompress and serve your mental wellbeing in the long run? We have too much information at our fingertips, so it can be overwhelming to even begin researching the best way to help your mental health! If you really want to calm your nervous system and balance your mind and body, let us introduce you to the ancient holistic healing system of Ayurveda.

Translated to “the science of life”, Ayurveda is one of the world’s oldest healing systems, with roots deeply planted in ancient India. Ayurveda is a philosophy that believes our body, mind and spirit are interlinked - made up of the 5 elements of space, air, fire, water and earth. These energies (Doshas) exist in a delicate balance and influence how our bodies feel and function.

Ayurveda perceives the mind and body as interconnected, where the health of one can significantly impact the other. According to Ayurvedic psychology, the mind is not restricted to the brain and extends throughout the entire body. This includes thoughts and emotions that connect to our physical being. Have you ever had an upset stomach when feeling nervous? This is an example of how the brain can impact the body. 

How Doshas influence your mental and physical characteristics

Ayurveda categorises people based on their Doshas. Vata, Pitta, and Kapha have unique characteristics, and each person has a dominant Dosha (or a combination of two) that can influence their physical and mental attributes. Curious to see what your dominant Dosha is? Read on.

VATA

Vata consists mostly of the two elements air and space (also known as ether) and is generally described as cold, light, dry, rough, flowing, and spacious. Autumn represents vata for its cool, crisp days.

Those with the vata dosha are usually described as slim, energetic, and creative. They’re known for thinking outside the box but can become easily distracted. Their mood can be highly dependent on the weather, people around them, and foods they eat.

Strengths: learn quickly, highly creative, multitasker, kind-hearted, flexible and naturally slim.

For optimal health, a vata-dominant person should follow a regular daily routine, manage stress through meditation and other calming activities, and maintain a warm body temperature by avoiding cold weather and consuming warm foods and drinks. 

KAPHA

Kapha (pronounced “kuffa”) is based on earth and water. It is described as steady, stable, heavy, slow, cold, and soft.

People with this dosha are described as strong, thick-boned, and caring. They’re known for keeping things together and being a support system for others. Kapha-dominant people rarely get upset, think before acting, and go through life in a slow, deliberate manner.

Strengths: empathetic, caring, trusting, patient, calm, wise, happy, romantic, strong bones and joints, healthy immune system

For optimal health, a kapha-dominant person should focus on regular exercise, a healthy diet, maintain a warm body temperature and establish a regular sleep routine. 

PITTA

The Pitta Dosha is based on fire and water. It’s commonly described as hot, light, sharp, oily, liquid, and mobile. Summer is known as pitta season for its sunny, hot days.

People with pitta are said to usually have a muscular build, be very athletic, and serve as strong leaders. They’re highly motivated, goal-oriented, and competitive. Still, their aggressive and tenacious nature can be off-putting to some people, which can lead to conflict.

Strengths: intelligent, purposeful, learns quickly, self-determined, masters skills easily, strong desire for success, strong, natural leaders, good circulation, healthy skin and hair.

Those with a pitta-dominant dosha should focus on work-life balance and avoid extreme heat both with food and their environment.

Source: Healthline (https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/vata-dosha-pitta-dosha-kapha-dosha#the-three-doshas)

AYURVEDIC PRACTICES TO SUPPORT MENTAL HEALTH

Now that you’ve discovered a little more about your Dosha type, let’s explore some ways that you can incorporate Ayurveda into your daily rituals to achieve balanced mental and physical health.

Prioritise Self Care

Ayurveda highlights the importance of practising self care, including activities that nurture mental wellbeing. This could include a long walk in nature, spending quality time with family, taking a break from work and screen time or booking a massage.

Balance your diet and digestion

We all know how mentally off we can feel when our stomach doesn’t feel right. Ayurveda emphasises the importance of mindful eating with nourishing foods that compliment your dosha type to balance the body and mind. Including more fresh whole foods while cutting back on processed foods can help to harmonise gut and mental health, and Ayurveda isn’t the only one who thinks so. According to Harvard Medical School, the nervous system that regulates our gut is also known as the body’s second brain as it uses the same chemicals and cells to help us digest and alert the brain when something isn’t right.

Adopt a balanced, holistic lifestyle

Work, rest and play should align with a natural and balanced rhythm that doesn’t feel stressful or rushed. 

Avoid Overstimulation

This one is a little tricky with multiple screens at our fingertips that have become a necessity for work and communication daily. Minimising screen time and loud sensory activities, particularly before bed can contribute to a calmer nervous system and quality rest at night. Speaking of sleep…

Prioritise Sleep

We all know how important sleep is to keep our mood balanced and support physical functioning, but have you ever considered how much “quality” sleep you are getting? Establishing a consistent bedtime and creating a calming, screen free night time routine can help you settle into sleep easier, allowing you to enjoy a restful night’s sleep.

Practice Mindfulness

Mindfulness is often associated with meditation, but it’s not the only way to practise mindfulness. While meditation holds many benefits, it can be challenging for some and often causes more frustration when you can’t successfully “shut off”. Deep breathing, enjoying a healthy meal in the sunshine with no technology or even going for a walk in nature with no phone are all great ways to embrace mindfulness and encourage your busy mind to stop for a moment.

Implement Ayurvedic Self Care Rituals into your weekly routine

While booking in for a massage is nice, it’s not always realistic for most of us to enjoy this type of luxury every week. Thankfully, Ayurveda has quite a few self-care rituals that you can do at home to slow down, connect with your body and calm your nervous system. It’s important to embrace these rituals and spend time connecting with yourself and your body—without rushing.

Garshana Dry Body Brushing

Inspired by ancient Ayurvedic healing traditions, Garshana dry body brushing is a nourishing ritual that stimulates lymphatic drainage, improves the body’s natural detoxification channels and boosts circulation to revitalise and rejuvenate skin. Topically, the gentle bristles work to exfoliate and slough away dead skin cells, stimulating cellular turnover, for brighter, firmer, more radiant skin. On a deeper level, incorporating Garshana dry body brushing into your daily routine is a powerful way to implement self-care, energise the body, increase blood flow, boost overall vitality, decrease puffiness and reduce the appearance of cellulite.

For optimal results, incorporate this practice with LAMAV’s sustainable Garshana Dry Body Brush into your daily routine and always brush towards your heart to work with your body’s natural flow of lymph and promote improved blood flow.

Abhyanga Massage

Also known as “self massage”, Abhyanga Massage delivers benefits beyond the skin’s surface, encouraging daily self-care to help strengthen and balance the five essential elements within each of us and ensure our dominant Dosha is supported. Abhyanga can improve lymphatic drainage and detoxification, increase and strengthen circulation, alleviate inflammation and muscle pain and most importantly, bring calm and balance to the nervous system.

LAMAV’s Ayurvedic Body Oils have been thoughtfully crafted to help you set an intention for your Abhyanga ritual—to uplift, unwind or nourish. Here’s a quick guide on how to reap the rewards at home.

• Before showering or bathing, take your Ayurvedic Body Oil and warm it beneath hot water or between your palms.
• Begin your massage at the crown of your head, rubbing in a clockwise motion.
• For your hands and feet, use an open palm, then increase to upwards and downwards strokes to massage your arms and legs.
• To help assist with your body’s natural flow of digestion and promote improved detoxification, use circular clockwise motions on your belly.
• Follow with upward strokes towards your chest, from underneath the breasts up towards your collarbone and neck.
• And finally, finish with your lower back, using your fingertips to massage in a downwards motion to energise the body.

Kansa Wand Facial Massage

Just as our bodies benefit from massage, so too do our facial muscles. The practice of Ayurvedic Kansa Massage has been around for centuries and is considered sacred due to its ability to bring harmony to the mind and body—balancing the doshas, unblocking energy channels and improving the body’s natural healing mechanisms. LAMAV’s Ayurvedic Kansa Wand not only helps to boost circulation and improve lymphatic drainage, but also assists in detoxifying and refreshing dull skin.