Tag: ayurveda

Trapped emotions: Time to let go! 🙌

by drjurisharma, posted in brain, cognitive health, emotional health, healing, health, Life, mental health, Science, wellness

Hello everyone ! Have a wonderful and safe day 🙋🏻

As a human being…

Everybody in this world has a deep longing for love and affection. From the new born to the older adult, everybody yearns the sense of belonging, love and compassion. Social acceptance, being valued, and recognition is longed for by one and all in the human community. Infact, we all deserve our inherent birthright of being loved, happiness, vitality, freedom, fearless and growth. So, then, from where does the negativity arise? A child being born is always happy and cheerful. It is the environment, caregivers, parents, teachers, elders, peers, and the competetive nature of this material world that pushes the child towards negativity, egoistic, pain, fear and unhappiness. These growing years, his interaction with the people around him, the environment that slowly programmed his subconscious mind with doubts, anxiety, worries, sadness, lacks and unhappiness. So, like you and me, every individual has grown up with our share of fear, limitations, and inadequacy.

Trapped emotions impact on physical health…
Within this paradigm of limitation and inadequacy in our subconscious mind, we move forward with the life journey. We are then, bombarded with challenges of day-to-day stress, relationship stress, work pressure, financial strain, and other constraints that affect our emotional health even more. Maybe, bad experiences, conflict with parents, loss of a closed one, heartbreak, deep trauma due to a failure, a toxic boss, rejection, and anger can all be overwhelming and add to our emotional baggage. We may think that emotions come and go. We can get over it, quickly or healed after some time. But, the truth is, certain emotions are’nt so superficial. Infact, it has a lasting impact on both our physical and mental health. Studies have shown that certain intense emotions get trapped in particular organs of our body. Like, anger gets trapped in the liver, while hurt, fear get trapped in the heart and so on. Ancient Ayurvedic science which is 5000 years old has rightly pointed out that too much of trapped emotions like anger, worry, chronic stress can create too much heat (Pitta) in the body which may affect the hameostasis and start creating physical illness. So, the emotional component is critical in the overall wellbeing. In reality, it is the emotional health and wellbeing that transcend physical health. Hence, the term disease means (dis-ease, absence of ease).

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Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2017; 2017: 7618419.

Published online 2017 Aug 22. doi: 10.1155/2017/7618419

Emotional health is crucial…

Fundamentally, our mind and body are designed to be in a state of growth, restore, repair and relax. Yes, in times of potential threat and danger, the body reacts to the survival mode of fight and flight response. But, then as evolutionary, the body naturally comes back to its state of homeostasis when the threat is gone. The parasympathetic mode’s natural restoration mechanism is greatly affected by the daily’s state of chronic stress, being on the run, and always being overwhelmed. Moreover, this everyday struggle within our emotional health of mental barriers, mindset, limitations, fears, and worries added to day-to-day stress. So, leading a healthy lifestyle and caring about physical fitness has not stopped people from falling sick. People follow the best possible diet, take their best supplements, and follow an exercise routine, yet they fall into various illnesses like chronic diseases, mental issues and autoimmune diseases. Now, it has become very crucial to consider emotional health, a priority before everthing else. Maybe, this is the most critical component in our path of mental, physical, spiritual wellbeing and being a successful person we all longed to be.

It is vital to slow down...
It is essential to annalyse our emotional and mental state daily, introspect at times, and slow down to understand what affects us the most. It is crucial to change the way we think, elevate our vibration, be in the positive mind space and overcome the mental barrier if we want to take charge of our mental and physical heath and wellbeing. As, for all of us, it is much easier said than done. But, indeed, we have to put some efforts on our own to make our life the way we want it to be. To take control of our physical and mental wellbeing and be in a happy, comfortable space that we all longed for.

Some ways that we can work towards for self-improvement:
1. Self-acceptance: Being aware and acceptance is an essential and fundamental change. Any circumstances, any issue or conflict that we are facing, in terms of physical or mental health, needs self-acceptance. Self-resisting, self-denial, result in more stress, conflict, and high cortisol release, which makes us unfavourable to heal or change. So, self-acceptance and being self-aware is an essential step towards change. It is necessary to accept, share with a closed one or a therapist and let go the emotional baggage. Sharing with somebody or writing down the emotions and thoughts helps us acknowledge them better and give ourselves time and space to change. Meditation and mindfullness practices also helps us in emotional growth.


2. Victimhood: Instead of living in victimhood mentality, or self-blaming, starting to explore ways and methods to be part of the healing process. Suppose, somebody is being affected by a physical or mental issue must be an integral part of the healing process. Taking responsibility and works towards healing instead of surrendering yourself fully in caregivers’ hands. It is crucial to actively partcipate in the healing process.


3. Self-compassion and patience: It is vital to approach onself with self-compassion. Being compassionate towards self, putting oneself in the right frame of mind dramatically counts. Because failing or falling is the very essence of human nature. Having faith in the Higher Power and a lot of patience is beneficial in the healing process. Because, like good times, adverse times, doesn’t last long too.

Thanks for reading.

Blessings and much love to all 💐

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Food and mood 😇

by drjurisharma, posted in Life, nature

Hello everyone ! Have a wonderful and safe Sunday 🙋🏻

There is an old Spanish proverb “The belly rules the mind” which is indeed true. Food, not only has a significant impact on the physical body and overall health but also on our day to day thinking, decision making, and the entire mental health as well. This saying has been prevalent among various faiths and belief systems from the ancient time. Science has proved in recent times in various researched-based studies.

According to the widely practised Yogic and Ayurvedic literature, everything that is matter arises from a fundamental source called Prakriti (meaning Mother Nature). So, the three primary Gunas (qualities) arises from Mother Nature. The three primary Gunas which are present in all objects and beings surrounding us are – Tamas, Rajas and Sattva. We, human unlike other beings or objects can choose the level of the three qualities in our individual lives and minds depending upon our choices of food, lifestyle and the kind of thoughts we like to cultivate. Our wellbeing and health mainly depend on these preferences. The three states are relative, and keep changing during our day to day life depending on our food choices and lifestyle preferences. Therefore, the three states are:

Satva: It is a state of beingness, in balance, in harmony and a favourable condition. For these qualities to nurture, we need to adapt to the food, that comes directly from Mother Nature. The food that comes from the soil and not from factories. To maintain calmness of mind, we have to adopt and practise Yoga, meditation regularly, which keep the mind stable and peaceful. Such a state is an ideal state of health and wellbeing free from diseases.

Rajas: This is the state of mind related to desires, passion, longing and attachment to worldly pleasures, excessive material goods, excessive work, excessive exercising and even extreme thinking. When we have this state of mind, there is craving for fried, spicy food and stimulants like alcohol, smoking and all sorts of other stimulants.

Tamas: This state of mind is darkness, ignorance and passive.
It is the most unproductive state of mind. Such a state mainly attracts overeating, oversleeping, passive state, fearful state. This state of mind mostly attracts fatty meat, processed and refined food.

So, the kind of food, we have on our plate, that we consume every day, or with each meal determines the state of mind, thought process, our prospects of the world, people around us. Therefore, in yogic practises, the ultimate goal is to cultivate the practice of Satva, adopt Satvic food to be close to our Creator, our beingness, our most authentic self.

Not just mentioned in ancient literature, food impact on both physical and mental health have been studied in several research-based projects all over the world in recent times. For decades, we have been surrounded by sugary, refined, processed and fatty foods, which are like impossible to avoid. Because of their easy accessibility, binging on this kind of foods has made it difficult for the body to deal with them. Apart from causing multiple physical health issues, including lifestyle diseases and obesity, they are grievous for our mental health and brain too. Researches have found out; junk foods are not only killing our health but also causes the shrinking of our brain. The primary functions of the brain being the cognitive functions, the ability to think, perform challenging tasks have found to impact the wrong kind of nutrition. Such a diet is found to have a long term effect on normal brain activities and memory. Habitual intake of such foods changes and alter the programming of the brain.

An Australian study found that not just in the adults and adolescence. Still, pregnant women, too who fed on junk foods, gave birth to children who were more aggressive, fearful, throw tantrums and has less tolerable personality. Without Omega 3 fatty acids, and other nutrients dense food, the brain does not develop naturally.Some more information on Omega three fatty acids https://healthhappinesshealing.org/wp-admin/post.php?post=3844&action=edit

So to conclude, the impact of nutrition in the overall health is wholesome. Not just the diseases but also chronic health issues like autoimmune diseases, obesity, heart diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, cancers, celiac disease, irritable bowel syndrome, thyroid issues can be controlled and well managed by changing the diet and lifestyle. Even the impact of nutrition on mental health has been immense. So, with proper diet and lifestyle changes, depression, mood disorders and day to day cognitive functions thought process, task performance, agility, tolerance, decision-making skills could all be improved.

Thanks for reading.

Blessings and much love to all 💐

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Post: Health trends forever.

by drjurisharma, posted in healing, health, mental health, wellness

Like fashion, health trends keep changing with every passing year. There are a craze for particular diets (like keto, paleo, vegan ) and particular fitness techniques (Zumba, Equinox, pilates) which reaches a peak and slowly die down. In spite of each year coming up with a new concept of diet or fitness method, interestingly people are more leaning towards basics.


The concept of a simple basic diet comprising of fresh local produce and ample amount of physical activity which was never a part of the trend nor sounds fancy is timeless and considered the healthiest. This remains the basic key to healthier life irrespective of new health trends coming and going.

Certain health concepts which were never a part of the trends are here to stay forever. 

Ayurveda: An ancient Indian form of healing about 5000 years old, has the concept of holistic healing when there is collective healing of mind, body and soul. Hence, the ayurvedic herbs and spices have become so popular across the world for their tremendous health benefits and immune-boosting properties. Off late, it has been very popular in the Western world.

The other day, I went into an organic store to get my organic green tea. I was quite surprised to see all ayurvedic herbs powder like Ashwagandha, neem, Brahmi, cumin, moringa, amla, turmeric powder and even more, some of which I am not even aware. This wasn’t an Indian store. This was quite unusual for me, as the city in Europe where I live, there aren’t too many Indians.
Again turmeric is one spice, which has become so popular now, worldwide, for its magnificent health benefits and is no longer limited as a cooking ingredient in Indian cooking. It has been a common ingredient in smoothies, milkshakes and even ice creams.

Stanford professor Michel Serres hikes the Dish on a regular basis.

Back to basics: Though gymming and workouts have been very popular, people are leaning more towards the simple physical activity of walking, running, swimming, cycling. The importance of plant-based fibre diet is a timeless concept which not only helps to maintain lean body weight but also helps to prevent lifestyle diseases.


The importance of Mother nature is the best healer has gained great momentum in recent years. Nature, the hills, trees, rivers, the very sounds of birds chirping are very soothing and rejuvenating not only for the wellbeing of physical health but also heals the mind from the day to day stress and routine anxieties.

Japanese Healthy Lifestyle: Japanese concept of living have been quite popular too because it is known to have some of its longest living citizens. They live with a simple concept of happiness, living with small joys of life which result in fulfilling life. Their unique method of cooking with the all-natural ingredient with very less oil and minimum cooking restoring the flavour and nutrients. People old and young lead a very active physical life.

Some concepts which are also seen to have been quite popular and are pretty much in are :

Gut health: People have understood the importance of maintaining a healthy gut. About 70% of our body’s immunity depends on gut health. So, the food containing pre and probiotic bacteria like yoghurt, saurerkraut, khimchi and kefir have become very popular. You can find these items in every other food outlet. Buttermilk has been a popular drink. Other forms of milk which are here to stay for their soothing health benefits are oats milk, almond milk and rice milk. Coconut and coconut milk has been very much in.

Other methods of maintaining gut health are tongue scraping and oil pulling. This was an Ayurvedic morning ritual but now has become a mainstream recommendation for its tremendous benefits. During night time, while the body’s digestion progresses, the undigested toxins and bacteria are deposited in the tongue to dispose of as wastes. So, it is important to clean the tongue properly otherwise, the toxins might get reabsorbed.

Mind healing: Mental wellbeing is as important as physical wellbeing for holistic health. Our thoughts, emotions and feeling do count for a whole well-being state. Routine workouts and healthy eating are not enough for overall wellbeing, it is very important to have a healthy mind as well. So mindful practises, yoga and meditation are some important practices which are here to stay forever.

Cortisol conscious workouts: This is a conscious step which has been given much importance off late as routine heavy workout can result in peaked level of cortisol. Since most of the workout techniques involve a high level of stress and exertion, the cortisol ( stress hormone) level is pumped up at a continuous elevated level. This is important to be regulated as high levels are very harmful to the body. So, the choice of workout, clubbed with simple routine activities and how far you can push yourself needs to be regulated to keep the body cortisol in balance. (details in one of my previous post https://healthhappinesshealing.org/2019/08/07/post-cortisol-vigilant-workout-3-important-reasons/)