Hello lovely people,

Earlier this week in my mail out, I shared with you a little practice about balancing the Sacro-Iliac joint. It was a video inspired by the week’s theme of balance.

I reflected with you in that mail out, the many ways in which we all strive for balance. And it’s often as if life conspires against, isn’t it? There is always another pressure, ask of us, or unexpected turn of events around the corner in our personal and collective lives, right? Life is change, as the mystics have told us. And so whilst we strive for balance, it is like walking a “razor’s edges” to coin a term the mystics use. It’s all too easy to lose balance.

I mentioned in the video that the sacro-iliac joint can be destabilised by our stresses, as well as by postural anomalies. From an Ayurveda perspective, this is perhaps because the sacro-iliac joint is in the Vata zone of the body. Yes, each dosha (Ayurveda humour) has its own seat in the body. And as Vata is the dosha responsible for movement, in the body and in the mind, when the movement goes up in our minds with lots of mental activity and overthinking, and when our nervous systems are charged, there is likely to be a consequence also in this Vata region of the body. It might be in the lower back region, around the sacro-iliac joint, or in the large intestine in front of it. The large intestine is a Vata organ.

There has been much research, hasn’t there, into the connection between low back pain and stress. Maybe you notice that when you are stressed, your back pain (if you tend towards it) increases? Also, when we are stressed and pressured we tend to eat less well, less regularly and digest what we eat less well. This can all have it’s effect on the colon/large intestine, with bloating, gas, feeling tired after eating, and difficult or irregular elimination.

No matter what our Ayurveda type, we all want to be taking care to keep Vata dosha balanced. Vata dosha moves the other doshas also, allowing them to function as it is the only dosha with the capacity for movement.  And so an imbalanced Vata dosha will sooner or later impact your other doshas, creating discomfort, unease and possibly symptoms in the body and mind.

The extra bit of news is that now we have moved into the Harvest season, and have just passed Lammas, we are in the lovely months of Late Summer. The fields are golden, many of the trees (in this area at least) are laden with fruits and nuts: apples, plums, sloe, hazelnuts are growing, rosehips. The Late Summer light is beautiful, isn’t it?

And, like me, you maybe take all this natural abundance as a sign that Autumn is on the way. It means we are in a seasonal transition. Transition = movement, yes? And so transitions are a time when we want to pay extra attention to Vata dosha to stay in balance in body and mind.

As Vata dosha is about movement, there is also the tendency towards irregularity in Vata: irregular digestion, sleep, elimination, changing mood and energy levels. It is therefore regularity in our lifestyles and eating patterns that will help us to antidote the effects of the rising Vata within and around us.

This is the time of year to pay attention to not overdoing things. Take rest before the Autumn arrives. It is not by chance that late July and August are our traditional holiday times! Be mindful of your mind becoming overactive and your nervous system feeling a little wired, especially if you are a Vata dosha type.

I felt this the other day, when I had a lot to get through. It would have been so easy to say “I don’t have time”, but I sat myself down once I noticed a kind of buzzing in my nervous system for a late afternoon pranayama. Just 5-10 minutes of alternate nostril breathing, in the late afternoon (the Vata time of day by the way!) and/or before sleep can go a long way towards pacifying Vata dosha. And practicing this pranayama on waking is going to reset your nervous system for the day ahead.

As life asks more and more of us, and becomes more challenging with the cost of living crisis, with so much going on in the world at large, it is almost imperative that we take care of our nervous systems with daily pranayama. Can you prioritise this above any other Yoga or meditation practice you might do? If there is not much time for practice….just 5-10 mins alternate nostril breathing. Make it non-negotiable. I think you’ll understand now what a difference it is going to make to your mental and physical well-being and balance.

Gentle walks in nature daily are also soothing to the nervous system and mind, as is Yoga nidra.

Eat at regular times, and “when eating eat”, meaning try not to multitask. Put all other activities aside and sit quietly whilst you eat, and leave a little time for digestion before getting back into the busy-ness of your day.

I hope these tips help and give you an idea of good ways to stay in balance at this time of year. In Ayurveda we see it as crucial for the way our bodies (especially) and minds navigate the challenging darker and cooler days ahead.

If you’d like to explore balancing your Ayurveda doshas further,  and/or reducing symptoms, please book a discovery call and we can have a chat about it, or book an Ayurveda consultation and let’s get you on a balancing, personalised programme.

I also have several introductory Ayurveda workshops coming up around Warwickshire and Oxfordshire in the Autumn. Details will be on my EVENTS CALENDAR soon.

And, of course, there is always a chance to learn more deeply on my AYURVEDA LIVING COURSE if you are feeling really drawn to bringing the empowering wisdom of Ayurveda more completely into your life.  Please click the button below to find out more.

PS! Mother Nature always gives us the foods we need to combat the effects of the season. Especially if you have Pitta dosha in your constitutional type, look out for my blog coming soon on seasonal foods for reducing excess Pitta (heat) that might have accumulated through the Summer, especially if you have been in some of the very hot climates this Summer.