HeyMonicaB

…we ALL screen, to rely on screens! Jeez, those screens! Tv screen, computer screen, ipad/nook/kindle screen, phone screen, so many many screens. Even writing the word “screen” that many times on a screen makes my brain crossed into thinking I spelled it wrong. *uncross*

Most of us work on those screens all day only to come home and spend more time on screens at night. Email, online shopping, blogging, gaming, tv-ing, and of course Facebooking, are just a few examples of how these screens can sneak into our worlds and suck up our time! The thing about screens is that they are not alive. They don’t have prana. They make us feel tired rather than energized. We might even feel like we have “no time” because time seems to vanish into the abyss of the screen and before we know it, it’s way past bedtime. Friends, screens are vata increasing. They can cause sleep problems, depression, anxiety, evoke a sense of loneliness and low self worth. And, of course, cause eye problems (pitta). We need a break from these things, so unplug each night at least an hour before bedtime.

Screens have their purpose, for sure! But they don’t need to trump exercise, healthy eating, healthy sleep, fun hobbies, the outdoors, and time with family. Those are LIFE! Screens are not. So, while we rely on them to get our work done and sometimes it’s fun to watch a good tv show, I encourage you to put down the screen once in a while. I challenge you to try three evenings in a row with no screens. And I want your feedback!

Most times we are just zoning out–it’s not like we really care what’s on the screen anyway. So, think of all the other things you can do. Some ideas: play music, watch a fireplace, practice yoga, write in your journal about the day (maybe you’re mad at MonicaB for taking away your screens), read a magazine or a book, take a bath, go for a walk, swap massages with your mate, search for new recipes, make dinner, prepare lunch for tomorrow, send a card to your grandma, call a friend, snuggle with your dog or cat, massage your tootsies. Look at that! Once the screens are out of the way, there are so many other things you can do to fuel your soul. Let me know when you’re all fueled up, prana-filled, and feeling fresh as the morning dew. Promise! xoxo

(sing to the melody of “The Wheels on the Bus”)
The hours in the day go round and round. Round and round. Round and round. The hours in the day go round and round and before you know it, it’s TEN.

Hey! Ever listen to my radio show? Do you know the little song in the beginning called, “Life In One Day” by Howard Jones? Don’t try to live your life in one day, don’t go speed your time away. It was my mantra song when I was in my 20s, although back then I never followed it. In fact, I’m just starting to be at peace with not getting everything done. Like most of you, I work a 40-hour a week job, I have animals, a husband, a baby, and a beloved blog (Let’s not forget time-sucking facebook, which I am trying to spend less time on). I thought my schedule before baby was busy, but the wheels have come off that bus and there is no way to maintain that once adding a wee baby to the mix. It’s time to accept there are so many hours in a day. Ten o’clock p.m./Ayurvedic bedtime comes up mighty quick these days.

I’ve been beating myself up about not posting enough. Heaven knows I’ve got gobs of ideas (don’t worry, I’m noting them), I just don’t have gobs of time. Then I get sad. But THEN I get happy. Know why? Because it’s my job to live as we all do AND incorporate Ayurveda at the same time. And in that, I think I’m doing okay! Lookey. I’m not going to stay up until midnight to write blog posts – it’s not Ayurvedically healthy! But, I am going to take time to make my daughter’s baby food from scratch – because it’s healthy! And, I’m going to do my best at my job – because it feels good. And, I am going to take the dogs for a walk after work – because it’s good exercise! And I’m going to eat dinner with my husband – because we deserve time together. And once a week, we even watch one 21:43 minute tv show on hulu – because we enjoy it (Up All Night!). And, I have to go to bed by 10:00 – because otherwise I’ll feel like crud.

The priority list of “must do’s” can be an overwhelmingly long for any one of us. But look at the contents of the previous paragraph. Highlights include, eating good food, spending time with family, doing a good job at work, exercising, having downtime, and getting good sleep. THAT is Ayurveda in practice. More than eating ghee or making time for sesame oil massage (while those are great), this is the simple foundation that makes a good life and provides good health.

What I recommend is to do just a few things that are necessary for today, a few to make tomorrow a little easier, and a few just for kicks. That is balance, my friends. Don’t forget “just for kicks!” Stay happy in your evolving world. So, I guess that while I feel bad about not enough blog posts, I can also feel good about setting the best example possible. We can’t create more hours in the day, but we can learn to become happier within the hours we have. Love you guys. xoxo

Hey Monica! I’ve been having the same little sad ball issue for awhile (I went from pitta poo (as you know) – to this). Anyway, I KNOW that ghee is one of your first recommendations to cure the sad balls (esp. for vatas) but I am AFRAID to eat ghee. I know it is clarified butter and that just says cholesterol and weight-gain for me. You said above that you won’t gain weight from ghee, etc. Why is that since it is butter? What about cholesterol? This post might be a bit late, like a vata in distress, I also just sent out my Christmas cards last week! (fyi, she wrote this on January 13th, 2012. Ha ha!)

GREAT question and thank you for bringing this up. Certainly you are not the only person who wants to know, “Does ghee make me fat?” Raise your hands if it has crossed your mind that eating ghee will make you gain weight. Ohhh…that’s what I THOUGHT! Look around the room, see? You’re not alone. Leave your hands up if you are a vata. Ah-HAH, just as I thought. See, vatas always ask the “Will it make me fat?!” question and the irony is that vatas are the dosha least likely to gain weight no matter what they eat. In fact, vatas need extra fats yet they are most paranoid about eating them.

Now, let me get to the answer of this question because I know you all have little vata ants in your pants. GHEE DOES NOT MAKE YOU FAT. Feel better? ;) Let me explain.

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GHEE FACTS:

Ghee is balancing for vata and pitta. Kaphas can have ghee in moderation. Vatas need the oil and agni stoke from ghee. Pittas need the agni stoke and the cooling effect ghee has. Kaphas need just a little ghee because they are already oily and cool.

Ghee is the only fat that actually increases agni (digestive fire/metabolism)! So imagine eating a super tasty fat that increases your ability to digest and assimilate foods as well as give a little boost in the metabolism department. Yum, magic!

Different than butter, ghee does not cling to our insides to make a cloggy mess. In fact, it very mildly pulls toxins out it goes through our bod.

Ghee “butters” the insides and helps us maintain regular digestion (per the question above).

Ghee melts when you touch it, even at room temperature and it seeps deep into our tissues to keep our bodies supple. Butter does not. You can even put ghee on a mild burn (cooling, remember) and you cannot with butter.

Ghee has a high smoke point and won’t burn in the pan, so you can sautee veggies or spices in it and add to your favorite dishes.

Ghee is a sattvic food;  foods that promote total harmony in the body-mind. Our minds get easy so instead of worrying if ghee makes us fat, we can simply enjoy it. On a larger scale, our focus in life turns to enjoyment rather than worry.

In Ayurveda, using ghee is said to lower cholesterol!

Butter does NONE of these things! They are different foods. Butter and ghee are not the same thing.

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But you might not still believe me. Well, let’s flashback to the 90′s. Remember when you were eating SnackWell’s cookies by the box because we were told we could eat any foods as long as we didn’t eat fat? And, remember how you didn’t lose any weight by not eating fat? Our bodies need fat—it’s essential to our vitality, intelligence, digestion, happiness (fat keeps us happy!), and strength. When we eat good amounts of fat, it tastes good going down, therefore we are satiated, and therefore, we eat less. We don’t need to gobble SnackWell’s by the boxfull because one baked apple with a touch of melted ghee, brown sugar, cinnamon and cardamom will leave our tummies and minds satisfied for hours.

Now, I’m not saying eat gobs o’ ghee, simply just substitute ghee for your butter or oil. Really! Just use it as you would any other fat, about 3-4 tblsp per day. Spread it on toast, drizzle on rice or pasta, bake it with apples or pears, use on your grilled cheese instead of butter, or put a tsp in your oatmeal to help you “go” in the morning.

Give it a try for a week and see if your sad little balls are remedied. You will not gain weight in a week, that I promise. In addition, be sure to stay hydrated too. Ghee + water are a vata girl’s best friend. Become friends with ghee, your body will thank you! Let me know if this helps! xo.

Please read The Joy of Quiet New York Times article, then turn off your screens for the night. Enjoy quiet tranquility for the eyes, ears, heart and mind. Shhhhhhhh… (whispering) it’s good for us.

If you’ve got a sweetie sweet tooth, try subbing a couple medjool dates instead of eating candies. Dates are super sweet and grounding. Good for vata and pitta. And! Since they come from nature, they are way better for our bods than candy. I promise your sweet tooth will be satisfied, sweetie. xoxo.

One of Ayurveda’s finest foundations is teaching us about disease prevention. How awesome! If we don’t get sick in the first place, we will never feel like crud or need to take medicine. Brill! If we live according to who we are as individuals, mind the seasons and follow the daily routine, we should be in pretty good shape. Yes. But DUDE, what happens when we follow our diligent Ayurvedic plan and we get sick anyway?! Boo.

Despite us being good little Ayurvedees, we might get sick from time to time. Last night we found ourselves in the E.R. because my 6 month old had a barking cough accompanied by fast, shallow, wheezy breaths. She has croup! Rats. We were at the hospital from 10 p.m. until 2 a.m. where she got steroid shots, baby tylenol and steam treatment (loved that).

I bring this up because it was hard for me, “Miss Ayurveda” to watch while my daughter was getting western treatment (except for the steam– Ayurveda smiles on steam). I felt uncomfortable, skeptical, pessimistic and definitely judgmental. I’m paranoid about every poke, prod, prick, pill, and potion they recommend. But then…I took a step back to remind myself western medicine, while not my preferred method of health care, definitely has its place. Last night we really, really needed it. The steroids helped open her throat so that she could breathe better, the tylenol helped reduce her fever and the steam calmed, cooled and moistened her tense, hot, and dry cough. Ayurvedic methods (that I’m aware of, anyway) could not have worked that fast and in this case we didn’t have time to wait.

So here’s what. If you are really working on managing your life through Ayurveda, remember there is a time and a place for Western and Eastern sciences to coexist. If you want to manage your sickies through a natural route do the best you can, but don’t feel like you have to suffer.

The best thing to do is use both sciences where they excel. Western medicine is good for emergencies and occasional, short-lived symptom management. Eastern medicine is good for disease prevention including, good nutrition, stress management, proper sleep, daily exercise and overall healthy habits for you as an individual. So, if you need to see a doc, ask him what the cause of your sickness might be. He will probably give you meds to ease the symptoms too, but then you’ll be armed with knowledge to prevent it next time. For example, we found out that croup was caused by low immunity (we did a lot of travel over the holidays which probably was taxing on her) and dry, hot air. Ah, hah! We had the heat on in our place and L.A. is definitely dryer than dry. So going forward, we’ll keep the heat lower and crank the humidifier.

Remember, if you get sick it doesn’t mean that yoga or Ayurveda or acupuncture isn’t working. Most likely you’re much less sick than those around you! Just get as much information from your healthcare professional as possible! You deserve to know what may have caused your issue. And if they can’t help you, find an Ayurvedic person near you so they can assess your habits and give you ideas for disease prevention. :)

Wheeeewey! Well I feel better, don’t you? We finally got some rain after that long drought! What drought, you ask?
(whispering) I haven’t posted anything since December 9th!! And it’s January 2!
I feel like I skipped out on art class for 3 weeks and just walked in, tail between my legs, with an unfinished painting and classmates that wondered what happened to me. I kinda feel guilty!
(whispering) I actually never skipped out on art class, but Geology was another story.
Well, nothing happened except having a job-job, motherhood, wifehood, dogs-ownerhood, and holidayhood. That’s all. Just living the life and wearing lots of hats. Er, hoods.

Anyway, enough of that, a NEW YEAR just started! Yahoo! Many people choose January 1 as the day to turn over a new leaf and rework their life habits. I don’t think that’s a bad plan. The only bad thing is punishing yourself or quitting all together if you get off kilter. If you made a resolution for 2012 already, remember to have forgiveness and tenacity. Meaning, don’t beat yourself up for not adhering to perfection (psshhht…who’s perfect afterall) but at the same time, don’t throw your hands up and quit if it’s not easy. There is a fine line. Two steps forward, one step back is still one step forward. Right? Cool.

I put together some DOSHA-lutions that you might like if you are having trouble deciding what to work on. These are suggestions based on your dosha! So, more than a resolution, this is a dosha-lution which is based solely on what will benefit your life and body-mind. The goal is to build upon your dosha-lutions over time so you build yourself new habits and a better way of living healthy! Remember to pick just one thing to work on. Too many things just sets us up for failure, so choose one and give it a go!

Refuse to pay fees at the ATM. Vatas usually fly by the seat of their pants which can have them spending more for last minute conveniences like ATM fees. Refusing to pay fees at ATMs as a dosha-lution will help vatas plan ahead to make sure they have cash in hand and it will help them save money!

Automate your savings. Figure out how much money you need per pay check and set up an automatic transfer to savings, leaving only the amount that you need in your checking. This way, you can spend everything in your checking account (woohoo!) and you’ll never see what you’re saving. One day you will be pleasantly surprised to see how much is in there!

Put yourself second and listen. Vatas can bowl people over with their enthusiasm in sharing what’s happening in their lives. While their energy is usually infectious and positive, they tend to talk way more than they listen which can be a little overwhelming for other doshas. Why not put the focus on someone else first. Before gushing with your stories, ask theirs. Ask how they are and make it a point to listen so intently that you can recite the details the next day (or two) when you talk to them again. They will be flattered and touched that you care so much and your heart will feel awesome that you’ve touched their lives. Bonus for vata too because vatas LOVE to touch lives.

Card stash. Vatas are mega multi-taskers and while their heart is always in the right place, their brain might not be. Birthday cards, anniversaries, baby congrats, shower gifts, wedding cards,  thank yous, and other courteous correspondence might fall to the wayside because of their busying and dizzying schedules. Remember, vatas love to touch lives! So, get a stash of cute, blank cards, forever stamps, even keep some birthday cards. When you want to write a note to Granny, you’ll have everything you need without having to run around town like a nutter ;)

Eat 3 square meals. Not 8 tiny ones. I know you.

Leave work on time. Pittas will work and work and work and work and work until their little heads explode and then they get pissy (wouldn’t you if your head exploded?). So why get to that point? If you are supposed to work until 5, leave at 5:00. Stress is the number one killer, people. The work will be there tomorrow and you will still have a job because you ROCK at what you do and people love you. So go home and have a nice night.

Limit talk radio. I know you like to be informed of all things happening everywhere in the world all the time (especially when you can debate about it), but dude, the constant chatter and news will increase stress levels without you knowing it. In at least one direction on your daily commute, opt for the classical or electronica chill station instead.

Volunteer. Pittas can get locked tight in their minds about their personal and professional goals and sometimes they forget there is a world out there that needs assistance. Take a time out once a month and volunteer with something that resonates. Women’s shelters need visitors, animal rescue groups need dog walkers and bathers, psychiatric wards sometimes use therapy dogs (if you have a nice doggie, talk to your local ASPCA and they might be able to hook you up), kids need tutors, or flex those muscles and move some rice bags around at your local food bank. Pittas need to be reminded to live through their HEART to find compassion. Volunteering is a great way to do that. Backbends are good too ;)

Bed by 10. I know you get your second wind after 10pm, but please sleep. Your gray hair and/or receding hairline (pitta traits!) are tell tale signs that you think a LOT. Your brain needs rest and so does your bod. If you got more sleep, you would be more alert and efficient during the day so that you can leave on time (double dosha-lution whammy!!).

Light Dinner. Kaphas digestion is slow so they tend to put on weight easily. Having a light dinner will help keep their bodies and minds light. When dinner is too heavy it sits in our guts all night long, making it tough to wake up. If dinner is smaller and easily digested, you’ll wake up like a spring chicken!

Daily walk. Incorporating a 20 minute brisk walk each day before or after work will make kaphas feel light and happy. Just 20 minutes! If it’s tough, come home and immediately put on your walking pants and shoes – and out the door! Not enough exercise results in a slew of health problems including weight gain, lethargy and depression, especially in kaphas. One of the very best things kaphas can do is to move their bods regularly!

De-clutter. Come on kaphas, you don’t need to keep the lucky socks you had in college. Okay maybe keep those but toss out the four pairs of back up lucky socks you have ;) When kaphas clean and de-clutter they feel instantly light, fresh, and renewed. Choose small, frequent projects and begin to get rid of stuff you don’t use. One project might be a junk drawer. Next project might be under your bathroom sink. Just do one tiny thing a week. If you try to tackle too much, it will take an entire day and you will hate it. If you break it down into small 30 minute bits, you won’t think it’s a pain. Before you know it your dwelling will be sparkley clean and you’ll feel like clickin your heels!

Once a week, do something new. Kahpas love routine and rarely stray from it. In fact, it makes them downright uncomfortable to have to try something new. However, branching out is a great way to infuse light and energy into a stagnant kapha. So once a week, try something new to stay on your toes. Go to a new coffee shop, take a different walking route (double dosha-lutions whammy!!), go do a different Walgreens, taste something new, even stir your tea in the opposite direction. It could be anything! Just make sure you aren’t buying something new because that will lead to more stuff that you are already trying to de-clutter. ;)

If you have any suggestions for specific dosha-lutions, I would love to hear them! There are GOBS of ideas out there and the more we come up with, the juicer life gets! Yeehaw! xoxo.

Are holiday drinkies botching up your “I want to live healthier!” intentions? Enjoy this repost with some tips on how to party healthy, including recipes for Holiday Mocktails: http://bit.ly/gBDSAT

Hoh-kay! Since vata season brings on the big chill, most people focus on staying warm. We pile on the clothes and crank up the heat in our homes and in our cars, overlooking that the heated air is extremely dry. So not only does vata season bring on the big chill but it also brings on the big dry! Ayurvedically speaking, using warmth to balance vata is logical and correct, but we can’t forget about moisture. I recently mentioned that we need oils in our bodies so we don’t dry out, and along the same lines our atmosphere also needs more moisture. I always think about a vata balancing atmosphere as the tropics, where the surrounding nature is warm and humid. In the tropics, plants are dewy, green, and lush. The air is thick, moist and heavy. The nature there has a little bounce, sponginess and flexibility. Nothing is brown, dry, brittle or cracked.

Ah ha! So more than warmth, there is a dense, wet, heaviness that many of us forget about when trying to balance our vata dosha. *ding! ding!* Welcome to balancing vata! Since most of us can’t just fly to Thailand to get our fix, there are some simple things you can do to make your home feel like a tropical paradise.

• Humidifier. Stick one in your bedroom and you’ll sleep like a baby. This is also great to calm a dry cough. If I could have it my way, I would live in a room that’s 80 degrees with 80-90% humidity. Hellooooooo vata zen!
• Boil a pot of water on your stove. It will humidify the air nicely. And especially if you live in a small apartment, the air will get nice and thick fairly quickly.
• Steam bath or shower. Steam it up in the bathroom (tip: if you are a sloppy vata and don’t fold your clothes, hang them in the bathroom on a hanger and the steam will get out the wrinkles) and take some deep inhales. Bring in your favorite aromatherapy oil and drip on the floor. Leave the door open when you’re done for instant humidifying.
• Oil up! To keep the moisture “sealed” on your bod, use a little almond or sesame oil in the shower to keep moisture in.
• Ocean white noise. Okay so it’s not real moisture, but if you have a white noise machine or a smart phone with a white noise app, use the ocean setting! Turn it up! Visualizing a tropical place will help our vata mind settle and become instantly peaceful.

If you have other creative ideas to bring on the tropics, please do share! Once you increase heat AND moisture, your vata will sink into it’s virtual hammock to enjoy the get away.

In case you missed it last year, I created “Good Morning” mugs that came with homemade chai mix for the holidays. Since it’s chilly outside, now is the perfect season for a hot, spicy, velvety cup of chai. If you need some little gifts, stuffers, or hostess gifts the mug is cute and inspiring. And the chai is really yummy (if I do say so myself) too!

Find the mugs and chai on my etsy store. Happy Shopping! xoxo

Staying positive isn’t always natural, it takes practice! Make a conscious effort to find the silver lining out of what you might normally see as a bummer. When you ask, “What could possibly be good about this?!” you will find the good. Over and over we practice, and soon our internal world becomes much sunnier no matter what is happening around us :)

Cheerio! It’s vata season and over the past week, I’ve received several requests for me to talk about constipation and other vata digestion issues. I’ve always been pretty candid (pitta) and there’s no turning back now, so I’ll just keep going. Here’s what. My dear friend had a question for me this week about her poo. She said she was only pooping sad little balls. That made me sad, so I put together some ideas so that her poo gets back on track. Please see below and excuse (or enjoy?) the candor of the emails below. Here’s to happy pooping!

I’m not sure you want to hear about this, but my poop has been coming out in little balls lately.  From what I research, it’s a lack of hydration in the colon, but I drink freakin water all day long!!  It could also be sugar, processed food and alcohol (just wine in my case).  I love my wine, but I’ve cut back a lot.  I’ve never been a big processed food eater, but it could be the sugar.  The halloween candy has been a-flown into my mouth as of late.  I think I need to do a little detox. Also, from your article I gleaned that it’s a vata thing and I need to eat more oils/fats.  I’m not really sure how much tho?  I’m already dealing with a hefty 5lb increase because of those damn candies, so I don’t want to increase this too much.

Hey! Tip! If doing the full body oil massage in the morning takes too much time, I have a little short cut. Keep a little container of sesame (vata) or almond (pitta) oil in the shower. After you soap up and rinse off, apply the oil like you would a lotion! Your skin will stay soft, circulation will improve, your mind will be easy, and your vata will be balanced. On the weekends, do the longer massage :)

My question is about green smoothies. As you know, they are all the rage now and the concept is pretty appealing. BUT as vata, with all the “fun” digestive issues that entails, I have wondered if they are something to embrace or avoid.
1. They are cold. 2. They are raw. Got a take on this?
– Karen, South Carolina

Not sure if it’s motherhood that’s making me extra soft and smooshy, but lately I’ve been overwhelmed with gratitude. I was rocking my baby before her bed time and I stepped out on the balcony to give us some fresh air. I took a big inhale as I paid special attention to the trees and the sky. I saw tiny airplanes and some faint stars trying to shine before it was dark, while little clouds were taking their time just hanging out. I automatically started to hum a little tune that I had forgotten existed. Waaaay back in the 90s I was a big fan of Toad the Wet Sprocket. To me, their lyrics and tunes were raw, touching, funny, smart and poetic (and also enough to depress the dickens out of me! Ah, grunge.) The lead singer of Toad was Glen Phillips and he’s since started a solo career with songs equipped with more optimism and beauty than those grungy days.

The song I started humming to my daughter is called Don’t Need Anything by Glen Phillips. It’s simple. If you’re feeling a little blue, overwhelmed, anxious, like you’re not doing enough, I encourage you to take a listen to the song and enjoy the words. They touch the heart. The lyrics are sattvic which promotes harmony in mind and body and promotes an open heart. For the past few nights, I’ve been singing this little tune to her before she sleeps to teach her about gratitude and remind her that we are lucky lucky people. Every time as she closes her eyes in my arms, I get a little teary. There are too many blessings to count.

This feeling of overwhelming gratitude pervades our entire being into our tiniest cells, and it begins to change our structure. And ayurvedically speaking, good music, good sound, and good lyrics is therapy. I hope to give you a little positive cell structure change :) Enjoy the gratitude and positivity, my friends. Listen: Don’t Need Anything by Glen Phillips.

Howdy folks! As most of you know, since January 2011, I’ve had a weekly radio show on Ayurveda. If you didn’t know that, you must have a listen! We had great fun with live questions from our listeners as we all had a great time learning. As you also know in June I had a baby and my shows have only been live a couple times since then. Now, with going back to work a couple weeks ago and then coming home to be a mom (well, I guess I’m a mom even when I’m at work, but you know what I mean) it’s been really hard to get in a new radio show each week.

So, here’s a fun story. Last week I was emailing with the network owner, Vaishali, and I told her it might be too ambitious of me to continue on with the show. She totally understood with grace as I told her I would probably not renew my radio spot in 2012. I was thankful she was so supportive, but I still thought “Holy smokies. How am I going to finish out this year’s shows with a new job and a new baby? And still blog! And still do consultations. And keep my sanity. Aiiieeeee!”

Then. Get THIS. Yesterday Vaishali called me and said there was a billing error and that our whole network was going to be ending on Nov. 1. Um! Wow. Apparently Blog Talk Radio started the clock on our 12 month payment when we payed initially last November and not in January (such as we thought). How about that for timing, hey?! While I will really miss the show, I am also relieved to have a little pause. I always say how it’s not good to be too too busy because creativity cannot grow when there is no space for it. I feel like now, I have some space. And I can feel good about practicing what I preach.

THAT said…you can’t get rid of me that easy! Mwaahaahaaa (evil laugh). I will be putting together some podcasts instead. I’m not sure of the details yet, but I’ve got plenty of great topics and guests to invite back like Heidi the Professional Coach, Kimberly the yogi, and Elizabeth skincare expert, before the end of this year! That way you can still get your Ayurvedic radio fix, I can blah blah blah to anyone who wants to listen, and hopefully the world will start to heal. That said, if any of you know how to create a podcast and play it at a specific time so we can all chat on facebook during the show, let me know! I would love any techy advice. Anywho, it’s not an end, it’s just a shift :)

In the meantime, please listen to the archives and share with your friends! Everyone deserves the gift of good health, love and laughter. I whole-heartedly think that my radio show was filled with all of those things. I will let you know as soon as I have a podplan. xoxo!

I am now 58 yrs. old with many, many more life experiences and health challenges than in my 30’s. I have a definite vata dosha now but if I had taken the quiz in my 30’s the results would have been different. Does a person’s dosh change generationally? -Deb

This is a great question, Deb. A person’s prakruti (natural balance of doshas) never changes. It’s innate from the time of conception. BUT what does change in our life are…seasons, jobs, relationships, food, eating habits, exercise, daily routine, emotions, etc., All these things can alter our doshas and that is where we get imbalanced. So it is safe to say that if you maintain your prakruti throughout life, you do not have any imbalances or health issues. That is perfect health. So in Ayurveda, we need to figure out your prakruti first, to understand where you started and who you are naturally. Then we examine where you are today and in how you’ve shifted from your natural state. THEN we begin to advise food, lifestyle, herbs, treatment, etc., to try and get you back to where you started. So! While your natural doshas stay the same as when you were in your 30s, you have added many more life changes which could sway your doshas from your natural state. Also, after menopause, we all enter vata stage of life, which is where you are now. So you will feel much more vata-like than you may have when you were younger. Does that help?

Brrr…if it’s chilly where you are and your handies and toesies are getting cold, you can put sesame oil on them before you head outside. Sesame oil is warming and lubricating which helps your phalanges (like that?!) stay warm and soft! xoxo