With the holiday season in full swing, the spirit of the festivities can be felt in homes across the land. Traditions abound, passed from one generation to the next. These traditions have also been found in most ancient cultures, including the one in which Ayurveda was born and still thrives. Fundamental to most cultures and traditions is celebrating the richness of life, the pursuit of spirituality, and the irreplaceable nature of connections made in person with those you love.
Practically synonymous with “New Year’s” is the term “resolutions.” As health conscious individuals, our resolutions are typically regarding our well-being. Even with the best of intentions, we often do not follow through with our resolutions. This is often because we try and do everything at once. Instead, here is a step by step guide for the new year.
The new year beckons the new, along with renewal, dreams, transformation, and the accompanying resolutions for the changes we seek. This year let’s avoid reaching for the lose weight, exercise more, wake up earlier, drive ourselves harder tools. Instead, let’s dive deep into our hearts and minds, into our joys and sorrows, and take the time to list our greatest challenges and most pressing goals.
’Tis the season—the season for joy, celebration, family, friends, lights, gifts, and yes—challenges to our health. While the holiday season is rich in activities, the hustle and bustle can leave the immune system compromised. Here are six immune-boosting tips to help you stay happy and healthy this season!
Whether consuming a bitter food, culinary spice, or medicinal herb, one of the primary actions we’re invoking with this taste is detoxification. Bitters are categorically alterative herbs which means they purify and bring chemical balance to the blood. This makes them especially useful for supporting the body’s natural defenses, no matter what the challenge may be. And as our main organ of detoxification is the liver, the bitter taste also encourages its function and an enhanced flow of bile. This helps keep our body’s own method for self-cleaning intact.
Everyone’s family is different. Some families go on meditation retreats together, do yoga as a unit, and undertake simultaneous cleanses. But for the rest of us, who discovered Ayurveda long after leaving the nest, an Ayurvedic lifestyle can be tricky to discuss with our Western families who don’t know the difference between kitchari and curry!