Panchakarma Wrap Up

Panchakarma Final Day brings a surprise in addition to Nasaya treatment. Towards the end of my stay at the clinic, somebody at the dinner table mentioned leech therapy and I commented that it was about the only thing I wasn’t willing to do. I’m not a fan of leeches and go so far as to carry leech-proof socks with me when I travel to Asia. Some days later my back broke out in an uncomfortable rash; during morning consultation, Doctor Krishna said that it was an excess of pitta energy releasing from my body. He prescribed…no surprise to someone who has instant karma and should have known not to open her mouth…leech therapy. My knees were quaking when the therapist came to my room with a container of 4 pristine, never-been-used leeches. She promised (1) I wouldn’t have to look at them, (2) they wouldn’t fall off and try to move about the room, and (3) she would stay with me the whole time. The process took almost 2 hours and didn’t hurt any more than a pinprick. I did feel them moving, but it didn’t freak me out too much. Leech therapy has been used for thousands of years — I read that the ancient Egyptians used them to treat gas (note to readers:  not my complaint; I swear it was a rash) — and is used in both Ayurveda and modern medicine today.

Two of “my” leeches

Post Panchakarma Reflections

• The sorrow and anger that I’ve been carrying around since my friend Nancy was diagnosed with and then died from pancreatic cancer has been lifted.

• It has been 30+ days since I had caffeine, alcohol, refined sugar, chili peppers, and anything frozen or with ice cubes in it. I feel lighter. I have lost weight it’s true, though not by design, nor do I know how much. But the lightness I feel goes deeper than body mass. My body feels “all of one piece,” as if it is functioning together from a cellular level through muscles, bone, and skin, and into emotions and mind. We’ll see how long I can keep that feeling on the road.

• I am thinking more about when to eat, what to eat, how much to eat and how to eat it. Ayurveda recommends a light breakfast, larger lunch (when digestive energy is highest) and light dinner. Eat no more than will fit into your cupped hands; otherwise, your digestive system has to work overtime. Eat with attention. If something isn’t agreeing with you or if you’re about to eat too much, your body will give you a subtle signal – but you’ll miss it if you’re watching TV or working at the computer while you eat. These are principles that I knew before coming to the clinic but, having lived them for 30+ days, I appreciate them more fully.

• They say that panchakarma’s cleansing process continues for a couple of months afterwards. I look forward to noticing the changes as they occur. I purchased a few herbal preparations to get me through the next 6 months of travel and will do what I can to maintain a healthy lifestyle. However, it will be a challenge. While on the road, you can’t always get the rest you need, nor can you always find a nutritious meal when you’re hungry. It is hot and humid here in Sri Lanka. Yet, once you check out of your room, air conditioning is a scarce commodity (so are ceiling fans for that matter). I don’t want to resort to ice cream or iced drinks, but on the other hand there is no way I am going to walk around drinking Ayurveda’s favorite drink – hot water! Now that PK has ended, I’ll be checking in with stories from the road.

Next on the agenda:  3+ weeks in Sri Lanka.

Mirissa – bringing in the morning catch

Durian

Fort Galle – Kids at the fruit stand

Panchakarma Day 18 – ?

Treatment Changes: Every treatment session begins with an ayurvedic head and back massage, followed by Abhyanga (a two-person synchronized massage discussed in an earlier post). A face mask is always applied at some point for women (though men complain they don’t get one). Otherwise, the schedule changes every few days. My current schedule includes:

• Navarakizhi: Like Patra Pottali and Parisheka, this treatment is to induce sweating. A kind of rice pudding is tied into muslin bags, then dipped into a mixture of warm milk and herbs, and I am basically bathed and scrubbed in it. Navarakizhi is really good for your skin, and also good for pain in joints and muscles. It’s pretty messy, but feels terrific.

• Netra Tarpana (or Netra Basti): Blinking into a pool of ghee was one thing I didn’t expect from my panchakarma experience, but it actually is not as bad as it sounds. I just finished my 7th day of this treatment. Dough is shaped into wells over my eyes and then gradually filled with warm herbalized ghee. For 20 minutes, I am to slowly open and close my eyes while rotating them in a circular rotation. Your eyes are sensitive afterwards, and so I wear sunglasses for the walk home, then rest my eyes for about an hour.  Netra bast draws out toxins, nourishes and strengthens tissues, relieves eye strain and tension. While having Netra basti, I also have bastis on my knees and liver.

• Janu Basti: This  is for various knee ailments, including pain, arthritis and, hopefully, some of the damage I did to my knees during years of skydiving.

• Liver Basti: This  is meant to draw toxins out of the liver.

At about the three quarter point of panchakarma, various types of enemas are introduced into treatment and given in the privacy of your room. They are mostly quite small and are prepared with special herbs and oil and/or milk. Their purpose is to cleanse and condition the small and large intestines. You are provided with special meals of easily digested rice and herbs for some meals before and/or after each internal basti and are instructed to get a lot of rest. Note for the squeamish: it’s not so bad.

Nasaya: This treatment is administered by the vaidya (doctor) and generally given on the last day of panchakarma. First, a light massage is given, then you are wrapped in hot towels to fully open your pores. Finally, an herbal medication is applied to the nostrils with a special dropper. Nasaya is good for the respiratory and nervous system as well as for the rest of the body’s systems – it’s the “icing on the cake” so to speak.

I will be sorry to leave in a few days and promise to provide a report on how I’m feeling for those who might be interested in having their own panchakarma experience.!

PK Days 12-17

Pulse Diagnosis:  In an earlier post, I mentioned that my PK treatment  might be tweaked occasionally based on my morning meeting with the Vaidya (doctor), who takes a good look at me, performs a pulse reading, and sometimes asks questions.  Pulse diagnosis is an ancient Ayurvedic art and intuitive process.   Using 3 fingers, he reads 3 different pulses on my left hand and, as I understand it, can detect the status of my doshas (more on that later), body functions, energy channels and emotional state.  In my experience, it has been “on the money” on at least a few occasions.

• On my third morning at the clinic, I woke up with a scratchy throat.  “Does your throat hurt?” the doctor asked, before I even uttered a word.  She gave me a small packet of natural herbs to take.
• After a sleepless night when I reported for a meeting – looking no different than on other mornings – the doctor asked, “How was your sleep?”   Later that morning, my treatment was changed; new herbal medicines were added to the Thakradhara treatment and the water was warm instead of cool.
• Another morning, when I was nursing sore and swollen gums from a too-vigorous tooth brushing session a few days earlier, he asked “Any inflammation?”  When I said yes and explained further, he prescribed an Oral B Extra Soft toothbrush.  J

Treatment Changes:  Shiro Basti has been added to my schedule for the past 3 days.   It is atreatment for the head, brain, and central nervous system and is helpful for stress,  mental fatigue, hypertension, and poor blood circulation, among other things.  Like the front and back bastis, a ring is made but this time it is a tall leather sheet, shaped into a tall cone and anchored onto my head by gauze strips.  Once built to satisfaction, the cone is filled with warm, herbal oil and I sit without moving for about 40 minutes.  (A woman at the clinic had her head shaved at the temple so that the oil could better penetrate her scalp, but nobody made the suggestion to me and I wouldn’t have done it anyway.)  It is tempting to reach into my bag for a camera; I am not into selfies but, for this, I could make an exception.  However, afraid of upsetting the delicate balance, I sit as requested and admire my silhouette on the wall.  I look like Nefertiti.

Unexpected Visit:  The clinic is run by a family of doctors (brother and sister) who come from a long line of highly respected Ayurvedic physicians.  The elder brother, who is one of India’s most famous Ayurvedic doctors, is director of an Ayurveda hospital in Delhi and lectures worldwide.  He is also something of a rock star in the ™ (Transcendental Meditation) community, having served as doctor to the late Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.  He has visited Hyderabad twice since I’ve been here and, each time, has kindly met with us to answer our questions about Ayurveda, tell stories, etc.  In addition to being highly informative, he is a very charming speaker, so it is quite a treat to meet with him in such a small group.  He also offers pulse readings for new patients and I took advantage of the opportunity to have one during his first visit.  After reading my pulse and before I said a word he remarked that I have been under too much emotional stress and also stressed by grief (no surprise to me, having recently lost one of my dearest friends to pancreatic cancer).  He said that I worry and think too much (again, no surprise), so much in fact that it is confusing my physiology, my mind, and my energy.  He then gave me more detailed information about the reading and recommended some herbs and lifestyle changes.   The consultation provided me with insight that better helps me understand my daily treatments, which are personalized towards my own unique needs (like the Shiro Basti I described above).  Only yesterday I remarked to one of the other PK patients that I really dislike a certain treatment.  It makes me feel cold – today, on orders of the doctor, that treatment was magically replaced by one I like much better.  Was it coincidence or something in my pulse?  Either way, I’m grateful for the change!

Dr. J. R. Raju

Panchakarma Treatment – Day 1-11

My day begins with meditation, followed by the morning herbs from my PK kit.  Between 8-9 a.m., I meet with the Vaidya (usually Doctor Krishna).  He performs a pulse diagnosis (more on that later), adjusts PK treatment if needed and answers questions.   Then, I have some fresh fruit and catch up on emails before the day’s treatments begin at around 11 a.m.

Each session involves a variety of treatments and follows a routine that will change a bit as I move through my 28 days of PK.   All of the oils and liquids used during those treatments contain specialized herbs, each designed for a different function, all centered around cleansing and balancing.  I have a team of 2 technicians (Anjali and Sunita, 3rd and 4th from the left in the photo below) and sometimes a third tech helps.  My treatment schedule includes:

• Head massage, hair oiling, shoulder and back massage.
• Abhyanga, a synchronized 2-technician oil massage that draws toxins from tissues and open the shrotas or energy channels in the body that can get blocked from stress.  Because all of the organs and systems in the body connect to points on the skin, abhyanga focuses on massaging as many of these points as possible (within the bounds of modesty).  It also relaxes and strengthens your physiology, and has become one of my favorite treatments.  If you have an ayurvedic massage at a spa, it is likely to be abhyanga.
• For the first 7 days, a heat treatment called Patra Pottali (sp?) followed abhyanga to cause the body to sweat, and clear the toxins that were loosened.  Large boluses of gauze-wrapped herbs were heated and rhythmically applied in a stamping sort of motion up and down the body.  Before each round of hot compresses was applied, Anjali and Sunita slapped them together and then on the bottom of my feet before moving to the body; the pounding eventually begins to sound musical and I really enjoyed it.
• After 7 days,  patra pottali was replaced with Parisheka, during which Anjali and Sunita pour warm water up and down my body from long-spouted silver teapots.  They move in unison and often move in swirls and circles.  This is meant to wash toxins from the skin.
• Basti or Vasti.  Basti means “to hold inside” and the word is used in a variety of treatments.  During PK, circular receptacles are made out of chapatti dough and sealed onto the body; heated medicated oil is slowly poured into them and kept warm by some kind of transfer and replacement process.  For the first 7 days I had back bastis.   Kati Basti is for the lower back, to help with backache, disc problems, osteoporosis and sciatica.   Greeva Basti is for the chronic neck pain and compression fractures.  Afterwards, we switched to front bastis.  In Hridaya Basti, a ring is placed over the heart and filled with a handful of pearls and warmed oil, to strengthen the heart and relieve deep-seated anger and sadness.  A Chakra Basti is applied to the solar plexus for indigestion, constipation, and balancing the digestive system.
• Each session includes Thakradhara, where buttermilk is dropped continuously in a fine jet on my forehead.  It falls from a lovely golden container and is a bit mesmerizing.  Thakradhara is good for insomnia, depression, and headaches.

Technicians heading to treatment center

Another View in the Treatment Room

Treatment Room

After the end of a treatment session, I shower and wash my hair, to remove the oil and wash away any impurities that may have come to the surface of my skin.   When my treatments are broken into a morning and afternoon session, my hair is wrapped in a gauze turban and, foregoing my daily walk through the park, I opt for a ride “home” in the clinic car.  Each evening, the lovely Priya comes to my room for mini head and foot massages with different oils.  All in all, 2-1/2 to 3 hours of treatments are not a bad way to pass the time during the day.  My only job is to relax!