Stress is a subjective phenomenon. This is a topic that's familiar to all of us. It's one of those things that we can endlessly talk about from many perspectives. In fact, I've written about it many times. It's also a good follow-up from my last post, where I introduced the parallels between the ancient wisdom of Yoga, Ayurvedic psychology and modern day psychology in the West. As you all know, my love is blending Western and Eastern health and wellness modalities, to create a comprehensive blend of support. Don't worry about the words that may not be familiar to you. This is just an introduction to concepts that can help us understand ourselves better.
Stress is defined as any intrusion that disturbs a person's healthy mental and physical well-being or as a psychological and physiological reaction to an event (real or not) but perceived as difficult to manage. Stress affects every human differently, and our internal and external reactions to stress also vary greatly. Situations that are stressful for some, might be enjoyable for others.
Stress can be positive such as an increase in focus of ability and energy to achieve something. For instance, stress before a test or performance. This type of stress is unavoidable and part of our human experience. Negative stress does the opposite. It decreases our concentration and ability to successfully perform tasks. It gets in the way of anything we want to achieve. It can become chronic. When this continues for prolonged periods of time, it can take a toll on the persons personality as well as causing significant repercussions physically, mentally, and emotionally. Some examples include chronic sleep disturbance, digestive disorders, tension and body pain, palpitations, and many other things.
As I mentioned in my past post, Ayurveda explains stress as a mental imbalance due to Rajas and Tamas. Rajas is the principle of excitement and mobility. Tamas is the principle of inertia, laziness and darkness. These are properties of the mind that can become vitiated (imbalanced) and they mainly involve the vitiation of Vata and Pitta doshas. Anxiety, grief and excessive exertion of the body affect Vata dosha. Emotions such as anger, and jealousy affect Pitta dosha.
Ayurveda considers Pranjaparadha a main cause of mental disorders. Pranjaparadha means mistaken or misuse of the intellect. Pranja means intellect or knowledge. Aparadha means offense, or transgression. It's an offense against our innate wisdom, like when chose to do something wrong, or that will cause harm, but we do it anyway. It can be a mental, verbal or physical action. Examples of Pranjaparadha are smoking cigarettes even though you know it's harmful, eating junk food knowing it will cause harm, and suppressing natural urges like pooping and peeing. In fact, suppression and repression are deeply disturbing to our minds and bodies. Suppression is a conscious effort to forget, wipeout, or avoid unwanted thoughts. Repression is an unconscious defense mechanism that blocks unwanted thoughts. Also, anything in excess like too much thinking, too much eating, too much sleeping, too much talking, too much physical activity, or too much sexual activity. Making choices that cause us harm will eventually vitiate all the doshas, which can lead to disease in the mind and in the body. So in Ayurveda, when we say all disease starts in the mind, this is what we are referring to. The misuse of the intellect is most often the root cause of disease.
Now I'm going to introduce the concepts of Dhi, Dhriti, and Smriti. They are three key mental faculties in Ayurveda, which represent intellect, willpower/determination, and memory.
Dhi represents the power of the intellect, discernment, and understanding. It is the learning faculty of the mind. Dhi refers to how we gather information and process it to draw a conclusion. It is essentially referring to our ability to think clearly, reason well, and make sound decisions. It signifies a state of mental clarity and balanced cognitive function. On a deeper level, Dhi refers to our intuition, a deeper level of insight, or "inner knowing." Ayurveda sees Dhi as a crucial component for overall physical and mental health because it allows for proper decision making and emotional stability. From the western perspective, we can relate Dhi to understanding the difference between rational and irrational thought. Rational thought is based on clarity and understanding of the facts presented. Irrational thought is a misunderstanding or misinterpretation of a situation or facts presented. It can lead to confusion, damaging self-esteem, and dangerous behaviors.
Dhriti represents the ability to maintain focus, determination, self-control, fortitude, and patience. In Ayurveda Dhriti is associated with mental strength and stability. It has a cognitive quality which helps retain what has been learned and organize it in a structured way, in order to prevent the mind from harmful activities. Dhriti has the quality of peace, courage and perseverance to face and overcome all obstacles. It can be described as fervor from the western perspective. We need a certain amount of stamina to be able to resolve and dissolve our traumas and stressors.
Smriti represents the faculty of memory, recalling past experiences. For example, during childhood, if our basic knowledge is acquired through positive emotions then confidence etc.., will be a positive mental response. If we learn through negative emotions such as fear and guilt, the memory is obstructed, therefore the person repeats the mistakes due to improper retrieval of past memories. Smriti also refers to the ability to recall and integrate wisdom, as well as to maintain awareness in the present moment. It affects the relationship between the mind and the body and between individuals and society. Prakriti (constitution), age, ahara-vihara (diet and lifestyle) are factors that determine smriti. In Ayurveda, cultivating Smriti through memory and mindfulness enables individuals to be aware of their emotional states and take proactive steps to maintain balance. From the western perspective, Smriti correlates to mindfulness practices, which are key components of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), and mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR). Mindfulness helps improve emotional regulation, reduce stress and enhance resilience by helping to stay calm and in the present, as opposed to overwhelmed by the past or the future.
Lack of coordination between Dhi, Dhriti, and Smriti leads to mental instability and disorders. Satvavajaya Chikitsa, the branch in Ayurveda that focuses on psychology and the mind, emphasizes on identifying and addressing the root cause or core Pranjaparadha. It also focuses on redirecting the mind away from ignorance and detrimental behavior to maintain balanced Doshas and mind faculties, through Dhi, Dhriti & Smriti, as well as moving Rajas and Tamas towards Sattva.
In order to handle and remove stress, it's important to identify the root cause of the stress. This is far more beneficial than just masking it. We are deeply conditioned to suppress stress and our emotions. This is causing a magnitude of disease. We become like a boiling pot of water trapped with a lid. Eventually, the water bubbles over. Our mental and physical health mimics the pot of boiling water when so much is suppressed, especially for long periods of time. We need safe environments to identify, process and release stress. Being able to share our stress and emotions without feelings of shame or judgement is extremely beneficial. It helps us to articulate, express and process situations. Professional help is highly recommended especially when stress is caused by feelings developed during early childhood traumas where the mind sometimes blocks an actual event due to pain. Therefore, it becomes difficult to identify. Friends and intimate relationships can be of great support where healthy interaction and boundaries are present.
Helpful Tips To Identify and Alleviate Stress:
Ayurveda suggests what is referred to as Divine Therapy which involves the repetition of mantras, prayers, pranayama, affirmations, devotion and surrender through various Yogic and Vedic techniques. All of these practices help cultivate Sattva.
Practice observing yourself, as if you were watching a movie, and you are the main character. This will help us learn so much about ourselves. Pay close attention to the body's responses to external and internal interactions. This practice will help us identify the results of stress in the body, as well as to understand what it looks like as a physical response. It will also help trace back a body sensation to be able to recognize a stressful situation.
Ayurvedic medicinal herbs such as Brahmi, Vacha, Shankapushpi, Jatamansi, and Guduchi have been known to successfully manage and reduce stress. The use of medicated Ghee such as Kalanya Gritan, Sawaswata Gritan and Ashwagandha Gritam can also be incredibly powerful. Detoxification procedures such as Panchakarma, Shirobasti, Shiroabhyanga, Shirodara and Takradhara are wonderful Ayurvedic rejuvenation therapies. These procedures, as well as taking medicated Ghee, must be done under the supervision of an Ayurvedic doctor or practitioner. They can be intense and need to be monitored by a professional. However, Ayurveda offers plenty of practices that are safe and effective and that can be done at home, such as things mentioned above.
Additional modalities include dietary and lifestyle modifications, professional guidance, surrounding yourself with uplifting support, observance of truthfulness and good conduct towards oneself and others.
The biggest support we can give ourselves is to nurture our heart space, and for many this is the hardest thing to do. Our true nature resides in the heart.
~ Leelah Lakshmi ~
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