Knowing your child's dominant dosha can save you some grief

Maybe you are a Pitta raising a dominant Kapha child, this could drive any well rounded Pitta to madness! Kaphas are dominated by the water element, which makes them slower than the other two doshas, slow to make a decision, slow to get angry and slow to forgive, they also walk and talk on the slow side. Do not mistake their stockiness for chubbyness they have strong frames and are naturally athletic. As adults they need to exercise regularly to manage their tendency to gain weight because like everything else their metabolism tends to be slow and their appetite for both food and stimulation is less intense than vata or pitta types. Because of this they do better with smaller meals of fresh raw and light foods with bitter, astringent, and pungent tastes, this will help dry up the water that makes them feel sluggish, and they could fast a meal once a week and be good with it. Eating your main meal around noon is good for all doshas, but especially for balancing Kapha dominant people.

Kapha dominant people should stay away from sweets, the sweet taste just creates an imbalance of kapha energy that can lead to weight gain (meat and dairy products are also considered sweet). Instead, try an after-meal cup of ginger tea, to boost the digestion and metabolism. Also dried fruit, fresh berries, apricots, and apples can bring the kapha back into balance, and reduce dependence on heavy sweets. Raw, unprocessed honey is thought to have special heating properties that can reduce excess weight. Take a scant teaspoon followed by sips of hot water after each meal. According to Ayurvedic texts, the older the honey, the more effective it is for weight loss. Never cook honey though; these same texts note that overheated honey is indigestible.

Kaphas dominant people are  innately stable, compassionate, and loyal.  They benefit from exposing themselves to new environments, people, and occasionally fasting. They appreciate doing things in a methodical, step-by-step manner, and prefer a regular routine When imbalanced they can become unmotivated, stubborn, and complacent even when change is necessary.

It is important to let them be who they are and not force your pitta opinions on them, if you try to make them think the way you think, they will find a way to be just the opposite, even if they know you are right. Give them plenty of time to get ready to go places, or to get their chores done. If you try to rush them they will just become stubborn, then you won’t be able to move them at all. My daughter, Heather, tells of her 14 year old daughter that takes so long in the shower that it was messing up the family routine. finally, instead of trying to get Jesica to hurry faster they started having her start her shower earlier, giving her more time to shower. Now Jesica is happy she can shower in peace, without getting ragged on, Mom and dad are happy the family routine is in order.

I don’t pretend to understand people with dominant Kapha,  their natural sense of stability can become stagnation that resists even healthy change, they can take up to a year to decide to come to a yoga class, once they are there sometimes I really have to push them to get them to keep moving. They   sometimes quite because they don’t want to put in the effort, they will always take the easy way out.

Yet, if they are in balance once they have made a commitment, their slow and steady nature will keep them on the sure path until they reach their goal for a naturally balanced and healthy body. Although I don’t pretend to understand them, I have learned to appreciate their calm nature, and groundedness, they love everyone, if you need a loyal friend, a Kapha dominated friend is the best to have. Do yourself a favor and love a Kapha today, it will come back to you a hundredfold.

Nancy Adams Certified Thai Yoga Therapist

Certified Yoga Instructor

and Ayurveda Consultant

These are my own thoughts. I sometimes take writings from others to support my own ideas.

Want your child to be a happy camper? Get to know their dosha

If you are a vata  (thin and lanky, with cold hands and feet, constipation, dry skin, eat and sleep irregular,  tend toward  irregular digestion, lose weight when stressed, enjoy warm, humid weather, have insomnia and low immunity) with a pita child, you are probably having a hard time figuring him/her out. Pitta types are dominated by the fire element, which makes them innately strong, intense, and irritable. They tend to have a medium build and endurance with powerful musculature. They are strong willed and good at doing what they think is right. They approach work and play with the same intensity and competitiveness. They are natural leaders and quick learners. They have strong digestion and intense appetites, both for food and challenges. If they miss a meal they are likely to become grumpy and may take a "bite" out of somebody instead.. For balance, pittas need to manage their "fiery" tendencies, channeling them in productive ways and learning to recognize their destructive power.

The food we eat has a direct result on our health and our emotional life. In today's modern world, we rarely make time to eat mindfully. Often, we eat on  the go, in cars or at our desks for the five minutes we can spare. But when we eat without noticing our food, we miss one of life's greatest pleasures and we allow that which should nourish us to become that which causes us stress. I know this life is busy, but you must watch what and when you feed your pitta child. You must take time for regular meals, making lunch the biggest meal of the day, digestion is at its greatest from 10:00-2:00. The Pitta is the fire element, it is naturally strong with high agni (fire), which demands fuel; if the digestive fire isn’t fed regularly, it overheats. Acids and enzymes then concentrate, disrupting normal digestion and contributing to the formation of ama, a toxic byproduct that can cause faulty digestion and clog body channels causing weight gain. Also, to much pitta can cause aggressive behavior, and "hot" emotional reactions such as anger, irritability, frustration, and hatred. To keep pitta from firing up too much, especially during  hot months, begin fostering "coolness" in every sense of the word: slow down, chill out, swim, and eat cooling, sweet foods.

Cooling foods are, meat, fresh produce (except sour), and dairy products, ice cream is a great treat for a pitta that is raging, the cold dairy will bring the pitta quickly back into balance. When I talk about food I mean organic, or homemade, not processed food. The processed food with all its hydrogenated oils, high fructose corn syrup, and preservatives, will put the pitta or any dosha, for that matter, out of balance.

If you give your pitt loved one an apple or banana, for a snack, this is not going to do the trick, unless you follow it quickly with a protein. The protein burns like a log on the fire, slow and long. The carbs burn like kindlen fast and furious. Therefore a starving pitta has burned through that banana before he takes the last bite! And now he is on the prowl for something more satisfying.

To keep your pitta child from crashing give him a protein snack between meals, boiled eggs or string cheese, (please stay away from those yogurts for kids). Most times pittas can’t tell they are hungry, by the time they realize they are hungry it’s too late, you will know it is too late by their meanness, mid meal snacks will also keep them from gaining weight, I know it sounds crazy, but when a pitta is starving they can clean out a fridge in a moment, the mid meal snack will keep him from getting to that ravaging moment, and he will eat less at meal time..

This is not just for children. I am a pitta. I grew up with the nickname ornery. My husband, and my 6 daughters, who are all vata’s,  now with children or their own, also thought I was ornery before I started studying Ayurveda. Now they understand not just me, but their own children as well. They remind me to take my snacks when we are going places, and they, especially my husband, know how uncomfortable it is for me to be hungry, not just physically, but emotionally, and  mentally as well. I don’t like that out of control feeling, embarrassing myself in front of others, and seeming like I can’t get a grip. I can’t!! Just feed me, it is that easy!!

Nancy Adams Certified Thai Yoga Therapist

Certified Yoga Instructor

and Ayurveda Consultant

           These are my own thoughts. I sometimes take writings from others to support my own ideas.

A Testimony of Yoga

My evening class is very unique, unlike my other classes the people in my evening class start coming in about ten minutes early. They get set up while they are chattering, they laugh, visit, and kid each other, enjoying one anothers company. I call them to their mats on the hour, as they place their hands on their heart, I hear everyone take a deep breath and exhale slowly, probably the first time they have enjoyed such a relaxing exhale all day. The talking continues here and there for a minute or so, and then, I hear them turn their breath inward. As I lead them through the Sun Salutations the room becomes silent, except for the music and our breathing. We flow through pose after pose as I call them out. It's exciting to synchronize our movements,  the room is filled with energy, and we in turn feel energized,  there's something magical about connecting with other people to practice, We start to sweat and our breathing becomes deeper. My instruction gives their busy minds something to focus on, keeping them in the present moment. For people with anxiety, this is a particular blessing.

My instructions also force them to tune in to the subtle shifts occurring in their body. As they become more aware of these changes, they begin to notice subtle alterations in their mind and in their mood, too. They feel in a tangible way how the body and mind are connected.

Yoga helps you be more in touch with your thoughts and feelings as they arise in the moment, which is half the battle of resolving them. In other words, when you're able to identify that something is wrong, you can address that particular issue in the moment, rather than ignoring it and unleashing it later in some painful way.

I asked my classes to write a testimonial of yoga that I might share in my blog. Natalie has been in class for 8 years and Becky has been in class for 2 years. They are very dear to me as are all my students, I want to thank them all for giving me the privilege of teaching them the amazing art of yoga.

Dear Nancy,

I was thinking today if you really want to know what yoga can do for your mind and body stop doing it for 6 months. I feel like my body has aged 5 years since I stopped. My joints hurt, I'm having issues with my hands after I have worked all day, it's harder to ward of stress because I'm not breathing fully, I have no really calming down time to myself therefore I get over stimulated very easy. I had no idea yoga impacted my life in so many was until I didn't have it. I owe you 100 thank you's for being my teacher.

Love, Natalie

Nancy,

I keep thinking about this, and it's a bit ironic that I have such a strong belief in the good yoga can do for a person but can't seem to get my body there this month….I started yoga almost 2 years ago after the suggestion from a friend who has similar athletic aspirations but lives in a different part of the country and has found that it has helped her. After years of hard physical work and play, I found myself middle aged and with bone and muscle issues,hence I started yoga. Now I can honestly say,  many of the symptoms I would normally have called a doctor for work themselves out. Not always quickly but with time and sometimes a little extra work. I know if I had had this training 20 or 30 years ago I would not be as weak or possibly have required the surgeries I have had. However I am certainly glad to know what I do and have the strength and knowledge I have gained through "yoga" class. It is never too late to start.

Thank you, Nancy

Yoga takes care of you if you stick with it. You start to sense what's right and what's wrong, and you follow a path of moral living and meditation because it feels right. The answers are in the practice, and the practice never judges you."

Nancy Adams Certified Thai Yoga Therapist

Certified Yoga Instructor

and Ayurveda Consultant

These are my own thoughts. I sometimes take writings from others to support my own ideas.

Wake up! Elevate your Consciousness

I was talking with my oldest daughter, Judy, one day. I said “why does life have to be so hard?” she said “because Adam and Eve partook of the fruit”. I started to laugh, then I realized she is right! I have students ask me all the time, why does my body hurt all the time, even after yoga? It is true if you don’t have the bad times you can’t appreciate the good times. I ask them, you have days where they feel really good, right? then they realize they do have days where they do feel really good. We don’t notice those days so much. We only notice the days that make us uncomfortable.

It always comes back to the stress, if we could manage our stress we would always feel good, or rather,  if we could manage our thoughts we would not have stress, then we would feel good always, it’s our thoughts that cause the stress, and  it’s the stress that makes our body’s hurt, and eventually sick. Physician and Yoga Journal medical editor Timothy McCall says that “stress may fuel chronic illnesses, such as obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. If you are continually stressed, you leave the door open to a variety of health conditions." Yoga is an effective stress reducer.

The Law of Cause and Effect says: for every effect in our life there is a specific cause. Thoughts are causes, and conditions are effects. Our thoughts are always the primary causes of the conditions or effects in our lives. What is it that causes our thoughts? it’s our feelings! So, how do we fix it? First you have to get in touch with your internal dialogue. What you are saying to yourself, and what you are feeling inside. Our feelings and our thoughts are what determined where we are today. If what is happening to us now, both physically and emotionally, is undesirable, our feelings and our thoughts are what need fixing.

Last year I took my Thai mat to Judy’s house to work on some of her friends for a weekend. She made appointments for 8-10 of her friends that had been asking for me to come to Idaho and give them Thai therapy. Judy had a neighbor that she hadn’t invited because this neighbor is one of those people who has one health problem after another, maybe you know the type, these people can be found in the doctor’s office every other week, looking unsuccessfully for the answers to their problems, they then keep the aches and pains alive and well by talking about them to whomever they converse with. This neighbor saw on facebook that I was coming to town and called Judy to get in on the action. I did give this woman a Thai therapy and for the 2 hour session she didn’t stop talking about all her problems. What she doesn’t understand is that the more she talks about her aches and pains, the more energy she gives them and the more she reinforces her illness.

Too many of us have not been taught, or we have forgotten how to be aware of what is going on inside our mind and body. We are so used to turning our pain and hurt over to something (drugs) or someone else to fix that we have turned off our ability to be aware--to be sensitive or mindful. We have every ability to heal ourselves everything we are today is the sum total result of all the thinking that we have done to this moment. What are your thought? What are your feelings? If the negative conditions in your life are ongoing and the patterns are repeated over and over again, this is telling you--screaming at you--that you are definitely out of harmony with natural Laws...God’s laws…the laws of the Universe. It’s time to wake up! Elevate your consciousness and locate the cause of your effects.

Nancy Adams Certified Thai Yoga Therapist

Certified Yoga Instructor

and Ayurveda Consultant

These are my own thoughts. I sometimes take writings from others to support my own ideas.        

Be The Seer

In Sutra 1.3 (Yoga scriptures)Patanjali says that as a result of yoga or sustained, focused attention, the Self or Seer is established in its own form. By focusing the mind through yoga, you gain clearer perception and learn to distinguish the mind, body, and emotions from your true Self. You come to know that Self and act from that place of the Self, Thus reducing your experience of suffering.

It’s the Seer who helps you when you want to stretch deeper in a pose. The Seer does not look at the other students in the class, he stays within himself guiding the pose. Within the mind exists not only the the Seer but also the clamoring ego, the ego looks at the other students  in class and wants to do everything they are doing, so you get into reclining hero, not knowing if you have the ability, you lay all the way back. It doesn’t take long for your nervous system to literally kick you out of the pose and send you fleeing from your emotions. The Seer would have taken it a little at a time, paying attention to every little movement, taking it to the edge for a good 30 second stretch. When you are working from the ego you deny yourself the pleasure of a stretch at all.  The Seer can watch the ego mind-controlling, freaking out, calming down. If you can stop, take a breath, and step away from your panic, you can be the Seer.

You can use this same principle in everything in your life. The next time you get into an arguement, stop, take a deep breath, step away from your anger, and be the Seer. The next time you are in pain, whether it is emotional or physical, stop, take a deep breath, step away from your pain, and be the Seer. Whenever there is pain, there is fear, but if you can quiet the distractions of the mind and connect to that still, deep place within, that resource of wisdom and inner knowing, you have reached the real goal of yoga: to distinguish between the mind and the Seer, to connect with and act from that place of the Self, and, as a result, to suffer less.  

My goal is to help empower my students with tools and practices they can do anywhere, in any circumstances. As you go through this process, you begin to know the difference between your fluctuating and impermanent mind, body and emotions, and something else deep within you, the steady, quiet, knowing place of your true Self. From this place of connection, you can observe your emotions and reactions and recognize them as separate from your true nature, valid and painful though they may be.  

In this lifetime you can attain the highest rung of life, a state that is free from pain and misery. Don’t postpone this as you postpone the other joys of your life. Enlightenment, that state of freedom from pain and misery, is your birthright. It is not something acquired or new--it is already there.

Nancy Adams Certified Thai Yoga Therapist

Certified Yoga Instructor

and Ayurveda Consultant

These are my own thoughts. I sometimes take writings from others to support my own ideas.

Meditation is very therapeutic

Meditation can give you that which nothing else can give you. It introduces you to yourself. From childhood onward, we are taught to examine and understand things in the external world, but nobody teaches us to look within and understand the mind. Unless you learn to know yourself and achieve inner balance, no matter how much you know about the outer world, you will fall short of your goals.

Meditation teaches you to attend to what is taking place within without reacting. I teach my clients that when they are in meditation if something comes up, to be like a fly on the wall, examine the thought but not to react to it. Just remain aware of the process,  attend to the thoughts as they arise, notice them, be open to them without reacting and they will pass. When you go through this process you really begin to know who you are.

Meditation teaches you how to deal with things that come up in your daily life. We can spend all day in a mental turmoil. Our mood depends on what comes before us and as a result, our life is like a roller coaster ride. We react before we have fully experienced what we are reacting to. We immediately interpret what we see or hear according to our expectations, fears, prejudices, or resistances.

Meditation gives you freedom from fear. Linda a woman in her late 60’s came to me last year, she had had knee surgery 5 years before and had became so scared to move she just sat in her recliner chair, and was still sitting there when she called me. I did Thai therapy one day a week for 6 weeks and got her ready for yoga class. She was doing really good, had done yoga for 3 months and was really excited she was strong enough to get up off the floor on her own, then she missed two weeks, when she came back to class her knees hurt and she had a hard time in class, she was scared to move. After class I brought to her attention that the two weeks she took off set her back, but the good news was she has been better and we will just get her there again. She called later and said she wasn’t coming to class anymore I said if you stop coming to class you will go back to the way you were before, she said she was almost there. Linda wouldn’t do her meditation at home so when fear arose she didn’t know how to handle it. It was fear that put her in her chair and it was fear that sent her back.You can  be your own physician if you learn to examine your emotions through meditation.

Meditation has taught me to fully attend to what is taking place, to attend to my initial reaction without reacting to my reaction: “Oh, look how threatened I feel by that.” we have many fears in our mind and heart that hold us back. All our life we labor under the pressure of these fears. They remain because we have never examined them. They need to be examined, so that we can be fearless. I teach my clients to be open to experiencing their reaction that way it will move through them and allow other spontaneous responses to also come forward, so they can choose the one that is most helpful in that particular situation.

Meditation is very therapeutic, the peace that it brings releases energy. Worry and preoccupation dissipate your strength. Meditation frees the energy that has been bound in your mental discord so that you can apply yourself one pointedly to whatever you decide to do. It also leads to inner balance and stability, it exposes your inner complexes, you immaturities, your unproductive reflexes and habits. Instead of living in these complexes and habits and acting them out, they are brought to your awareness and you can give them your full attention. Only then will they clear.

Nancy Adams Certified Thai Yoga Therapist

and Ayurveda Consultant

These are my own thoughts. I sometimes take writings from others to support my own ideas.

Trust your inner voice and follow the light within

I came across an new mantra a few weeks ago that I can not get out of my head. Narasimha Tava Dasohum. It means to honor the protector of our spiritual path. It’s that energy that protects us from negative influences, from doubts, from judgements that we fear from the outside or that we create within, and it helps us tune in to our inner voice, trust our inner voice, and follow the light within that we all carry and that we are all  aware of. There is a voice within us that gives us the strength to rise above these negative voices, that we all carry in some form or another and that we receive from the outside world. Narasimha is our protector.

A few weeks ago Gary got a head cold, we were watching TV together one evening and I sneezed, Gary turned to me and said “are you getting sick”? my first thought was, maybe I am getting sick. I have a friend, Mishelle, that says “cancel that”whenever someone says something she doesn’t want to  internalize. To myself I said “cancel that” and to Gary I said “no I am not getting sick I am too healthy to get sick” turning a negative into a positive.

It’s not the germs from people around us that make us sick, it is our thoughts.We all have every illness in the universe in us, colds, flu, cancer, arthritis, We are the ones that decide whether or not to let the illness manifest itself.  Like when the grandkids come over with runny noses and you say, GREAT!, now I’m going to get sick, and you do. Instead, say to yourself “cancel that” and dive right in for kisses.

Sometimes we are each others negative influences. I have mentioned before that Gary and I have a house in Provo we are flipping. One day we were over at the house when my brother stopped by. He looked around the house and said “Man this is a lot of work. And you guys are no spring chickens”. “CANCEL THAT!”, Gary and I hadn't  even thought that we were too old for the project, and we are really enjoying the work and the transformation of the house. We could have gone home feeling like 90 year olds if we had internalized his words.

We should be careful we are not the ones putting negative thoughts out for others to internalize in a  negative manner. After a yoga class a few students were sitting in the tea room when I overheard one of my students ask another “ do you have fibromyalgia yet”? YET?!!! meaning what? “CANCEL THAT!”

We all have a protector, this silent ever-present witness is your true self. This goes right along with the Law of Pure Potentiality. “Your true Self, your soul, is completely free of the things your mind is telling you. Your true self is immune to criticism, fears no challenge, and feels neither beneath nor above anyone”. Gary and I remind each other to stay positive and not to listen to the negative thinking of others, or even ourselves.  

Whenever anyone asks you if you are feeling poorly,  “cancel that”, and say I feel great! I am strong! I am healthy! I am awesome!!!! This is what your protector would have you know.

Nancy Adams Certified Thai Yoga Therapist

and Ayurveda Consultant

These are my own thoughts. I sometimes take writings from others to support my own ideas.