Welcome to December and the last month of this decade.

As I teased in last month’s newsletter, we are beginning a journey through the ayurvedic indicators of health. Learning how to be an observer of our mind-body will give us insight to our state of balance and general well-being. 

We launch this series with the health indicator of Sleep. The Charaka Samhita, states:

“Happiness, misery, nourishment, emaciation, strength, weakness, virility, sterility, knowledge, ignorance, life and death—all these occur depending on proper or improper sleep.”

Similarly, Sushruta says :

"The pleasure and sorrow, or nourishment and malnourishment, strength and loss of strength, libido and poor sexual virility, good intellect and poor memory, pleasure and sorrowful living are depend upon proper and improper sleep of an individual respectively.”

Having high quality sleep is imperative for maintaining a healthy body and a balanced mind. When we are enjoying restful sleep, our mind can relax, decompress then assimilate our thoughts, feelings and emotions. Good quality sleep will restore health to the tissues of our body and allows us to recover from illness. There is a direct relationship between our quality of sleep and our stress. Therefore, having regular practices (i.e. meditation) that help us manage our stress will greatly enhance the quality and quantity of our slumber.

Sleep imbalances show up in several different ways which are, of course, directly related to an aggravated dosha. Waking up between midnight and 2:00am shows a pitta imbalance. During this time of night, a person may experience feeling heated and bothered, in problem solving mode, or making lists in your head with a sense of intensity. Sleep interrupted with anxiety, worry and nonstop chatter beginning just after 2:00am and until early morning is a sign of an aggravated vata dosha. Lastly, excessive sleep will show up as a kapha imbalance. Waking up late during kapha time of day (sunrise and 10am) will leave a person groggy all morning.  

Sleep or Nidra, is one of three supporting pillars of health, according to Ayurveda, the other two being food and sex.  When we are getting both good quality and quantity of sleep the result will show in our lives as: happiness, a calm mind, good nourishment, strength, immunity, endurance, sexual vitality, wisdom, and good quality and length of life. However, imbalanced and poorly managed sleep will have the exact opposite result of all these previously stated qualities.

Check yourself and notice if in the morning you feel fresh and energetic. There will be a sense of enthusiasm towards the day that is ahead of you. This is a good sign of a well-balanced and efficient nidra. You should never feel drowsiness or fatigue throughout the day. There is no need to sleep late or drag yourself up and out of bed. Your nightly slumber will not be disturbed by nightmares or disrupted due to natural urges. 

If any of these sleep indicators are showing as early warning signs then we want to make dietary, and lifestyle changes to address the issues. Begin by creating a nighttime ritual. Here is a link to an article I wrote for Banyan botanicals which will explain how to do this. Make sure to not eat too late in the evening. Our bodies cannot sleep and digest at the same time.

Believe it or not, there are morning routines that we can implement to help to establish a healthy sleep. Theses daily practices are called Dinacharya. I will be teaching two Dinacharya workshops in January if you are interested in creating a daily routine to support both your mind and your body.