I’ll share how alternative therapies and well-being searches altered my professional and personal paths. My name is Helena Vargas, I’m 28 years old, I’m a yoga instructor, aromatherapist, also have a company of self-care natural products and work as a copywriter in this field. Living in São Paulo, Brazil, my routine includes ayurveda-based yoga and organic, natural food. I learned to prioritize self-care and recognize discomfort/pain, having suffered from a previous job. I’ll recount how Ayurveda saved me from a series of issues caused by excessive stress in my life.
A few years ago I was in a very stressful professional position. Despite practicing yoga since age 14, I had put it aside and organized my routine around work schedules. I usually left home at 5:30 a.m. to do some physical activity with a personal trainer from 6 to 7:30 am, then took a quick shower and at 8:30 a.m. Usually I’d sit at my desk for work. I had my breakfast in front of the computer, when I had time for it, and I worked almost non-stop – only with a short break for lunch – until 6:30 p.m., when I went to college and studied until 11pm, and went home immediately to shower and sleep, I didn’t even have time for dinner.
After a few months of this routine, I started to feel burning in the esophagus, a symptom that I had never known before. With little time available, at fist I put this pain aside. However, I subsequently developed severe sinusitis, and my ear closed up – it was like I was on a plane 100% of the time (which was awful!). I went to an ENT doctor and she literally said that I was fantasizing about that symptom, that I just had sinusitis and I had nothing in my ear. Due to the burning in the esophagus, I decided to see a gastroenterologist and, again, that gave me disappointing results. He said that since I was not in the habit of drinking alcohol and eating fatty foods, and was thin, it was impossible for me to have gastritis.
I knew stress was driving this and my last resort was Ayurveda. It took me a year to come up with this alternative. I had already practiced yoga for many years and known ayurveda, but I had never deepened myself, let alone had a consultation. My mother, a proponent of alternative therapies, encouraged me to seek Ayurvedic treatment during this delicate period. I was sad, excessively thin, and very weak.
I confess that at first I was a little discredited. The consultation was incredible, as the Ayurvedic therapist, Luciana, revealed a new world to me. She identified my reflux and sinusitis, and provided anti-ama (an Ayurvedic detox diet), yoga and meditation to cure them. Unlike allopathic medicine, there are no magic pills to mask symptoms, but long-term continuity of cure. It is an arduous path and requires a lot of dedication.
The path to healing after consulting an Ayurvedic therapist is up to you. And like any structural change, it takes time. It is difficult to get along with people because the eating habits and routine in an Ayurvedic treatment must be taken very seriously and in a way this sometime excludes you from social interaction – bars and restaurants are not inclusive and people often do not have the patience to understand the limitations of those undergoing this type of treatment.
I was cured in a few months, though I still avoid foods like garlic, onions, and wine. I left that job, continued studying, completed my training in yoga and aromatherapy, and became a holistic therapist myself. Natural therapy is my priority for health and well-being, and I recommend it to others. Ayurveda was a life saver as it addressed all the downstream issues caused by stress.
If possible, look at yourself fondly. Realize your symptoms, how you feel in your everyday life, and what makes you feel bad. There is no work or financial return that compensates for a life of illness and sadness. Seek to take care of your health, physical and emotional, and fulfillment and tranquility will come naturally into your life.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.