In Ayurveda, the seasons of the year are associated with a dominant dosha. The beginning part of autumn is associated with pitta dosha as we are slowly transitioning from pitta dominant summer - hot and liquid qualities. The later autumn is associated with vata, sometime after October.

Vata qualities are light, dry, and mobile and you may feel vata imbalance within your body as dryness in your skin or within your mind as feeling dull.

Vata dosha is considered the queen of all doshas or energy systems in our body - providing all of the movement of blood, nutrients, even the pace of our heart beat.

When the weather changes we are more susceptible to illness. It is at the turn of one season into the next where ayurveda places great emphasis in making time to care for ourselves. Self-care is always important but this is one time where we don’t want to ignore the needs of our body and mind. We can offer ourselves extra nourishment during this time of going inward and being in the midst of colder weather and indoor heating by following a few beautiful guidelines. These self-care practices will support immunity and the doshas of vata, pitta and kapha - the energy systems within our body. When the doshas are in balance we experience vitality but when imbalanced we experience dis-ease.

The dosha of fall is ruled by airy and mobile vata dosha which means this dosha or bodily energy is going to get aggravated most easily at this time in most if not all of us, naturally.

This is why we take extra care during this time to make sure vata dosha doesn’t affect us more than it needs to.

When vata becomes aggravated, whether through depletion or more commonly in excess (through a drying diet and busy lifestyle), we become ill and tend towards anxiety, difficulty falling asleep, digestive issues like gas and bloating and dry skin. We may not be assimilating nutrients well either, resulting in weight loss or weight gain.

However vata is also responsible for our creative nature, our energy, tolerance and positive emotions.

In Ayurveda, keeping vata dosha balanced is very important to preventative health, as this energy affects the other two energies (pitta and kapha).

We want these good qualities of vata to stay a part of us, yet autumn (naturally) brings vata aggravation. Even if one’s prakriti (genetic disposition) is not vata dominant, we can still become very vata imbalanced during this seasononal transition.

Like increases like

When learning how to live an Ayurvedic lifestyle, one of the things that will come up most is learning to balance the opposites. There is a saying - like increases like and the opposite brings balance. Learning the mahagunas or the qualities of nature are important in learning how to balance the doshas, as these gunas are also found within us.

Since vata is light and dry, we want to counter balance these qualities with the opposites - unctuous and heavy kapha and warm pitta.

Wet, oily pitta that is dominant in summer now needs to have some drying action as the body transitions to a more drying or vata dominant weather. If we do not bring balance to the imbalance that will occur, things like excess mucous can accumulate as the body tries to trap pitta dosha. This results in the common cold as excess mucous stays busy harboring viruses’ and bacteria.

We balance the doshas through what we choose to eat, how we dress, how we think and how we live our daily life; our habits.

As you come out of warm summer, give yourself the gift of self-care - allowing your body and mind to transition with ease.

Self-care is one of the best things you can do for your health.

You already practice self-care when you brush your teeth every morning or when you come home and cozy in for the night.

Try incorporating the following self-care practices below that will keep you healthy as the cooler weather settles in.

Autumn Self-Care Practices:

• Eat for fall - be mindful of what you’re consuming. Allow your diet to change, just like the weather and your clothing are changing. Fall is a time our body needs warm nourishment. Leave the cold, raw, light salads and smoothies alone in favor of soups and stews. Consume more sweet, sour and salty tastes right now.

  • The sweet taste is grounding for vata dosha and enhances ojas or vitality; our immunity. The sweet taste (found in milk, ghee, rice and other grains, fruits and vegetables, dates and natural sweeteners such as honey and maple syrup) is made up of the gunas or qualities of earth and water. It is also nourishing and building - but too much, especially of the processed sugar kind, can result in kapha imbalance leading to chronic illnesses like diabetes and obesity.

  • The sour taste encourages juiciness due to its secretagogues - a substance that causes another substance to be secreted. Sour moistens and refreshes dryness, encouraging gastric secretions, thereby improving our digestion. Sour has the gunas of earth and fire. Think of the earth as being heavy like soil and the fire keeping us warm. These qualities are excellent for opposing excess vata dosha. However, too much can cause congestion and even emotional issues like criticism and depression. Too much sour can also drive pitta dosha to aggravation. Tamarind, apples, peaches, apricots and cherries as well as buttermilk, jaggery, raisins and spinach can add the sour quality to your autumn diet.

  • The salty taste enhances water retention needed during the drying, cooler weather. The gunas of salty are fire and water, having heating qualities from the fire and keeping dry vata grounded with salty’s water element. Include pink rock salt in your cooking and even add different types of seaweed in your if you can find a good source.

• Warm up your home by making use of the oven - bake some sweet potatoes or winter squash coated in good quality oil like ghee or sesame and spices like cinnamon or green cardamom.

• Favor sautéing in water and oil things like carrots, beets and mustard greens to deliver unctuous, warm, moist qualities into your body.

• Stew fruit - apples and pears for breakfast or a snack, wheat, rice and oats.
  

  The fiber found in these fruits and vegetables will encourage regular bowel movements, allowing for proper digestion of autumns heavier foods.
  

• Warm up with spices - spices are not just “stuff” to put on top of our food to make it taste better. Spices play an important role in digestion, strengthening agni our digestive fire and reducing ama or toxins in the body. Leave out the more cooling spices in favor of warming ones like cinnamon, black pepper, coriander, ginger, turmeric, cardamom and asafetida.

• Consume fresh whole cows milk simmered in warming spices like green cardamom and nutmeg to enhance digestion.

• Include easy to digest moong dal cooked in ghee and spices such as cumin seeds and asafetida. Pair it with basmati rice and some sautéed (in water and oil) vegetables, for a meal that doesn’t take much time at all.

• Consume only warm drinks - this is a very healing habit to have all year round but if you’ve been waiting to make the switch, now is the best time. Water is medicine, when taken in the right way. Drink warm to hot water an hour before meals and an hour after meals as to not impair agni. If you must drink right before, during or after meals, sip on hot water as needed. Prepare warm ginger teas sweetened with a little honey (once off the heat - do not “cook” the honey).

• Practice weekly oil massage - in Ayurveda we call a whole body massage as abhyanga, done for various reasons but on a daily basis is a beautiful way to care for both your mind and your body. The act of touching your own skin in a loving manner is healing in itself. Along with this, the nourishing oils penetrate to the deep tissues, enhancing skin quality while relaxing your senses. Try warming sesame oil in a candle warmer and apply in long slow strokes. If interested in a proper abhyanga sequence, there are many resources available with a simple online search.

• Slow down - don’t let this precious time pass you by. Take the time to prepare yourself teas, to oil dry skin, to prepare warming meals, to sit by a warm fire, to chat with your loved ones. Enjoy the slower pace, void of rushing and long to-do lists. Plan and prepare heart and mind for whatever it is God would have you do next. Use this time to reflect, contemplate and nourish your deepest self.

• Stay warm - the wind and cool weather aggravate vata dosha in the body and mind. Keep warm. Keep ears covered and skin covered. Use sweaters, jackets, ear muffs, hats and gloves, socks and warm sneakers or boots to protect your body from the drying aggravating effects of the weather.
  

  Autumn is nature’s way of giving us permission to spend more time indoors, slowing down and nourishing the deep senses of our body and mind. Allow this time to be a sacred one as you learn of the many ways you can take care of yourself during this vulnerable but healing time.

Journeying together,

Kari Prabhakar