— Jessica Hammers

Okay, good, good. So it sounds like, um, uh, to start with, uh, Jessica has, uh, a, a foundation, uh, in some of these, um, practices, right? Best practices for, for everybody really. Um, but certainly, uh, for folks that have, um, experienced, um, uh, traumatic stress right? In some fashion and have, uh, are experiencing the residual effects, uh, of that. And, um, uh, so yoga, um, you know, certain yoga asana in particular, um, are going to be calming of, uh, wa dosha. And the mind meditation certainly, uh, is going to, uh, target the mind, and the mind is connected to the body. So if we can calm the mind, we calm the body as well, uh, and, and vice versa, uh, that's gonna be true. Uh, you mentioned turmeric, uh, one of my favorite spices. Um, and, you know, I, my suggestion is to add turmeric to everything, uh, that you consume. And it could even be a glass of water if you wish. Um, and if you're in doubt, add turmeric. That was the good advice that I received many years ago, um, while doing, uh, some food, uh, field work, uh, in, in India. And so I hope you'll keep that in mind as well. But, um, um, you know, otherwise, when it comes to, um, you know, Ayurveda and the consideration of, uh, post-traumatic stress, um, uh, in Ayurveda, the, the mind is, is called the Manus. And, um, uh, the, uh, the, the category in which post-traumatic stress, uh, conditions fall into is called ra. Um, which is the, the, the, the derangement or the imbalance of the mind, generally speaking, this is this broad category. And so, man, uh, vitiates or aggravates, wata dosha. So it, it increases wata, dosha, wata dosha is characterized by movement and instability, okay? And so we want to bring in some, um, uh, some foods and, and, uh, environmental factors that will, uh, be grounding that are, you know, heavier in nature to stabilize and to bring down waad dosha. Uh, at the same time, we want to keep our eye on Pitta dosha and maintain, uh, the, you know, a, a a, a good level for that individual. Um, in order to maintain Agni. And Agni is the, is the heat and the fire of digestion. And according to Ayurvedic theory, uh, there are multiple levels of digestion through different parts of the body. But we'll focus on the gut, you know, right now as, as that primary and, uh, you know, initial ugly that we encounter. Okay? Now, in order to, uh, approach wata dosha, um, uh, foods generally, uh, should emphasize the tastes that are sweet, sour, and salty, and minimize the tastes that are bitter, pungent, and astringent. Okay? So those are the six tastes, uh, from the Ayurvedic perspective. Okay? And, um, so, uh, you know, generally speaking, we also want to be, uh, consuming or serving warm cooked food. Okay? So those are going to, um, uh, bring stability, uh, and, and, and, and start to, to bring balance to what? Doha. So the opposite of that. So the foods that would aggravate wata dosha in anybody, okay? Uh, would be, uh, raw. So the, the uncooked foods and cold foods, now, even room temperature foods, you know, can affect, uh, certain people, uh, negatively depending on what else is going on with them. Okay? So focus on, uh, warm and cooked foods. Um, you know, when we think about, um, you know, the, the sweet taste, uh, it's not necessarily desserts and, and sugary things that, that I'm thinking of, but, uh, it's, it's, uh, it's whole foods that emphasize, uh, grains, whole grains, uh, which overall are considered, are categorized as sweet in Ayurveda. Um, and then, uh, go easy on the beans, okay? Uh, beans have some sweetness, but they also are characterized by astringency. And, um, so astringency can aggravate, uh, wata dosha. So I would, um, go light or even avoid beans if, um, you know, if, if, if you can do that, um, while emphasizing, um, you know, grain whole cookery with other fruits and vegetables. Okay? So we have a wide array, um, of nutrients that we are, um, that, that we're leaning on. Okay? Um, and then, uh, you know, otherwise, uh, you can emphasize, uh, you know, garlic and, um, uh, cloves and cumin, uh, black pepper in moderation. Uh, these are gonna be foods that will work on the ugly, uh, to keep that, uh, stoked, keep that fire, uh, at a good level for clean digestion. Okay? Um, and, uh, then also, uh, uh, be sure to include good fats, uh, for, for cooking and food prep more generally. Uh, from the Ayurvedic perspective, it's always gh. Uh, and then sesame's, uh, oil, uh, is also, uh, gonna be a very good one. And if you, if you're not using GH or sesame oil, um, you know, other fats are, uh, are generally good too. They're, they're gonna be heavier and, and anxious, right? Oily, okay. In, in, uh, in, in their, uh, uh, characteristic that they lend to the finished product. Okay? Um, but again, uh, ghee and, and sesame oil would be preferred, uh, within the Ayurvedic context. Okay? But all the while, uh, try to, um, uh, think about bringing down wa doha, which means, right, bringing up Kapha dosha, and then still moderating the PTA to maintain the good digestive fire. Okay? I hope that framework, uh, is helpful for you. Thank you. Okay.

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