A general well-being consultation became a New Year resolution, leaving our writer hooked on the Asian Food Channel — and 6kg lighter.
Seeking an alternative medical view on the state of my health at the end of 2010, I ventured into the Ayur Centre in Petaling Jaya, Selangor to consult the renowned Dr C. D. Siby.
After checking my pulse, nails and weight, the Ayurveda doctor suggested a two-week detox programme to cleanse my system, as well as my blood.
“You should also lose 10 kilos,” he stated matter-of-factly, as I looked at him in shock.
Later, shock gone but interest piqued, I read that Ayurveda focuses on cure via root causes rather than via symptoms. According to the ancient science of Ayurveda, toxins accumulate in our bodies through the processed foods we consume, as well as environmental pollution and a sedentary lifestyle.
Imperfect digestion, too, tends to obstruct channels in our body, creating imbalance and inviting disease and poor health. Moreover, with an increase in toxicity, general lassitude prevails, reducing the body’s immunity as well as its radiance.
So, prescribing a detox is the first step in counterbalancing and reducing toxins in the body so that organs such as lungs, kidneys, intestines and skin become more efficient in getting rid of accruing waste. But which type of detox?
Panchakarma detox (highly recommended for every one to three years as a preventive measure for healthy individuals), the doctor reassured me, “will open the channels of our clogged-up bodies to clear the pathways to better functioning organs.”
As an elimination therapy, the panchakarma treatment does not only target imbalances, it also gets the body back on track to self-correcting disparities and healing itself. Initiatory toxins, seemingly, are relatively easy to remove through a detox diet and lifestyle variation.
However, when toxins appear inside the body’s tissues, it takes longer to extract. Over time, it can even transform into an incurable ailment. Depending on a person’s Ayurveda body type (vatta, pitta or kapha) and health condition, the doctor recommends one of five specific types of Panchakarma.
Mine was the virechana, a herb-induced purge involving oil massages, herbal concoctions and dietary restrictions.
Resolutely, on the second day of the New Year, I turned up at the Centre before 7am. To begin my abhyangam (massage) treatment, therapist Aswathy applied heated oil for 45 minutes all over my body. I could feel the coconut oil’s deep conditioning effect on my hair, while the face mask of coriander and yoghurt paste was soothing.
After a warm shower and removal of the lentil paste applied to reduce the oil residue, I emerged refreshed and rejuvenated. All before 8am. Unfortunately, I was unprepared for the grim ghritham (ghee medicated with herbs). Not only did the potion smell foul, it tasted just as bad with its lingering aftermath remaining in my mouth all day.
Furthermore, as the days added up, it became more and more difficult to swallow it.
But the beastly brew worked, suppressing hunger and improving metabolism throughout the course of the treatment. For these first five days, I was only allowed one meal — bland, tasteless rice porridge at 4pm. And two litres of boiled ginger water to keep me hydrated. This method of fasting allows the internal organs to rest, while the nutritious ghee oil helps smooth the path through the organs, in preparation for clearing the toxins.
However, by Day Three, I had a new potent distraction. I was becoming riveted to the Asian Food Channel, deliriously watching everything from Coco Cooks to Chuck’s Day Off. I have never thought or dreamt of food — any food — as much as I did in that first week in January.
On the sixth day, mercifully, I was allowed to eat anything, as long as it was vegetarian. And it was with great anticipation that I met a friend for breakfast, after a concluding oil massage and hot tub soak. At Grand City, I devoured roti canai with gusto, and other meals followed suit, with each morsel thoroughly savoured.
But all was not yet over. Earlier than usual, the next day I was handed another herbal combo and sent across the road to the building where the stay-in patients reside. Thus began the half-day purge, whose tedium you alleviate only by keeping count of the number of times you have to dash to the bathroom.
In any case, I was done before noon and, after another meal of rice porridge (but ritzed up with rasam), I was ushered in to see the doctor.
Weight loss: 3kg! Delirious, and not just from hunger, I headed home with a directed diet of oat porridge/muesli for breakfast, fruit for lunch and salad with no dressing for dinner. Plus a list of foods that I should not eat for three months, including desserts and chocolates.
The second week’s treatment began with the dhara, where medicated buttermilk continuously drips on your forehead for 40 minutes. This, I was told, helps ease insomnia, clears up skin conditions and even stops headaches . . . it would help me to relax. Heated oil is applied all over the body after the dhara treatment.
The result at the end of that week? At the weigh-in, another 1kg lost. Still, the doctor thought that I should lose a little more weight, and asked me to stay on the diet for another two weeks and to exercise for at least an hour a day.
The best reward: a new wardrobe becomes a necessity! OK, I’m exaggerating, but the inches taken off became visible each day as soon as my clothes went on.
Today, three months on, I still feel more energetic, lighter and rejuvenated. Stronger and more agile, too. Even my coconut oil-infused hair seems healthier and shinier, my face clearer and more even-toned. And I’ve managed to keep the weight at acceptable levels, although living in Malaysia leads to food transgressions more often than I care to confess.
I’m back on my exercise regime as well, after a two-week break allowing my body to rest. The biggest benefit of all? I eat smaller portions now, as a too-full meal leaves me not only uncomfortable but also unhappy!
Yet Dr Siby, who graduated in Ayurvedic medicine and surgery from Madras University, is quick to remind me that the detox is just the start of a lifelong programme.
“The healing has to happen from within, without burdening the internal organs,” he states.
Ayurveda emphasises preventive and healing therapies, so after a course of treatment, the responsibility returns to the patient to maintain a healthy lifestyle and diet.
I suspect this is where the journey really begins . . .
The Ayur Centre, 10, Jalan Dato Abu Bakar (Section 16/1), Petaling Jaya, Selangor. Tel: (03) 7954 2899/6092, fax: (03) 7954 7229, e-mail:email@example.com or visit: www.ayurcentre.com. Opens Tuesday-Sunday.
- Don’t neglect the body. Stay attuned so that the body will listen to you. Exercise regularly to release the endorphins that keep us happy.
- Eat out less. Eat small portions and prepare them as fresh as you can (minimise re-heating of meals). Avoid cigarettes, substances and alcohol.
- Early to bed, early to rise. Aim to get up by 5am.
- Find time to pray, meditate and learn to enjoy silence.
- Shower first thing in the morning and before bed.
- Spend time with the elderly to learn from their experiences.
An ancient science
Practised in India for 6,000 years, Ayurveda is the world’s oldest healing science. Simply put, it is a holistic approach to health.
Ayurveda (ayus means “life” and veda means “knowledge” in Sanskrit) is designed to prevent and treat illness by maintaining balance in the body, mind and consciousness.
Attuning your life to your body’s natural rhythms is the science and art of appropriate living to achieve longevity.
This life science evolved from a deep understanding of creation. Ayurveda’s series of conceptual systems highlights balance and disorder, health and disease. The interconnectedness between the self, personality and everything that occurs in the mental, emotional and spiritual being leads to being healthy.
Ayurveda has three broad treatment themes. These are elimination therapies (shodana or panchakarma), pacification therapies (shamana) and nourishing therapies (bhrimana). – Stories by Jacqueline Pereira