Natural Remedies for Pitta and Kapha Depression

• Mix equal amounts of these three herbs: brahmi jatamamsi shatavari Take ½ to 1 teaspoon of this mixture 2 or 3 times a day with warm water, as a tea. • Use brahmi ghee nose drops, 3 to 5 drops in each nostril, twice a day on an empty stomach. • Meditate. A few minutes of meditation will be helpful in healing pitta depression.

See chapter 7 for some hints on meditation. KAPHA DEPRESSION Kapha depression creates a sense of mental heaviness and is associated with excess sleep, weight gain, drowsiness, and lousiness! The following natural remedies may bring great relief from kapha depression: • Fast for 3 to 4 days on apple juice. This will work wonders to lighten the heaviness of a kapha depression.

• Increase the amount of exercise you do. • Drink ginger tea (½ to 1 teaspoon of ginger powder steeped in hot water) twice a day. TIME TO SEE THE DOCTOR If your depression doesn’t soon begin to lift as a result of using these Ayurvedic home remedies, please consult a doctor. • Make the following herbal compound: sarasvati 2 parts punarnava 3 parts chitrak 3 parts Take this mixture 3 times a day.

Put ½ teaspoon of the powder on your tongue, and wash it down with warm water. • Put 5 drops of punarnava ghee in each nostril twice a day. (See appendix 2 for instructions on how to prepare your own medicated ghees and oils.) • The Sun Salutation (12 repetitions a day), Shoulder Stand, and Plow pose are recommended yoga asanas for depression. Also do the Maha Mudra.

Other recommended postures are the Bow pose and the Vajrasana (Sitting on the Heels). (Illustrations of yoga asanas appear in appendix 4.) • The breathing exercise known as ujjayi pranayama is also beneficial for healing kapha depression. (See instructions in chapter 6.) Diabetes Diabetes is a metabolic kapha type of disorder in which diminished functioning of agni (digestive fire) leads to a tendency toward high blood sugar. To control high blood sugar, Ayurveda uses the following herbal mixture: guduchi 1 part shardunika 1 part kutki 1 part punarnava 2 parts Take ½ teaspoon 2 or 3 times a day with warm water.