Wellness regimens

We all follow regimens in our day-to-day lives, many of which have become a part of our subconscious mind. A regimen is a systematic, regular, organized, personal, and planned set of rules or routine actions to achieve a goal [1,2,3,4]. It is usually related to diet, exercise, or some type of therapy. 

Ayurveda describes regimens like Daily regimen (dincharya) and Seasonal regimen (ritucharya) to achieve and maintain wellness and balance. Both are a form of regular maintenance modes aligned with natural and seasonal circadian rhythms. Regular, periodic, typical, habitual, and mundane are common characteristics of any regimen. Despite being regular and periodic, Ayurveda regimens are not rote and mundane. Both are a form of self-regulation - responding, adjusting, and adapting well to dynamic changes (both internal and external circumstances) in life. Both involve a list of activities/practices (food, diet) that should be followed over time. While, long-term adherence and self-discipline are essential to attain the primary outcome of interest; one should also have a good understanding of the rules, their dynamics, and contextual appropriateness, and possess a fair degree of dynamic self-awareness. 

Many attempt to design and implement self-improvement and health management regimens. Unfortunately, not all succeed at this. The status quo resists change! Moreover, we usually jump in without careful planning. 

Some important points to consider in the planning stage of any wellness regimen: 
1. What is the preferred and better state of health and its characteristics. How does it look and feel?
2. Evaluate and document the current routine.
3. What needs to change? Make a list and then prioritize.
4. When would you want to reach the preferred state of health?
5. Determine your current state of motivation and steps that will keep you motivated along the way.
6. Design the regimen: Break down the larger goal into smaller milestones. Identify and document incremental steps/improvements that would help you reach each milestone. Acquire resources, material, know-how needed to implement the regimen. Reach out to experts for guidance. 
7. Implement the regimen regularly with self awareness, self discipline and self motivation.
8. Do daily self-assessment and course correction (what went well, what did not, and steps to get it right).
9. Over time when one experiences the outcomes of the regimen, it becomes an effortless part of daily routine. 

References:
1. Regimen, Merriam webster, URL, searched on 11/8/2024.
2. Regimen, Cambridge dictionary, URL, searched on 11/8/2024.
3. Regimen, Wikipedia, URL, searched on 11/8/2024.
4. Regimen vs Regime, MedSci, URL, searched on 11/8/2024.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Daily regimen (Dincharya): cleansing the teeth and oral cavity (Dant dhavan)

Ayurveda scriptures advise the use of different types of fresh herbal twigs to clean the teeth and oral cavity and strengthen the gums. Their use has numerous benefits. Yet, many individuals may not find their use feasible due to the lack of availability of fresh herbal twigs.  In such cases, herbal tooth powders (now widely available in the market), are a good alternative.  Here are some tips on using them: 1. Evaluate your general health and state of digestion [Important: Consult your physician]. Accordingly, choose the type of herbal powder (mild/moderately strong depending on the nature of the herbal ingredients) that would suit your current state of physical health. 2. Use herbal tooth powders twice daily - after waking up from sleep and before going to bed. 3. First, take a small quantity of herbal powder on your index finger and then massage the gums gently. Next, gently rub the herbal powder on the tongue, the roof of the oral cavity (soft and hard palate), and the pa...
Read more

The loop

Constellation of narratives competing for attention,  Baiting the mind, Persistent bombardment, inadvertently and eventually one falls in the trap, Coordinated, Stepwise involvement, Confusing, deluding, blinding the mind,   Depleting energy reserves, Attempting to break morale, Mandating a response and corresponding action. And so the journey to nowhere begins. A never ending cycle of pain, and trauma. Disregarding the souls gaze, Prioritising a particular conditional perspective, Unaware of the conflicts that it breeds, Counterintuitive and counter productive, Perpetuating with utter disregard of Unintended consequences. Denied respite persistently, Stuck, stagnant and demoralised, The mind is cornered. Eventually the soul realises the mind loop, It longs to break free, Unable to learn, live and love to the fullest, Subscribes to new misbeliefs, Accepts a limited existence. Living aimlessly, Nursing a hope deep within, Looking forward to a day, When it would break the s...
Read more

Holistic healing pathways

Self awareness, holistic understanding, acceptance, ability to self regulate, maturity, experience, wellness status (physical, psychological) are key personal factors that determine how one responds to a conflicting event. Deficiency in one or more of these factors forms a fertile ground that influences ones ability to face the outcome of an event. Inability to accept an outcome or preference for a particular favorable outcome implies significant involvement or oneness in the event/its outcome thus triggering a conflict.    a. Soul that is not deficient in the factors listed earlier: Such a soul sees through the event (~play), realizes the circumstance, in full acceptance and choice-less mode maturely responds to it. It does not have any agenda and preference. The flow of event continues and soul continues on its journey unperturbed.  b. Soul that is deficient in the factors listed earlier: If the conflict is not intense enough, it may not activate corresponding reso...
Read more