The (p)Reinvented Medicine

Welcome back to the healing space. In this post, we will discuss some of the aspects of how the understanding of Ayurvedic medicine might improve our understanding of healing in the Western traditions and in the Western branches of medicine. We will touch on some of the basic postulates of Ayurveda and create a vision for better and improved healing process in medicine overall

1.       Constitution

If you go back a few posts you might find out that Ayurveda deals with a basis of our character, energetic abilities, and predisposition to certain diseases. These areas are coined by the term “constitution”.  

In that manner, a person’s health is assessed in comparison with their own constitution rather than comparing to the norm.  Similarly, in some new school program in physical education you would be graded according to your improvement from the previous attempt rather than graded just according to the standard norms.

We can say that such approach is being used in the Western medicine to some extent, for example we acknowledge that epigenetics and genetic predisposition is an important factor regarding disease development. However, we lack the so very necessary algorithms to use that approach in real life situations.

With genetic modification of diseases, surely there must be a proper documentation of the base constitution of the human. Perhaps we could use sort of an ailment meter to measure the development of disease in accordance with the basic constitution of the person.

2.       The Stages of Diseases

According to Ayurveda, there are 6 stages of vjadhi – the deviation of the optimal mind/body state. In most cases of modern medicine, a person will be diagnosed and treated only starting from the 4th stage of disease, mostly so in the 5th and 6th stages.

What I find very intriguing is that modern medicine does to some extent recognize that the etiology of the disease is crucial to understanding the further needed treatment. It is also known that the development of the permanent disease takes some time. However, somehow it doesn’t translate to almost any specific methods as to having specific biomarkers to catch the very first warning signs or develop the basis to have soft interventions.

Perhaps such a gap in healing and preventative medicine is cause by the fact that unless you have the diagnosis, there is nothing to cure. That gap is also tied into monetary aspect of the medicine. How do you think, how big is the award for avoiding the development of disease altogether and how much of the prize goes to the doctor and how much for the patient…? I guess we will never know with the system we have right now.

The better approach is to develop a very concrete strategy for preventative medicine and perhaps even develop a certain stage of diagnosis for “deviation of the norm”. Well, possibly “vata dosha disturbance” would be a bit too much for modern medicine right now, but something like, “acid-base disturbance, recent gain of weight, unhealthy environment” could be accepted.

Now, the next move would be to develop more certified advisors and consultant into the space to make an action plan for the deviations.

3.       Lifestyle and Personal Experience

It is very disappointing that to this day we have little lifestyle approach-based suggestions and systems that would work for the average person. As we already know, just advising someone to move more, eat healthier and stress less is not very effective for initiation long-term changes.

The obesity pandemia is only in its first stages and yet so far, the bariatric surgery is pretty much the only method to have a positive long-term effect. So why do we fail to change the lifestyle of our patients and ourselves?

One of the solutions seems to be multi-faceted and integrated approach to the whole human being which is so supported throughout the Ayurvedic texts. Depending on the constitution and mind-body channel specifics, lots of people would need to first acquire more wisdom until there is a general change in the emotions and thoughts regarding their lifestyle that would lead to actions. For example, Ayurveda focuses quite a lot on Sattvic life state, where one is living with the harmony and balance according to their surroundings and innermost being so that it becomes easier to make better decisions in your life.

Ayurveda also mentions so many small steps that one can do for their health. It is not wise to suggest to jus teat less to the person who struggles with overeating because this advice will just not bear any fruits.  Instead, ayurveda suggests focusing on senses and taste, has many guidelines around changing the frequency and consistency of the meals, practice relaxing the body an oiling and many more. Through different measures a person can develop their stamina and willpower regarding the health spectrum and gain a personal approach through different practices.

4.       The Ojas

In Ayurveda, we have the principle of the ojas - principle of vitality in the body. In lots of situations, especially in the first stages of the disease, when the disease itself is not yet manifested, we encounter the depletion of ojas. In simple terms it is basically weakness of the body or lack of vitality. Often the disease may

The are different suggestions to improve that vitality such as sometimes restraining from vitality-depleting activities or also improving the basic nourishment of the body. A term of “ascesis” seems to also be important in this topic.

In modern medicine, we should perhaps start measuring the vitality of the body as a preventative measure.

In conclusion, gaining better insight of the persons constitution, having a predefined terms for first stages of vjadhi, having a more multifaceted and integrative approach to lifestyle guidelines and assessing persons overall vibrance and vitality are some of the key factors to improving the overall wellbeing through the practice of modern medicine.