Introduction to Panchakarma in Ayurveda

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INTRODUCTION TO PANCHAKARMA IN AYURVEDA
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CONTENTS

• Introduction
• Why Panchakarma
• Concept of Detoxification
• Stages of Panchakarma
• Benefits of Panchakarma
• Contradictions for Panchakarma
• Diet during Panchakarma Treatment
• Panchakarma at Sitaram Retreat

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INTRODUCTION

• Ayurveda is not a system of medicine, it is the
  science and way of life. According to Ayurveda,
  the curing of ailment is of secondary importance.
  The primary one is concerned with the prevention
  of disease. The holistic approach of Ayurveda
  aims to restore health by understanding the
  causes of symptoms. In Ayurveda, Panchakarma is
  one of the classic Ayurvedic detox program. It is
  a therapeutic regime aims at eliminating toxic
  elements from the body which specialises an
  intensive waste elimination from our body at a
  cellular level. Panchakarma in Sanskrit literally
  means five actions,means five detox procedures.
  This ensures that all toxins (foreign wastes and
  pathogens) eliminated from the body.

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WHY PANCHAKARMA ?

• Panchakarma means five actions which are
  treatments that are integral to the ayurvedic
  process of purifying the body. Panchakarma is
  an ayurvedic treatment methodology which
  specialises an intensive waste elimination from
  our body at a cellular level. It is a unique
  treatment in the sense that includes preventive
  and curative actions for various diseases. It is
  a treatment program for the body, mind and
  consciousness, that cleanses and rejuvenates.
  Panchakarma is performed in three stages through
  a variety of therapies. The first stage is
  Purvakarma, where oleation therapy induced and
  loosen excess toxins from body. The second one is
  Pradhanakarma, a specialized treatment is
  administered to expel impurities. The last stage
  is Paschatkarma, where a rehabilitation plan with
  diet, rest and lifestyle modifications is
  prescribed.

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CONCEPT OF DETOXIFICATION (Panchakarma)

• Calling panchakarma a detox is an over-simplified
  explanation. Ayurveda categorizes the root causes
  of illness into two categories of
  undernourishment and overconsumption. Most modern
  diseases are a blend of both. The right
  expression would be overfed, but undernourished.
  If you believe that wellness isnt just the
  absence of disease, but is also about feeling
  alive, and experiencing life with vigour and
  vitality, then Panchakarma is definitely for you.
  Panchakarma is performed with three main
  objectives.
• Preventive Panchakarma
• Curative Panchakarma
• Conservative Panchakarma

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CONCEPT OF DETOXIFICATION (Panchakarma)

• Preventive Panchakarma
• For Promoting the health of healthy
  individuals.
• Curative Panchakarma
• Eradicating the disease of a diseased
  person.
• Conservative Panchakarma
• Disease suppression and rehabilitation.

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STAGES OF PANCHAKARMA

• The panchakarma (detoxification) process contains
  three steps.
• Purvakarma
• Preparations which have to be done
  before detoxification.
• Pradhanakarma
• The main detoxifying process.
• Pashchatkarma
• Rehabilitating the diet and lifestyle
  after detoxification process.

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STAGES OF PANCHAKARMA

• Purvakarma (Oleation Therapy)
• Purvakarma is the foremost procedure that are
  taken ahead of a Panchakarma therapy. It lasts
  for three to seven days. At this stage body is
  prepared for treatment by loosening toxins and
  excess doshas. This procedure is adopted to
  induce lubrication of internal and external body
  channels and tissues with Sneha dravyas.
  Purvakarma is also known as snehakarma. Abhayanga
  (External oleation) and Snehapana (Internal
  Oleation) are the two types included in the stage
  of Purvakarma. Internal Oleation is done by
  administering small quantities of medicated oil
  or ghee internally. External Oleation is done by
  massage with medicated oils after internal
  oleation.

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STAGES OF PANCHAKARMA

• Pradhanakarma
• Pradhanakarma is the five major purificatory
  therapies. It is the main bio cleansing procedure
  including five main stages of cleaning the body.
• Vamana Karma
• Virechana Karma
• Basti Karma
• Nasya Karma
• Raktamokshana Karma

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STAGES OF PANCHAKARMA

• Vamana Karma (emesis therapy)
• Vamanam or emesis, an induced vomiting procedure
  is an intense panchakarma procedure performed to
  release the toxins present in the upper part of
  the body and regulate the water element, Kapha.
  This treatment helps to cure and prevent the
  occurrence of excessive kapha related disorders
  and regulates the water element which is mainly
  present in the upper part of the body. It helps
  in releasing all the toxins produced due to
  suppressed emotions in the chest, throat and head
  regions.

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STAGES OF PANCHAKARMA

• Virechana (Purgation Therapy)
• Virechanam or purgation is done to eliminate
  accumulated toxins from the alimentary canal,
  mainly from the small intestine. This procedure
  helps in eliminating pitta dosha and Kapha dosha.
  This toxification method helps to expel toxins
  and vitiated doshas from blood, liver and
  intestines. It normalizes the appetite, digestion
  and assimilation of the body. Virechanam helps to
  achieve lucidity of thought and stimulates
  intellectual capacity. It is very effective in
  the treatment of Pitta and Kapha disorders.

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STAGES OF PANCHAKARMA

• Vasti (enema therapy)
• Vasti or Matravasti is performed to normalise
  the deranged Vata In the digestive tract. It
  promotes strength and restores general
  well-being. It is also used as a preparation for
  other therapeutic enemas. It pacifies the Vathain
  lower part of the body and lubricates the lining
  of the large intestine. It is a preparation stage
  for KashayaVasti (decoction enema). It
  strengthens the spine, lower part of the body and
  the nervous system

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STAGES OF PANCHAKARMA

• Nasyam (Nasal Cleaning)
• One among the panchakarmas, nasyam is a powerful
  cleaning method for the head region. It cleans
  mainly the kapha dosha from the upper body. It
  is done by administering medicine through the
  nose. Medicinal powder, specially prepared oils,
  juices of herbs etc are used for nasyam. Most
  common is the use of medicated oils.

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STAGES OF PANCHAKARMA

• Raktamokshana (Bloodletting)
• Rakthamokshana or bloodletting is a surgical
  procedure included in panchakarma. It is done
  using different methods like applying one or a
  few leeches on a specific part of your body,
  puncturing any of your veins or making several
  small punctures on a given part of your body in
  order to facilitate small quantities of blood to
  flow out of your body. This procedure is used to
  treat varicose veins, abscesses, skin diseases,
  alopecia, high blood pressure, various
  inflammations and conditions associated with
  spleen and liver.

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STAGES OF PANCHAKARMA

• Pashchat Karma
• Paschatkarma is the concluding phase of
  panchakarma treatment. It comes under the follow
  up treatment depended on the needs of every
  patients. A strict diet and lifestyle procedure
  has to be followed throughout panchakarma
  treatment. The rehabilitative procedures to bring
  back the diet and lifestyle to normal are
  considered as Paschatkarma. In this stage the
  digestion power is brought back to normalcy.
  Medicines are administered to rejuvenate the body
  or treat the disease.

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BENEFITS OF PANCHAKARMA

• Panchakarma, a transformative experience, is an
  ancient solution for modern diseases. Its
  benefits include
• Detoxify your body, purify yourself at cellular
  level and enhance your bodys self-healing
  capacity.
• Eliminate pain due to inflammation
• Get rid of addiction to coffee, alcohol, tobacco.
  Balance your fertility hormones.
• Lose weight in a healthy way and sustain the
  same.
• Enhance skin complexion radiation
• Increase body flexibility due to lubrication of
  joints and ligaments. Prevent modern-day disorders

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CONTRADICTIONS FOR PANCHAKARMA

• Ayurveda mentions that the most important factor
  in undergoing Panchakarma is the will power of
  the person undergoing it, and his intentions to
  truly heal. Most treatments in Panchakarma are
  about resetting the body, calming you down and
  releasing you from the old unhealthy patterns
  that caused the issues in the first place. If a
  person is not willing to give up the habits, then
  the treatment can be a source of mental stress.
• A pregnant woman cannot undergo the treatment.
• People who are in a bed-ridden condition also
  cannot undergo this procedure.

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DIET DURING PANCHAKARMA TREATMENT

• Light foods are suggested during Preparatory
  phase that do not cause bloating and are easy to
  digest. This is done to aid and prepare your body
  for purificatory therapies. The treatments done
  during Purificatory phase have food guidelines
  that need to be followed along with the
  treatment. Panchakarma is a detoxifying therapy.
  Once a toxin is identified, give food that
  activates the particular dosha in the body before
  eliminating it. During the post-purification
  recovery phase, patient gut would be very
  sensitive and the diet should be extremely light
  in nature. So, it is better to serve a lot of
  soups especially Kanji rice soup that is easy
  to digest.Once metabolism is back to normal,
  gradually introduce normal and nourishing foods.

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PANCHAKARMA AT SITARAM RETREAT

• Panchakarma, a transformative experience, is an
  ancient solution for modern diseases. As a result
  of innovative research and a legacy of four
  generations with vast Ayurvedic pharmaceutical
  and clinical experience, Sitaram Beach Retreat
  provide first-class service and quality. The
  authentic healing of Panchakarma is uniquely
  designed for each person based on daily
  consultations with highly-qualified Ayurvedic
  doctors. The patients from Sitaram Beach Retreat
  benefit from,
• Refined ancient formulations to adapt to
  modern-day societys needs.
• Improved formulations based on observations
  (treatment response) from a large number of
  cases.
• Convenient medication formats to suit consumption
  in modern-day lifestyle.

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Visit Our Website to know more about Panchakarma
https//sitaramretreat.com/panchakarma/
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