Tips for Staying Cool During Pitta Season.

Seasons change and everything in nature changes as well, however unlike the birds, bees and the plants. we in the frantic world of modern society, have lost touch with living in accordance with the natural rhythms  of the nature.  According to Ayurveda, as the seasons change, so too should our diet and lifestyle. While we instinctively make  changes according to season, Ayurveda brings us greater awareness as how to create seasonal balance.

Have you ever wondered why certain people love hot weather, while others prefer the cool crisp air of autumn? It has to do with their innate constitution; their dosha!

A dosha will increase during seasons with similar quality.  Like increases like. Where Vatas types  love warm, moist weather as it is pacifying to their constitution, summer which is  Pitta season is most aggravating to Pitta types. Whether you are a Pitta type or not,  pacifying Pitta in summer brings us into balance as we are all made up of all doshas but in different proportions. Signs of aggravated Pitta: skin breakouts, hot flashes, diarrhea, excess thirst, sweat,  intolerance to  heat, hyperacidity, inflammation.

Follow a pitta pacifying diet:
Add more sweet, bitter and astringent tastes. Avoid pungent, salty and sour foods.
Avoid alcohol and caffeine
Use cooling herbs and spices for Pitta : Cilantro, dill, fennel, cardamom

Pitta Pacifying  Beverages: Pomegranate juice, coconut water, hibiscus tea, aloe vera juice

Essential oils for balancing pitta:  jasmine, lavender, sandalwood and rose.

Give yourself a full body massage before taking a shower, using sunflower or coconut oil as a base ( these are both cooling) and add one of the essential oils that are Pitta pacifying.

Use a rose water spritz. I carry one in my bag with me and a quick spritz on the face and I cool down instantly!

Practice A Cooling Pranayama:
Left Nostril Breathing: The left nostril is directly connected to the Ida nadi, the moon channel and when activated is cooling and relaxing. Left nostril breathing also calms worries, fears and anxieties. Simply take your right hand and block your right nostril and breath through the left, taking slow deep inhales and exhales.

Shitali: Curl your tongue into a tube and stick the tip out or make an "o" with your lips. Inhale through your mouth and exhale through the nose. Repeat 5-10 times.

To find out more about your dosha, take the dosha quiz and more Pitta balancing tips click here.