Four weeks ago was a time of big transition in my house. My nearly 5 year old daughter started Transitional Kindergarten at our public elementary school, after two years at a really sweet Montessori preschool. This was a big shift for the whole family, establishing a new morning and evening routine, and supporting Juno with some apprehension over uncertainties around having a new teacher, being in an aftercare program, and starting at a big kid school with a bunch of kids she didn’t know.
In the same week, I was staying up too late putting the finishing touches on my new website so that I could launch it two days after Juno started school. This launch was a big transition for my Ayurvedic work, really putting myself out there into the public sphere in a bigger way. Normally I’m in bed by 10pm and sleep well. With all of these transitions, I was up until midnight or 1am, Juno was waking up in the middle of the night, and then I needed to wake up early to get Juno ready for school.
When we go through periods of poor sleep, transitions, stress, and anxiety, it is common for digestion to become impaired. I started to feel a dull nausea and a lot more gas than is normal for me to have these days. My mind was unsettled and craving comfort foods - heavy, sweet, salty. Those things that taste good and give you that emotional sigh of relief in the moment, but that just feed back into the dysfunction loop and ultimately make you feel worse in the end.
But this time, I chose something different. I remembered a saying that a couple of my teachers have shared, “treat complicated with simple.” When life is complicated, or symptoms are complicated, try applying the opposite quality. What is the opposite of complicated? Simple.
What that looked like for me was
saying no to as much as I could that was not absolutely necessary to do.
simplifying my diet and eating warm, nourishing, well-cooked, and easy to digest foods to help balance vata, and calm my nervous system and agitated digestion. I made kitchari every day for lunch that week with supportive digestive spices, and had simple veggie soups for dinner.
cutting out coffee (even though I only drink decaf) and having herbal teas (like tulsi, chamomile, ginger) and chai instead.
getting back on my normal 10pm-5:30/6am sleep cycle as soon as I could.
making sure I was eating meals at regular times to optimize digestion, and let my body/mind relax around knowing that food was coming.
not eating while working, but taking a break and eating in a calm state while focused on eating, not on all the millions of other things I needed to get done.
taking my dog on regular evening walks to get some exercise and time outside after the heat of the day had dissipated, even though my agitated mind was telling me I didn’t have time.
Rather than feeling bogged down and heavy, with more agitated digestion, the mild nausea and gas went away within a couple of days, even while I was still in the middle of this transition week. I started sleeping better, I felt much less stress, things that might have bothered me started to just roll off my back with relative ease, and I was much more present and able to be there for Juno and her emotions around this huge shift in her life.
“Treat complicated with simple.”
Following a simple routine and diet during complicated times—it really helps. Check out my kitchari recipe for an easy to digest and nourishing meal of rice, split mung dal, digestive spices, and veggies. It’s simple and delicious, and great not only for Ayurvedic cleansing, but also to simplify your diet in times of stress, illness, and change of seasons.