Ayurveda Article - DO NOT Work Under Stress

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Working Under Stress

 

Your cell phone is ringing. E-mails pour in by the minute. Deadlines,

competition, budgets, bottom lines. Let's face it, the modern

workplace is stressful. As a result, more people than ever are

suffering from sleep disorders, anxiety attacks and even depression.

What we need is the ability to meet the mental demands of the day

without feeling over-stressed.

It was exactly this need that prompted Vaidya Rama Kant Mishra, of Product Research and Development at Maharishi Ayurveda

Products International, to formulate the Worry Free tablets.

"People have told me that if they take tranquilizers it reduces their

anxiety, but then they feel so drowsy that they can't work," says

Vaidya Mishra. "Research shows that Worry Free provides the best of

both worlds: it not only reduces generalized anxiety and calms

stress, it also heightens alertness so you can meet the demands of

your day and prevent mental stress from mounting."

How does this herbal formula accomplish those three objectives?

Here's a chance to look deeply into the ayurvedic wisdom and

scientific research on this remarkable formula.

 

Reduces Generalized Anxiety

Researchers at the University of California at San Diego (UCSD)

conducted a randomized, controlled pilot study to measure the effects

of Worry Free on ten patients who suffered from Generalized Anxiety

Disorder, a condition that affects 25% of the population.

The treatment period was three months. One group took two tablets of

Worry Free twice a day, while the other group took a placebo. At post-

testing, after three months of taking Worry Free, 80% of the Worry

Free group no longer exhibited Generalized Anxiety Disorder,

exhibiting a two-fold greater decrease in the Hamilton Anxiety Scale

than the placebo subjects.

What is the Ayurvedic explanation for this dramatic drop in

generalized anxiety?

"In ayurveda, mental abilities are divided into three categories,"

Vaidya Mishra explains. "They are dhi (acquisition) dhriti

(retention) and smriti (recall). Worry Free helped patients with

Generalized Anxiety Disorder because it contains a special group of

herbs such as Herpestis Monniera (Brahmi), Aloeweed (Shankapushpi),

and Heart-leaved Moonseed (Guduchi), which have an enhancing effect

on dhi, dhriti and smriti."

These special herbs are called medhya herbs in the traditional texts,

and are known to not only nurture the three areas of the mind

individually, but also to nurture coordination among them.

"Muskroot (Jatamansi) and Greater Galangal are additional herbs that

clear the channels. These keep the gaps between dhi, dhriti and

smriti free of toxins and blockages," says Vaidya Mishra. "In the

Vedic understanding, the gap, or union, is where all intelligence

resides." Thus these herbs keep the coordination between acquisition,

retention, and recall working well.

"So if people who take Worry Free are confronted with a stressful

situation, they have the tools to make it a positive, rather than a

negative experience. They can recall related experiences from the

past to help them deal with the present problem, and they tend to

learn from each new one," says Vaidya Mishra, "They can do this

without disturbing their mind, without feeling anxious." One

additional herb in the formula also has a key effect. "Winter Cherry

(Ashwagandha) enhances the mind's overall ability to fight stress,"

says Vaidya Mishra. "Because it helps overall mental functioning, not

targeting just one area of the mind, people find that they can think

more clearly and can solve their problems without incurring stress.

They avoid being damaged by stress in the first place."

 

Reduces Cortisol and Other Markers of Stress

One of the measurements used in the UCSD study was the salivary

cortisol level. Cortisol is a hormone related to stress, and high

cortisol levels show high stress. In the patients who took Worry Free

for three months, the mean salivary cortisol levels went down 2.77

nmol/l. Again, Vaidya Mishra provides an explanation from Maharishi

Ayurveda. There are three subdoshas that govern the mind, he says.

Prana Vata is the subdosha of Vata that governs the brain, sensory

perception and the mind. Tarpaka Kapha is the subdosha of Kapha that

governs the cerebral-spinal fluid. And because acquisition, retention

and recall originate in the heart, Sadhaka Pitta (the subdosha of

Pitta that governs the emotions and their effect on the heart) is

also involved.

"When people overuse or misuse their minds, the subdoshas governing

the mind counteract that overuse by producing more fluid," says

Vaidya Mishra. "It's similar to the extra saliva that is produced by

the taste buds when you're about to eat chilies or other hot foods.

The extra saliva protects the whole digestive system, and prevents

the chilies from creating an abrasive effect."

When your mind is strained by engaging in excessive mental work, the

subdoshas go out of balance. Sadhaka Pitta begins to create a burning

effect and Prana Vata creates a drying effect. Then Tarpaka Kapha

generates extra fluid to counteract this effect and protect the brain.

"But if you overuse your mind over and over and over again, the

lubricating value of Tarpaka Kapha becomes excessive, and begins to

diminish the metabolizing fire (medhya agni) in the gaps between dhi,

dhriti and smriti," says Vaidya Mishra. "It's similar to the effect

of too much moisture in the digestion — it can put out the

digestive

fire (agni)."

When this happens, ama (toxins) start to be created. Ama accumulates

in the gaps and channels of the brain, and mixes with the fluids

created by Tarpaka Kapha, creating a harmful type of cortisol, the

indicator of stress.

"Cortisol in itself is not bad, in fact it's created by the body to

protect the brain," says Vaidya Mishra. "But when Tarpaka Kapha

becomes excessive and there is ama in the physiology, it does more

harm than good. That's when anxiety attacks and other signs of too

much stress take over."

The reason that the subjects' cortisol levels when down after using

Worry Free is because the Muskroot and Greater Galangal enhance the

medhya agni, says Vaidya Mishra. "Medhya agni began to burn brightly

again, ama was no longer produced and no ama was no longer mixing

with Tarpaka Kapha. Thus only a good quality of cortisol was

released, which actually protected the brain from stress. That's why

the salivary cortisol levels went down."

As mentioned earlier, Muskroot and Greater Galangal also help clear

the channels of ama, as does Winter Cherry. "Winter Cherry is such a

sharp, cleansing herb that it in itself self-sufficient, but when

combined with Muskroot and Greater Galangal, it becomes an extremely

effective agent for clearing the channels, enhancing medhya agni and

reducing ama," says Vaidya Mishra.

 

Relaxed But Alert

The subjects in this study and many thousands of people who have

taken Worry Free over the past six years have reported that it makes

them feel relaxed, but also more alert.

"My job involves a tremendous amount of mental stress and sometimes I

feel torn in several directions," says Molly Blackwell, a graphic

designer.

"Worry Free takes me to a whole new level of calm. It settles me down

so I can focus, accomplish and not feel confused."

Vaidya Mishra says that people feel more alert even though calmer

because of the factors already mentioned. The medhya herbs enhance

the capacity of dhi, dhriti, and smriti and improve coordination

between them. Other herbs clear the channels. Winter Cherry increases

overall alertness.

Researchers were so intrigued with this effect that a whole new study

is now being conducted to measure how much Worry Free increases the

alertness of the mind.

"We are confident that the new research will verify the experience of

so many thousands of people who have benefited from this traditional

Ayurvedic formula," says Vaidya Mishra.

 

 

Note : This ayurvedic information is educational and is not intended

to replace standard medical care or advice.

Copyright MAPI, 2002.

 

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