Have you been ill lately? Not feeling like you have energy after the surgery? Whether, it may be a disease or an accident or a severe infection that you have suffered. It is important to slow down and let your body heal after an illness. When I suffered from an injury last year it took me a while to get back my true self. I followed a detailed diet regimen for months to regain my strength and general health. Often when someone becomes sick our body has to work hard than twice than normal to fight the infection inside. So, it is important to give your body support and essential nutrients to get back in track.
1.Take time for yourself
Sometimes simplest way to recover from an illness is to rest your body and mind as much as possible. Our body is one of the amazing structures it can handle any kind of disease as long as you give it enough rest. Body and mind are intertwined together and their bond is mutual so any pain to the body will cause pain to the mind. That’s why stress is one of the reasons for many diseases that we see today. Keep meditating and breathe fresh air as much as possible.
2.Drink plenty of water
On an average a human body is made of 60% of water and 40% of other components; there is no need to mention the essential role played by water in all our biological processes. It is part of each and every structure and almost all physiological functions require water for functioning. Drinking at least 2 litres of water a day will help your body to focus on fighting actual disease better.
3.Eat healthy
This is always the best way to regain strength in your body. Eating healthy isn’t an option it is necessity to recover from an illness. While modern science doesn’t believe in food playing a role in disease manifestation. Ayurveda firmly believes that one need to eat healthy and maintain a proper lifestyle to be healthy and this doesn’t only apply to a sick person but for every person. Foods which are mainly easy to digest like soups, semisolid foods are to be eaten. Vegetables are to be eaten after cooking them properly. Fruits especially berry family have essential vitamins and anti-oxidants which are good for immunity. Ayurveda recommended kitchari an exclusive balanced tridoshic diet is recommended during this period.
4.Exercise with in your limits
Exercise is known to reduce some of the most common diseases of 21 st century. In general, exercise has many health benefits some of which include aiding in digestion and metabolism; in building strong muscles and bones; in reducing stress and anxiety. Exercise also helps in getting enough oxygen to muscles and to increase your endurance. While here in this context exercise helps to boost your immune system, increases self-confidence, improves mental health. It is considered vital for emotional well-being of a person. Start with gentle routine keeping in mind the strength of your body and build it up over the time period as you regain the strength. Ayurveda says one should exercise in tune with their body type as for Vata body type gentle exercises like walking is recommended, pitta body type moderate exercises like swimming and skiing and for kapha body type intense exercises like running, weights and aerobics are recommended. But after illness energy is very less in body in general mild exercises are recommended for any type of body type.
5.Breathe More
Meditation is the one of the key breathing exercises that has proved to be helpful in many mental disorders. Breathing exercises like meditation are used to increase the capability of lungs. Regular practice makes it easier to hold more air. Meditation increase lungs capacity, improves sleep, reduces stress and boosts self-confidence. Meditation helps to increase brain activity and decreases risk of mental conditions like depression. Some of the key meditation techniques like Nadi sodhana (Alternative nostril breathing), Brahmri (Humming Bee) are best for relaxation and recovery.
6.Eat on time
Recent research shows that lifestyle plays an important role in causing many diseases. When recovering from an illness, our body needs energy and rest at suitable times to help get back in shape. Why is it important to eat on time? As you may know our body has a biological clock based on circadian rhythm which means it depends on the pattern of the sun. Most of the physiological processes like digestion, appetite and metabolism of carbohydrates, fats and proteins follow a regular pattern in a 24hrs. If a person eats every day at different times most of these physiological processes gets disrupted. It is found that eating at irregular times can lead to conditions like heart diseases , diabetes and obesity. It is important what Ayurveda says in this regard According to Ayurveda there are 3 doshas or 3 biological humours which are responsible for physiological processes of the body. Ayurveda gave a timeline for each dosha person considering when they should eat and when they should wake up.
7.Sleep on time
It goes without saying that even one night of no sleep can make your next morning miserable. Sleep is vital for our body to recharge and get back to work next day. Have you ever wondered why you feel drowsy or tired almost same time every day or feel hungry same time? This is because our bodies are controlled by internal biological clock and follows a routine pattern called circadian rhythm. Even the slightest change in pattern can cause many problems. Examples like jet lag and day light saving can mess your physiology due to the same reason. Same reason people who work nights struggle with many health issues including insomnia. Point here is that sleeping on time is important for your body to heal and recover!
8.Detox
Why do you need a detox? Whether it may be the amount of antibiotics that you have consumed or all the different treatments that your body has been exposed; it is important that you get rid of any kind of toxins from your body. A mild detox in the form of daily tea is enough for this purpose.
Detox Tea recipe
Add 1 teaspoon of fennel seeds, ½ teaspoon of turmeric, 1 teaspoon of ajwain and 1 small piece of ginger to 1.5 glass of water and boil it. Leave it for a while and drink it when it is at room temperature. Drink this detox tea twice a day to help get rid of any kind of toxins from your body.
9.Protect your digestive fire
A person is described healthy when all 3 doshas or 3 basic humors , 7 bodily tissues and 3 malas or excretory materials and Agni or digestive fire are in balance. Here, digestive fire plays a vital role in maintaining a person’s body and ayurveda also emphasizes on the importance of the food we eat and lifestyle we lead. Food plays an important role in the pathogenesis of a disease, so any thing that we keep in our mouth has an action on our body. Eating right kind of food for your body is what it depends on. Because after an illness your digestive fire is low. Foods which require less effort to get digested are good for your body. As mentioned before soups are best choice . Spices like cumin, carom seeds, coriander , ginger are digestive and carminative spices which aid in digestion are recommended. Avoid pickles, fried and spicy foods for few weeks .
Simple digestive soup
2 Carrots cut in small pieces 2 tomatoes cut in small pieces 10 leaves of spinach 5 leaves of fresh mint Boil all these ingredients and set aside to cool them down meanwhile fry on dry heat ; 1 teaspoon of carom and cumin and add all the above ingredients to a blender and blend them in to soup . Add bit of salt according to taste.
10.Last but not least try a massage
One of the best remedies recommended for relieving any sort of tension, aches and stiffness in your body. It also helps in reducing physical and mental stress. Ayurveda while describing daily regimen explains the importance of a daily massage for health and longevity. Sesame oil is the one of the best oils for external use according to ayurveda . One can try warm sesame oil self-massage 1 hour before the bath as well.