Excertos de um artigo sobre a abordagem ayurvédica relativamente ao período menstrual, da autoria de Terra Rafael, parteira e curandeira.
Ayurveda & Menses for Wisewomen
Menstruation - the monthly bleeding which is part of the cycling of women who are fertile can be more than "the curse" or a "period". Ayurveda views menstruation as a cleansing time for a woman's body, which benefits it greatly. It is a time for self healing - if enough energy is devoted to taking care of oneself. However, in this culture, women are expected to act "the same", no matter what, & her expected duties during the time of bleeding are no different than at any other time. Partly due to such lack of rest, care & awareness during the menses, many women in our culture experience menstrual problems and other related women's reproductive diseases, such as fibroids, endometriosis, infertility, PID etc. By nurturing themselves, maintaining energetic balance & avoiding build-up of toxins in the body throughout the cycle women can find less discomfort and, in the long term, less disease.
By bringing awareness & care into the menstrual cycle, women also gain in experience that will serve them if they ever become pregnant. Excellent nutrition, maintaining energetic balance, nurturing herbs, adequate exercise & rest, relaxation practice - all serve in both cases. A woman who has been taught at menarche how to care for herself at that special time is also practicing what she needs to know to take care of herself in pregnancy. Women who begin using the Wisewoman Steps of Healing to care for themselves in their cycles will feel very at home doing so in their childbearing time. They will also have a healthier & more balanced start because by resting during their periods they will have honored the natural cleansing of menses which will have preserved their reproductive health, both physically and energetically.
The emotional changes of the cycle also prepare for dealing with pregnancy. Women who listen to themselves with awareness and care for themselves adequately find that heightened emotional sensitivity is not necessarily a call to bitchiness (although that too can be useful), but is an opportunity to hear themselves more clearly in respect to what in their lives serves them & what does not. More alone time is a common need that women easily overlook at other times of their lives which may become more pressing during pre-bleeding & pre-birthing.
Women who have experienced the inward, downward pulling of energy during moon bleeding will be familiar with that feeling in its greatly intensified form during labor. Ayurveda calls this energy the Apana Vayu or Apan Prana. Healthy menstrual practices help preserve the balance of this key energy for pregnancy & birth.
Those who have experienced menstrual cramps and found ways to come to terms with them will recognize the early labor sensation of the cervix beginning to open as a familiar one, not so scary. This brings the relaxed familiarity to early labor often considered possible only for those who have already given birth.
The Doshas & the Menstrual Cycle
During the menstrual cycle the energy of a woman may shift considerably. This is true more for some women than for others. By considering the possibility that we really aren't the same the whole month and acting & eating accordingly, imbalances may be avoided. Our women's bodies have their own seasons - just as Mother Earth does!
The cycle itself has goes through the three different doshas:
- Ovulation time until bleeding begins is Vata predominant. Apan vayu stimulates ovulation and degeneration of endometrium. During the premenstrual phase, apana vayu may push kapha, pitta or vata into uterus, creating different types of PMS - woman becomes emotional depending on predominant dosha.
- Bleeding time is Pitta predominant.
- Between bleeding & ovulation is Kapha predominant. The new endometrium is built, ojas glows through her eyes & lips, love & compassion come more easily, she become sexually active, movement in nipples & clitoris, constantly thinking of her mate.
- Estrogens are necessary to create vaginal bleeding.
- Progesterones are necessary for continuation of pregnancy.
Ama & the Menstrual Cycle
Besides the effects of disordered doshas affecting the menstrual period, it may also be affected by excess Ama or toxins built up in the body. The most common cause of Ama is improper digestion. In Ayurveda there are cleansing processes available called Pancha Karma to rid the body of built up toxins from incomplete digestion or other causes. By ridding the body of these excesses the menstrual time, which concerns purification of the woman's body, is not overloaded with its task and can work more easily, in the way Nature intended. Pancha Karma should be undertaken with the help of a trained practitioner. Ayurvedic practitioners can also recommend herbs & other means for re-kindling the digestive fire which is necessary to proper digestion.
The build up of ama can also be avoided by following these simple dietary practices:
- Sip plain hot water frequently throughout the day. This helps the body digest & eliminate ama & metabolic wastes so that your internal balance can be restored & maintained.
-Eat a full, warm, cooked meal at lunch time, with all the six tastes described by Ayurveda.
-Take at least twenty minutes to eat, & sit for a few minutes at the end of the meal.
-Eat a light, early dinner & have only liquids after 8 pm.
-Leave time for food to digest from last meal before eating any more solid food - about 1hr for fruits, 2hrs for vegetables & grains, 3 hrs for dairy & heavy proteins
-Sip room temperature or warm water with meals, avoiding dumping a whole glass of liquid into your stomach soon after eating
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Recommendations for During Your Moon Bloods
-Take time out for Rest. Some women ask their bloods to come on the weekends - and that works. Some women wear special jewelry or clothes to signify they are bleeding to their family & friends, which allows those in their life to give them extra care & extra space. Some women seclude themselves while they bleed. Some cut back on work those days. The investment of time off during bleeding will pay off in more energy to accomplish things during the rest of your cycle. Women can honor each other when they are bleeding with food, herb teas, massages, taking the kids.
-Keep your Exercise easy - Avoid strenuous exercise = jogging, jumping, running, riding,inverted hatha yoga poses
-Let yourself Turn Inward as much of your bleeding time as possible. The traditional Moon Hut where women secluded themselves during their moon blood was a place where women could be free from daily work & distraction and allow their intuitions & visions to emerge uninterrupted. Use your favorite help to turn inward - meditation, contemplation, chanting/singing/drumming, dancing, divination, prayer
-Eat a diet to pacify your doshas, eating lightly and warmly (no cold drinks or foods)
- Handle cravings comfortably -if you crave sweets eat healthy sweets or just a little milk chocolate.
Shower with warm, not hot or cold water rather than bathe -- Baths may disturb meridians of the ovaries. deranging Vata, according to Dr. Lad.
-Avoid vigorous massage especially of head
-Avoid sexual activity during bleeding time. Intercourse during menses may create cervical erosion, dysplasia, and cancer, including testicular & prostate cancer. Low resistance of genital organs during menses means viral infections e.g. herpes may be more easily obtained. Engaging in intercourse creates anti peristaltic movements, disturbing the rhythm of the fallopian tubes. Intercourse during menses will disturb the direction of apan vayu ( the specific type of Vata energy regulating menstruation, ovulation, urination, & excretion) and may create vata abnormality in women's reproductive system. Western medicine agrees that there may be a connection between intercourse during menses and endometriosis.
-Use external absorbent pads if possible - tampons create anti peristaltic movements, disturbing the rhythm of fallopian tubes & the apana vayu, not to mention the medically acknowledged possibility of toxic shock syndrome if tampons are left in too long. Feeling the flow coming out may be an experience keyed into our inherited physical well-being, since women have been experiencing it that way since the beginning of womanhood. Tampons also encourage the idea that we can just act "normal" during our periods without any possible sign that we are bleeding. Some women use cloth pads, soaking them and then giving their blood directly back to the earth & plants -- or at least their household plants (the plants love it!). Connecting to the cycle of giving back to the earth is another way to heal menstrually & ecologically.
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Fonte:
http://www.wisewomanhood.com/womenshealthmenstrualhealth.htm
