Re: Ashwagandha Report - MAJOR LEARNING OPPORTUNITY! Re: Ashwagandha question

Dear Uniquity -

Thank you for your in depth research and reporting. I came up with similar key references, and conclusions from searching which verify my experience and training. My Ayurvedic training spoke of ashwagandha as safe for children, elders, pregnant and postpartum women et al. My experience with clients has demonstrated this similarly. I honor the fact that everyone is different and there tend to be exceptions to every "rule" though Ayurvedic medicine looks with wisdom on the uniqueness of each and advises based on that rather than a list of do this don't do that's for everyone the same.

Often especially early pregnancy in which pitta is naturally high anyway, may become more so and create threatened miscarriage. Bleeding issues often are related to high pitta, and is one of the ways the body releases excess pitta (there are usually better ones!).

The word pitta refers to a metabolic principle that governs transformation and heat in the body and the rest of nature, and in excess, creates heat and or acidic accumulation and side effects from that which we could talk about another time.

Later pregnancy depends on season and individual, though more I see it is vata that causes problems. So I would reduce ashwagandha in the first trimester in many cases, just because so many in the western culture are pitta dominant (Dr. Triguna in lecture, reporting on ayurvedic pulses of thousands of westerners and eastern Indians).

Ashwagandha is mildly heating, not nearly as much or as sharply as ginseng. It is also very kind, grounding, calming, promotes quiet alertness at the same time, is helpful with lower back and other muscular pain, eyesight, and gives steady strength. It is called a vata rasayana, or rejuvenative tonic for times and conditions of change, ungroundedness, instability etc hence its adaptogenic action. Also translated means strength of a horse!

It is a major friend of mine personally in the last few years of postmenopausal change, many moves. I am a woman and postpartum doula.

I've worked with pregnant clients who were on threatened miscarriage and it was primary in a formula that not only helped them sleep when that was a problem, it gave daytime grounded calm and stability, and soon their threatened miscarriage issues calmed down and they were taken off bedrest.

Ayurvedic medicine nearly always uses herbs in combination with pregnant (and most) clients to facilitate even more the balance as needed for this individual person. If pitta is high for instance, shatavari (wild asparagus root) is tonic for reproductive and other tissues, or guduchi may be valuable for gentle blood and liver cleansing, among several of the mild but helpful bitter tonic herbs - to add in the formula again, not alone.

More gentle and very helpful for pitta is just a tea of coriander, cumin and a little fennel (I know some lists say avoid evenm this in pregnancy - I've used essential oil of fennel with lemon and peppermint a drop or so in liter of drinking water, for 2 clients with pre-toxemic swelling, unusual thirst and other acidic issues with very good success.

'Applauding your approach here, and I hope we can continue the conversation.

Warmly,
Ysha