I am a qualified and certified Ayurvedic practitioner and massage therapist in London, UK, working in the Battersea area.  I trained with Dr Deepika Rodrigo at the Ayurvedic institute in Croydon.  Her invaluable, heart centred teaching was a transformative experience for me, as what actually lead me to Ayurveda was my own healing crisis.  I remember the day I walked into the Ayurvedic Clinic, my senses engaged with the evocative smell of herbs and incense, and calmed by the warmth and compassion I received.  It was the first time in three months of battling my crippling depression that I was given hope that it was not going to last forever.  I was anxious, not sleeping, thin, and not functioning well at home with my kids.  I had sat in cognitive behavioural groups not understanding why a pie chart on the board wasn't filling me with reassurance.  There was equally no miracles in the drugs that were prescribed, with all their worrying side effects, that only deepened my sense of powerlessness. I was trying to fix my mind without mending my body.  Little did I know that I was experiencing a long term vata imbalance, and that my digestive fire, or agni as it is called was very weak. Within five months of taking the herbs and changing my diet my anxiety and depression had lifted, I was sleeping well and my appetite had returned.    

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​​My recovery was made possible by some wonderful Sri Lankan doctors, who to this day I admire and feel grateful to have met.  They embody the wisdom of Ayurveda,  they spoke to me, and not to the chemical imbalance.  They understood what I was experiencing within the context of my dosha, but also knew how to help me nurture a more loving, grounded practice of health.  It struck me then how little of the right kind of support is available to people in moments of mental and physical vulnerability.  I was lucky to have found people I could trust to guide me back to health, through ancient practices, such as Ayurveda and Chinese medicine.  Their compassion inspired me to help others, and ignited a belief in this ancient instrument of healing.  

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​"The essence of healing is integration.  Faith, love, devotion, the sense of the unity and sacred nature of humanity and all life are missing in modern medicine.  Without them we are broken and withered inside and our lives have little meaning.  We are trapped in the tedium and stimulation of the outer world with practically nothing to nourish our hearts."  

According to the Upanishads, the main spiritual teachings of ancient India disease is the highest form of asceticism whereby the truth of life and the truth of one's own self can be revealed.  Disease can be a sign of wrong action in life, but it can also be an indication that the soul is directing its energy within."

 Dr. David Frawley, "Ayurvedic Healing"