The Ancient Secret To Fixing Your Joint Pain (That Modern Doctors Won't Tell You)

Hey there, sisters! This is Salila Sukumaran with yet another episode of Actionable Ayurveda, where we learn new ways to reconnect to our Ayurvedic intelligence, our inbuilt AI. For a juicy, glowy body and a life of purpose. So today we are diving deep into something that affects so many of us modern women—joint aches and that stubborn stiffness that seems to follow us from our desk to our yoga mats to the bed and back again with us next morning like a toxic bestie. You know that moment when you're rushing out to drop your little one to school and your knees decide to go off in a different direction? I remember one morning I had to limp all the way from little S's school to my parked car 2 blocks away, all the while praying my knees stopped doing that weird thing it was doing. Unforgettable morning. Or when you're trying to get some coffee from the snack room before your meeting break ends and your lower back reminds you it's been holding tension all week, and you're doing lunges like your life depended on it, and your colleague is laughing at you. Happened to me. So my dears, I hear you. As someone who comes from a generation of women healers from the lush backwaters of Kerala, who witnessed most of the women in my family slow down only in their 70s, it came as a surprise to me that as a modern woman with all the facilities and resources available to me, here I was dealing with a pesky sciatic in my 30s. And if the weather got too cold, or on most days when my child was young, I did not have the energy to keep up with a doggy and a toddler running about me. So I completely understand the delicate balance you try to maintain between your career, your family, your personal well-being. And I often wonder, what is it about our lifestyles here in the Western world that we are so easily thrown off our centers? Let me share a story about my client Maitreyi, and I hope this will inspire you. Maitreyi is a data scientist in her 30s. She came to me with persistent aches that had become worrisome companions in her busy life. I can only imagine that Maitreyi spent most of her day in Zoom meetings, her legs crisscrossed. Perhaps I'm guilty as charged myself. It's such a bad habit because it places undue pressure on certain joints. Her hands typing all day long, flowing, flying on the keyboard, back and shoulders hunched as all of us do. She would wait for a break to rush to the bathroom. She stopped hydrating as much because she wanted to maximize her productivity. And she would finish dinner, clean up the kitchen, and then spend a couple of hours working through her emails because, you know, it's always a good idea to get a head start to your next day's to-do, right? We totally sympathize. We have all been there. We've all done that. And Maitreyi was finding it difficult to keep up with her husband when they went on hikes. Her knees hurt when she danced. And one day she had such severe pain, she knew she needed help. And that's how she ended up in a discovery call with me. Maitreyi was determined, intelligent, found her to be a lovely young lady, and I absolutely know we could reverse her condition and maybe even get her dancing again. But before we dive into the solutions, understand what's really happening through the lens of Ayurveda. Now, in our ancient, beautiful Ayurvedic science, we speak of the three doshas: Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. Think of them as the architects of your body's balance. And when we talk about joint pain, what Sanskrit we call as sandhi kata vata, we are often looking at an imbalance in these forces. Particularly the Vata dosha, which governs all movement in the body. Sandhi literally translates to joint, so the excess Vata in the joints. We can have joint aches due to 3 major reasons, okay? One is due to an injury there, and the other is due to either the dosha imbalance, or the third can be a buildup of ama or endogenous toxins. That sediment in these areas as a natural byproduct of the metabolic processes. And this ama can create an issue in that spot or can create an imbalance of the doshas, leading to pain, inflammation, redness. So our body is unable to eliminate these ama toxins due to imbalance in the doshas themselves or the weakness of the tissues, plus the This ama has a sticky nature. It is sticky by nature. So it's difficult to remove it once it is formed. We know that ama is deposited under the skin and in the joints away from our vital organs so the body can continue to function. So it's not just the ama which develops locally in that region, but it's also the ama from other parts of the body which the body needs to take away from the vital organs, and therefore the body kind of shoves it away. So that it is under the carpet and away from sight, and it can function normally and get about its day. Now, skin issues are whispers. Joint issues are now shouts from the body. So let me ask you something. When was the last time you truly listened to your body's whispers before they became shouts? These joint problems could be a structural issue with your bone tissues, could be a degeneration of your bone, Could be drying up of the synovial fluid or the lubrication in your joints. It could be a deformity. Remember the way we all sit cross-legged? You know, it's very fashionable to crisscross one leg on top of the other, very ladylike. However, this is one of the reasons why our body becomes imbalanced and could lead to joint issues. Also, not to forget, there could be accumulation of ama, like uric acid crystals, leading to pain. Now for our chat today, we will talk about joint aches caused by the imbalanced Vata, as Vata is responsible for pain sensation. Now Maitreyi is a skinny mini willowy Vata lady. She was living in a dry, extremely cold Vata environment. So when we have Vata on Vata, naturally the body starts to exhibit aggravated Vata symptoms like overwhelm, sleep disturbances, BM issues, constipation, and then it slowly starts to deep into the bones. Now, for Maitreyi, the greatest healing came from cleansing her body with specific herbs and panchakarma therapies under my guidance, and I won't be able to share the details here. However, you can easily integrate some of the easy peasy rituals that I shared with Maitreyi that benefited her tremendously, and it's my belief that you will also gain a lot from these. So the first remedy I want to talk about is crepitus. It's the crack in our joints when we walk. Our bones crack in the knees. This is usually because the synovial fluids are drying up. There is excess vata being released. It's a good thing as well. Just like gas, it's better out than in. When we go to an Ayurveda or a TCM practitioner for a massage, they will twist and tug at our fingers and toes to release trapped air or vata. And as the wisdom goes, that when this is not released, it creates a blockage leading to imbalance, leading to pain. So go ahead and crack your knuckles, especially if you type a lot. Let me see if I can crack mine. I think all of mine are pretty good right now. I heard one, another, perfect, third, fourth. Okay, I'm good. For the Sanskrit geeks out there, it's called anguli svota, and you have my official permission to take some favorite oil of choice. It could be warm sesame, jojoba, almond, or argan oil, whatever oil that you love. Warm it up and massage your fingers and crack your fingers and toes as much as you like so that the vata in these joints can get released. The second tip I have to share with you is adding some Moringa Magic to your diet. And when I say Moringa, please don't go buy tablets. It's such a sad boring way to nurture your body. Buy the real leaves and drumsticks in bulk and freeze them if you can't get them regularly at your desi store. A handful is all you need to add to your soups and veggie sautés, lentils and beans. Moringa is actually more powerful than turmeric for its inflammation-fighting properties. But where moringa shines is in pain management. A potent Ayurveda healing pain-relieving oil is called Murivenna, or the wound healing oil translated from Malayalam, my mother tongue. Moringa is a major ingredient in this oil, and it is medicine from the Kerala Ayurveda tradition. Moringa is light to digest and warming, so it is shothagna. Shothagna meaning shotha is inflammation. It reduces inflammation. However, it can be heating, so avoid moringa around your period times, or if you have any acid reflux. If you have active acid reflux, you should absolutely not take any moringa. It can increase your blood flow and it can cause extra bleeding. For example, you have hemorrhoids or fissures and you have bleeding when you go use the bathroom, Moringa is not a good idea. Now, if you have swelling and redness anywhere in your joints, you can make a paste with Moringa and apply it directly and keep it on for 45 minutes. This is a safe practice for all, okay. Let's talk about the evening reset. In my grandmother's kitchen, there was always a pot of dry ginger or shunti tea simmering in the evening over the coconut wood fire stove. But for my busy corporate warriors, here's a practical adaptation. Make a gut bestie recipe with a teaspoon of black cumin and an inch of dry ginger and half a teaspoon of carom in about a liter of water. Keep a thermos of this warm dry ginger tea at your desk. Dry ginger, which we call as Sarva Bhayshajya, is a remedy for all ills in Sanskrit. Sarva meaning universal, Bhayshajya meaning healer. It is a powerful anti-inflammatory agent as well. Did you know this about ginger? I'd love to hear your thoughts. Make a pot of ginger gut pesti and tag me @salilasukumaran.ayurveda on Instagram, and I will share with my community to encourage all of us to develop good habits. I am all about creating meaningful conversations, and God knows we need a village to remind us to stay healthy. Dry ginger is a potent medicine for removing ama, or that endogenous toxins from the joints, and we know this in our modern science understanding as uric acid crystals, which can cause sharp pain. Now, who wouldn't want to sip something that feels like a warm hug from the inside? I've got mine right here. Let me take a sip. Let's talk about nighttime nurturing. Before bed, take 5 minutes— yes, just 5 minutes— for a self-massage or Abhyanga on your problem joints. Use warm castor oil. Castor oil is ushna, it's warming, and is vyay, has deeply penetrative properties, and it helps to dissolve ama or the sticky toxins from the joints. You want to make it doubly effective, Mix warm castor oil with dry ginger powder and apply this on your problem areas. This self-care ritual is not just about relief, it's about honoring your body as a sacred vessel. I love to use castor oil as a makeup remover because of its BIAI or deeply penetrative cleansing properties. It makes my skin squeaky clean. Try it and tell me if I'm right or I'm right. The fifth and the final ritual I want to share with you is mindful movement. Integrate sukshma vyayama, or subtle exercises, into your day. These aren't your high-intensity workout routines, so you can do them even directly after a lunch break. Think gentle rotations, mindful stretches, especially during your work breaks. Start from your head. Move your head forward and backward, then in gentle circles, up to 7 times in each direction will do. From there, go down to your shoulders, your wrists, your hips, your knees, and finally your ankles. The best time to do Sukshma Vyayama is before a yoga session, a workout, or after an oil abhyangam. Generously apply warm sesame oil to your body before a nice hot shower. Just 5 minutes of this practice will go a long way in protecting your joints. Remember, in Ayurveda, we believe that all healing begins with creating space. Both in the body and the mind. And that's what we do in our private coaching sessions. We observe the body closely. I remember my final chat with Maitreyi. It's not only what she learned during the time in the program, but also the things she knew aggravated her pain. This is called as Nidana Parivarjana in Ayurveda. We have to figure out what is causing the issue, what are the root causes, and we stop repeating those issues so that the body has the space to heal and gain its strength. And once it's done that, then you're well on the way to reversing the symptoms and getting your health back. Maitreyi, our lovely data scientist, reported that these simple practices reduced her morning stiffness considerably, and she did have a hallmark ending. She regained her mobility enough to start dancing again. But before we wrap up today's episode, I would love to hear from you. How do your joints respond to weather changes? What time of the day do you feel most stiff? Share your experience in the comments or reach out to me on Instagram and share your thoughts with me. Let's create a community of healing together. Until next week, this is Salila Sukumaran reminding you to stay juicy, stay glowy like the goddess that you are.