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KK Ayurveda Is Open! June 2008
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After almost 2 years of study at The Ayurvedic Institute in Albuquerque, NM, I'm permanently back in Chicago and have opened an Ayurvedic consulting business. I know most of you are thinking, "ayur-whuh? what did she study? what is this new brand of karen klutznick weirdness?"
In this email, I'll give you a super-simplified introduction to ayurveda and explain why you should be interested in it. I'll also tell you what I do in a one-on-one consultation, in case you or someone you know might benefit from one. In subsequent emails, I'll be sending current health-related articles from newspapers and magazines that i think you'll find interesting as well as ayurvedic tips relevant to the season, our diets, everyday life, etc.
(If you prefer not to recieve any such emails from me, you may unsbscribe at the bottom of this page. If you'd like to forward my emails to others, there's a link also at the bottom of the page.)
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What Is Ayurveda and Why Should I Care?
Ayurveda is the 5,000-year-old "science of life" (or what I respectfully like to call "hillbilly medicine") from India. In ayurveda, each of us is a unique combination of the five elements (ether, air, fire, water and earth). At conception, this combination was set for each of us and represents our own unique state of balance or perfect health. Once we're born and start living, we're thrown out of balance by environmental, dietary, emotional and other factors. If these imbalances go on long enough, they can be the precursors of disease.
It's very common for all of us to have a number of physical and emotional idiosyncrasies we experience routinely (these include stiff joints, dry skin and hair, constipation, gas, bloating, diarrhea, anxiety, tendency to overheat, tendency to be cold, rashes, acne, irritability, heartburn, insomnia, elevated blood pressure, lethargy, depression, weight gain, elevated blood sugar, elevated cholesterol, repeated colds or infections, etc.) Even though you might mention these conditions to your doctor or are being treated with pharmaceutical drugs, most of these aren't considered particularly serious in Western medicine until an illness manifests. This isn't so in ayurveda. Ayurveda recognizes all of these as sub-clinical expressions of imbalance that left unchecked may become more serious and lead to disease.
Through corrections in diet and lifestyle, herbs, yoga, breathing, meditation and spiritual practices, ayurvedic practitioners work to bring a client into that state of balance unique to him/her. Think of it as an ounce of prevention.
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What Happens In An Ayurvedic Consultation?
Once we've agreed on a date to meet, I'll email you 2 forms to complete. One is a consent form that acknowledges that I'm not a licensed healthcare provider (the practice of ayurveda is currently unlicensed in the U.S.), that I don't take the place of your physician and a few other formalities. The second is a family and personal health history so I can get an idea of your genetic predisposition to disease, any surgeries, major illnesses, medications/supplements you're taking and a checklist of those aforementioned "idiosyncrasies".
Our first meeting will be at my studio at 40 East Oak Street and take approximately 90 minutes (sometimes more). As time allows, we'll review your health history and discuss your diet and daily routine. I may take your pulse, examine your tongue and look at your fingernails. Throughout the session, I'll be talking about ayurvedic principles relevant to you and your condition. I'll also be assessing and asking you which treatment modalities we can use to begin the journey toward your state of balance.
My recommendations will include any or all of: specific food recommendations, herbs, flower essences, daily self-care practices, recipes for appropriate foods, yoga postures and variations, breathing techniques, meditation practices and whatever else seems helpful in the moment.
These recommendations together with whatever handouts are appropriate for you will be sent by email within a few days of the session.
See? It's much more tame than that out-there-peace-love-hippie thing you thought it would be!
Prices are $200 for the initial consult and $100/hr. for follow-up sessions which generally take 30 to 60 minutes. Herbs and other products are additional.
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 Love,
Karen Klutznick
40 East Oak Street
Chicago, IL 60611
312.479.3300
KKAyurveda@earthlink.net
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