#15. Leelah Eisenberg: An Ayurvedic Journey - Coming Home to her True Self

Join me for an interview with Leelah (Elizabeth) Eisenberg as she shares her Ayurvedic journey.  After a 28-year career in health care, she embraced Ayurvedic healing (reluctantly at first), determined not to be fated the same premature death of her mother and brother.  The film "Ayurveda - The Art of Being" showed up in her Netflix queue - a serendipitous introduction to this magnificent healing system.  She was so taken that she resolved to locate the featured doctor, Dr. Scott Gerson, and schedule an appointment.  A self-described "nice Jewish girl," Leelah wasn't prepared to do what he asked her to do when she agreed to an Ayurvedic detoxification program called pancha karma.  Do, she did, however.  She did yoga, recited mantras, chanted Sanskrit, practiced meditation, and even ate a new food called kitchari.  To Leelah, the proof was in the pudding.  In three days, her mind was clear and body pain-free.  What she didn't believe is that she could just pick up, move to New Mexico, and study with one of the most renowned Ayurvedic teachers in the U.S., Dr. Vasant Lad, but in fact, her dharma - responsibility, life's purpose, reason for being - required her to do so.   Leelah shares her "top five take-aways" from her experience at the Ayurvedic Institute.  #1:  Recognizing how ancestral patterns can hold us and how we can release them - the practice of tarpana can help remove karmic burdens; #2:  Surrendering to what is - meaning letting go of control - can offer tremendous freedom; #3:  Recognizing that chaos and turbulence - while painful - can shepard an awakened level of consciousness; #4:  Your emotions are your friends - allowing them instead of numbing out or remaining stuck - can be transformative; #5:  AMA.  In Ayurveda, ama refers to the buildup of toxins:  mental, spiritual, physical.  By incorporating the other four take-aways or lessons, ama will recede.  The result:  an emergence of energy that facilitiates not only optimum health, but the opportunity to create a life of unlimited potential.  Her own Ayurvedic journey showed her that the most simple recommendations can often be the most profound.  When in India with Ayurvedic doctor, Sunil Joshi, he suggested she start to take time to rest and relax.  Pondering this, she spent five hours cleaning his library.  While he thanked her, he let her know that he didn't consider this to be rest.  He also suggested that when she traveled back to the U.S., she do so in a way (to the extent possible) to remain calm and collected.  True to her fashion, she could not consider returning home without trinkets for her family and visited the marketplace before her flight.  Leaving the serenity of the ashram and putting herself in a chaotic marketplace, almost missing her flight, did not exactly reduce her stress level.  She learned to meet her resistence to change with compassion and hence, to help clients move in the direction of healing, not to push or cajole them.  While Ayurveda is known as “the science of self-healing,” we touch on the role of the healer in an individual’s journey.  The healer gives the client hope, the space to evolve.  The client is the one who transforms, he or she has to allow it to happen.  Trust is critical between the Ayurvedic practitioner and client.  The goal is for her clients to become self-aware, meaning they are connecting fully with their mind/body/spirit and are able to shift swiftly when imbalances arise.  To find out more about Leelah:  I would love it if you would follow, rate, or write a review for my podcast.  What you think matters and I appreciate all feedback!Get in touch with topic ideas relating to my podcast's categories:The meaning of health and well-being, personal and collective consciousness, and maximizing full human potential.  My email:  [email protected] sincere gratitude, Noreen