New life for the old liver

REGIMES TO cleanse the liver have always been part of the 5,000-year-old ayurveda system of natural healing, using only oil and juice, but it’s not something you’d want to try casually at home. Ayurveda, promoted as “a science of life”, insists on practitioners knowing the consequences of their choices and accepting responsibility. The healing rituals themselves are regarded merely as tools to improve the health and cannot succeed without due care and dedication.

The liver-cleansing programme at the Rajeev Suchada Ayurveda Holistic Healing Centre in Chiang Mai takes five to seven days and is so intensive that not everyone is advised to undergo the regime. The doctors must first assess the state of your health to ensure you’re up to it.

The evaluation begins with making a list of health issues in need of attention. I arrived concerned mainly about an occasionally increased heart rate, swelling in my legs after long sessions of sitting and standing, slight but constant pain in the lower back – and a restless mind.

In the detailed consultation that follows, clients learn what they should do during the liver-cleansing programme, which for the most part comes down to resting and eating well. Obviously they need to avoid consuming anything that aggravates the liver, such as coffee, black tea, red meat and deep-fried foods.

The better you prepare and the easier the cleansing process will be. Other places do offer to cleanse the liver in two or three days, but Drs Rajeev and Suchada insist that the whole bodily system must be balanced to ensure the best results without negative side effects.

The treatment includes a two-hour massage with warmed herbal oil and an herbal compress. This is done while you’re lying in a pool of oil that’s held within a barricade of herbal bread dough. The well-trained therapists use “transdermal” techniques to realign and boost the flow of natural energy to prepare you for purging the liver.

Meanwhile the ayurvedic meals served daily are geared to your personal dosha, or particular bodily humour. Everyone has one of three doshas (vata, pitta or kapha), easily determined through a series of questions.

 After five days of preparation, the flushing begins in the afternoon of Day 6. You get herbal laxatives along with advice to guide you through each step with no worries. The course ends with rejuvenating therapy to restore strength and vitality. 

I found the cleansing relaxing and effortless, with no cramps, nausea, dizziness or even the slightest discomfort. And, to my amazement, by the final day the hundreds of unsightly black spots on my shins had disappeared.

My next work assignment, immediately afterward, was in Japan, where I spent 10 days in the field carrying heavy camera equipment long distances and yet, thanks to the ayurveda therapy, had no problem at all. Gone were the chronic stiffness in my shoulders and the pain in my lower back and heels. I’m in my late 40s but I truly felt 10 years younger. 

The abundance of energy I could feel in both body and mind was ample evidence for me that the treatment worked – I didn’t need the verification of laboratory proof. The centre does offer to analyse your stool to determine exactly what was flushed out, but, akin to happiness itself, are test results really necessary for you to just go ahead and be happy?

I cannot stress enough that do-it-yourself liver-cleansing – such as using recipes gleaned from the Internet – is a bad idea, as is signing up for a quick and cheap programme. You only have one liver and it does vital work, so you need the proper expertise. Ayurvedic doctors undergo many years of study and practice, so let them decide what’s best for you.

 

 

FEELING FLUSHED

>>“Ayu Release: The Complete Detox Programme” costs US$1,900 (Bt68,000).

>>The Rajeev Suchada Ayurveda Holistic Healing Centre is at 99/1 the Oriental in Chiang Mai’s Saraphi district.

>>It’s open daily except Sunday from 9 to 6. 

>>Call (053) 128 425 or visit www.AyuCenter.com.