Panchakarma Part 2 - Deep Rest, Ayurvedic Therapies & Surprising Mental Clarity

After the buzz of my first few days here, Day 6 has brought a complete change of pace. I’ve been incredibly lazy – in the best possible way. There’s a delicious novelty in saying that because “lazy” is not something I usually allow myself to be. But here, in this little Ayurvedic bubble, it feels right. It feels necessary.

I’ve been lying by the pool, drifting between chapters of a novel, feeling the warm air on my skin, and letting time stretch. I’ve even finished one book and am halfway through another, something I haven’t done in years. There’s been no sightseeing, no rushing to “make the most of it.” Just stillness.

In a world that constantly rewards busyness, this feels like a radical act of self-care. And it’s making me wonder: how much of my “doing” back home is genuinely necessary, and how much is simply habit?

The Treatments So Far

One of the fascinating parts of Panchakarma is how the treatments shift every couple of days. It’s a carefully choreographed sequence, each step designed to loosen, move, and release toxins from the body, both physical and emotional.

Days 1–2:

Full body massage using warm, medicated oil. The kind that leaves your skin soft and your muscles heavy with relaxation.
Drinking ghee, a rich, clarified butter, to lubricate the internal channels. Not exactly my favourite taste, but its doable and really part of why I am here.
A milk bath, where your treatment team pour warm milk infused with herbs over you in gentle, sweeping motions.
Shirodhara: (The name I can never remember in the videos lol) a suspended bowl of warm milk with a tiny hole at the base, letting a steady stream flow across my forehead and scalp. It’s hypnotic and deeply calming, sending me into a half-dream state.

Days 3–4:

The massage continues, as does the ghee.
Instead of the milk bath, herbal bolus therapy is introduced. Cloth pouches filled with herbs are dipped into hot medicated oil and patted rhythmically over the body. The heat penetrates deeply, easing muscle tension and stimulating circulation.
Nasal drops (nasya) to clear the head and sinuses.
Shirodhara continues, like a gentle thread weaving through the whole process.

Days 5–6:

The massage remains, along with the shirodhara, ghee, and nasal drops.
Herbal bolus therapy is swapped for a medicated rice water bath. Premeda and Avita pour warm rice water over me in a slow, rhythmic sequence, back, sides, front, then seated, almost like a moving meditation.
An oil-filled ring is placed on my stomach during shirodhara to soften and heal the abdominal area.
Finally, a full herbal bath, dark in colour and rich with plant extracts, where the liquid is poured over and over again, almost like a blessing in motion.

By the end, my hair is wet with oil and milk, my skin soft with herbs, and my whole body loose and heavy. It’s an indulgence on one level, but at its core, it’s medicine.

The Body’s Response

As deeply nurturing as these treatments are, they’re not without challenge. By Day 5, I was feeling tired, heavy, and at times, nauseous. My mind and body are working behind the scenes, processing everything that’s been stirred up.

The doctor explained that my Pitta energy is rising. Pitta, in Ayurvedic terms, is associated with fire, ambition, drive, action and irritability. It’s my natural tendency to keep busy, to fill every spare moment, and here I am being told to do the opposite.

At home, even my “rest” tends to have an agenda. Here, I’m being reminded that rest is not just the absence of work, it’s a state of receptivity.

Disconnecting from Distraction

One of the simplest yet most profound shifts has been leaving my phone in my room. In the dining hall, I notice how many people eat while scrolling through screens. I used to do the same without thinking about it.

Instead, I’ve been taking a book to meals. It’s still a form of distraction, I suppose, but a gentler one. Books have been my escape since childhood, though in recent years I’ve read mostly factual or self-development titles. Picking up a novel again feels like reconnecting with an old friend.

The Purge Stage

I may be entering the “purge stage” soon, which means the body is preparing for deeper elimination, often through the digestive tract. Sopa, one of the managers suggested delaying sightseeing until it’s over. It makes sense. There’s no point trying to take in the sights when your body’s priority is letting go.

This talk of purging took me back to a personal ritual I used to have. Every September, while my kids were growing up, I’d do a fast, sometimes up to 10 days. I loved the way my body felt, but even more, I loved the clarity in my mind.

Purging & Mental Clarity

This morning, I watched a video that opened a new rabbit hole for me. It turns out that not everyone experiences an internal “voice in the head.” Some people think in pictures, some in sounds, some in sensations, and some in no symbols at all.

The video linked this to patterns in mental health, including eating disorders like bulimia, where the act of purging can temporarily clear mental “noise.” I found this fascinating because it mirrors what I experienced with fasting: my thoughts felt ordered, spacious, and clear.

Today in yoga, even though I was physically tired and only made it halfway through the class, I noticed I could hold my balance better. My mind was quiet, focused. The chatter had eased.

Healing in Stillness

The biggest surprise so far is that the deepest healing seems to be happening in the moments when I do… nothing. Not in the yoga poses, not in the treatments, but in the quiet space in between.

Slowing down isn’t just a physical act, it’s an emotional and mental one. It’s choosing not to fill the space with activity or distraction, and letting whatever needs to surface… surface.

For someone who has spent a lifetime moving, doing, fixing, and achieving, this feels like uncharted territory. But I can already feel its value.

Lessons from Day 6:

Healing often looks like stillness.
Letting go of busyness is as important as the treatments themselves.
The mind and body detox togetherpurging one often clears the other.
Curiosity about how we think can be as transformative as physical therapies.

I don’t know exactly what the next stage will bring, but I suspect it will be less about “doing Panchakarma” and more about “allowing Panchakarma to do me.”

Sometimes, the most powerful transformation happens when you stop trying to make it happen.

Caroline x

Ayurvedic Glossary

Panchakarma:
A traditional Ayurvedic detoxification and rejuvenation program involving a series of treatments to remove toxins and restore balance to the body and mind.

Ghee:
Clarified butter used internally to lubricate tissues and draw toxins toward the digestive tract for elimination.

Shirodhara:
A therapy where warm liquid (milk, oil, or medicated decoctions) is gently poured over the forehead in a continuous stream, calming the nervous system.

Herbal Bolus Therapy (Pinda Sweda):
Cloth pouches filled with herbs, dipped in hot medicated oil, and applied to the body to relieve stiffness, improve circulation, and reduce pain.

Nasya:
The administration of medicated oil or drops into the nasal passages to clear the head, sinuses, and improve mental clarity.

Medicated Rice Water Bath:
A warm decoction made from rice and herbs, poured over the body in rhythmic sequences to nourish the skin, reduce inflammation, and relax muscles.

Herbal Bath:
A therapeutic soak or pour-over using water infused with medicinal plants to soothe the skin and body.

Pitta:
One of the three Ayurvedic doshas (body–mind types), associated with fire and water. Pitta governs metabolism, digestion, and ambition

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