Sep 99 min read

Client's Story of Surviving and Thriving Pitta Dosha: Navigating Inflammatory Times

Updated: Sep 27

Today, a guest writer is contributing to the Saumya blog, discussing his journey through challenging times and Pitta dosha. This piece has been written by a long-time client of Saumya Ayurveda. Donald Freeman, who previously served as Managing Editor at Hazelden Publishing for fifty years, is a writer, poet, artist, and nature lover residing in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

If I had to name an entity that has helped me transform my life to better health and personal balance it is Saumya Ayurveda. The person whose gentle compassion, guidance, and support got me to where I am today is Saumya Ayurveda’s founder, Veena Blilie.

Before I met Veena, I was born with a heavy dose (dosha) of Pitta—inner heat, fire, and intensity. In high school, I was known as Screamin’ Freeman for my wild, freewheeling ways. It didn’t take me long to witness the manifestation of Pitta, so often out of control, all around me. I was a man on that world.

When I was a kid, quite often I’d get stomach pains. I waited for the pain to go away, often through bouts of diarrhea. Sometimes, my father, an MD, would give me a couple of pills; after a short while, all was well again. My dad didn’t make a big deal of my tummy aches, so, as I got older, I thought no other medical doctor would either.

I was pretty much right about that. I spent my days numb to what was happening inside of my body. When I felt intestinal pain, I thought it was something I had eaten. By the time I had reached my mid-forties, stomach pains and constant bowel problems nearly spelled my death. I ended up in hospitals and emergency rooms several times before a doctor concluded that my colon couldn’t be saved—it was too inflamed. It had to be removed--right away.

Ever since the surgery twenty-five years ago, I’ve “bagged it.” I’ll spend the rest of my life pooping out of my front end into a precarious plastic “pouch,” which requires emptying nearly a dozen times a day. I’ve had more embarrassing, shameful “accidents” than anyone, except fellow ostomates, can imagine. I’ve learned to live with it, just as others learn to live with far more challenging conditions that life hurls their way.

Still, today, no one has told me what caused my digestive system to inflame so terribly over the years. I haven’t been searching for an answer. Professionals need not offer assumptions or theories. I know the answer.

It’s rather simple, though at the time I lacked awareness of what was staring me in the face: Stress, anger, worry. Loneliness too. The four words add up to intensity, the manifestation of Pitta dosha.

I didn’t call it “intensity” then. It was simply “everyday life.” Heat and “fire” inflamed the insides of my body just as climate change messes with the earth. In my own Ayurveda terms, I was a walking Pitta bomb.

There was little or no balance in my thinking or how I lived. I was an unstable person, but no one would have guessed it because I broke no laws or voiced objections to how mainstream American society expects us to conform.

Obviously, my body was trying to tell me something, often crying out for help in near death throes. I could see my colon bulging against the flesh below my chest. The surgeon who removed my colon said that it fell apart in her hands.

In earlier history way before I was here, the word stomach often meant anger. It’s been believed for ages that anger is stored in the stomach, like a missile in a silo. When someone or something pushes one of our “buttons” hard, the explosion can be horrific. It may be just a nasty word that hurts someone or causes a country to unleash genocide.

It should be clear by now that too much heat and fire in my insides were not due to eating spicy foods (which I’ve always disliked and avoided). It was the stress, the intensity of common scenarios, expectations, and activities abundant in the USA. In short, we live in vicious, inflammatory times. If a bird, rabbit, owl, or just about any critter could speak, they’d likely tell us the same thing: The planet is burning and so are We the People, who cause so much of it.

Stress and intensity are as old as the first humans on the planet. Back then, people experienced stress when they were chased by bears. Today, we are chased by “bears” 24/7: deadlines, relationship issues, heavy workloads, wars, racism, political skirmishes and wars, global warming, bills, insufficient funds, decisions that need to be made, lack of sleep, abuse, crime, right down to a lost credit card or keys or a broken-down car or washing machine.

There’s a lot to worry about these days, and I was a colossal worrier, even when I was on a vacation. I worked hard and played hard.

When I was on a landscaping crew, I’d go for double shifts when the others were worn out by the end of the day. (I should have been too.) It’s not that I needed the extra pay.

I had an office job for many years and took work home for midnight binges. That’s how I became Employee of the Month several times. I got promoted a lot. My spouse declared that I had a “love affair” with my job (she was right).

Weekends were busier than workdays, with chores and scores of activities that bombard so many of us. Mondays came as a relief.

I’d awake at 4 am most weekday mornings so that I could get an open lane at the YMCA swimming pool. I once fell asleep while driving to work and ended up in a ditch. It didn’t faze me much.

When I became interested in running, competing in a 5 or 10-K race wouldn’t do. I was obsessed with marathons. Meanwhile, I raised an autistic son who has been forced to row upstream since the day he was born.

Heck, yes, it was intense. When I was dying because of it, I’d look out of my hospital room window and see the cars and trucks whizzing past and people going about their lives. Being very sick, I’d get exhausted just by looking at daily life, and think, “What a hassle.” I thought myself incapable of doing that stuff anymore. Honestly, the most relaxing time I’ve ever had were two weeks spent in the hospital. I’m not recommending that. There are much less dangerous and far more economical ways to relax!

Many of us have similar stories with different details. We have tales of Pitta-heat, fire, intensity. In the USA perhaps especially, those are the elements most admired and revered. Some examples I’ve heard or spoken myself:

“He’s someone who knows how to turn up the heat at the right time.”

“She’s a boss who puts out fires. She also fires people who don’t perform.”

“That guy is so good-looking, he’s hot!”

“Don’t let her fool you, she’s intense!”

“He’s cool, but, you know, you have to light a fire under him to get his butt moving.”

“Wow, is she fired up or what?”

“The party last night was pretty intense!”

Getting, being, and remaining all fired up is often what it takes for achievement and success. It gets trophies, gold medals. In the workplace, being fired up means “business as usual.” Others define it as “loyalty,” “prosperity,” “making it big,” “let’s work through lunch!”

It’s no revelation that we are, for good and bad, doers. The hair stylist or dental assistant may ask, “Any big plans for the weekend?” I’m always asked, “What are you going to do?” now that I’m “retired.” Trips and vacations fill libraries of cell phone photos. When it’s a Friday afternoon and the sun is shining, I can feel the energy of worker-bees turn almost hysterical.

I’ll always remember a Swami who once said, “Try doing nothing. See how that feels.”

Related Readings: Hot List of Common Pitta Imbalances

I’m not being critical here--I am proud of my Pitta. I love getting intense and passionate about political issues, loving wildly, working hard, pushing my limits, doing things. It makes me feel human with gratitude for having a life and the health to express myself with boundless enthusiasm. There wouldn’t have been a Civil Rights Movement without Pitta. No plants, water, or food without miraculous, powerful intensity. The sun would be blotted from the sky. Stars would refuse to shine. We’d all be in the dark to perish for good without the intensity Pitta manifests.

But there’s only so much we can take as fallible, intelligent beings. I learned the hard way that too much intensity will likely put a person in the hospital, or they’ll drop dead before they get there.

I have not made a complete turnaround since my illness and adventure with near death. I am not a fully changed person, nor will I ever be. I like being who I am. I continue to live life during world instability, the mounting stresses technology brings, information overloads, never-ending wars, and personal relationship challenges.

When I was dying, I often said to myself, “Never forget. Never forget what this is like.” It’s easy to forget ever being sick when health returns, if it ever does. Because I do remember, maybe I’m a little bit more aware, not so numb to the fires and inflammatory times we walk through daily. I know now that a slow bike ride, meditation, and the other practices of Ayurveda are a few crucial to rebalancing and de-intensifying.

In important ways, I have transformed myself. I have a new, you could say, radical compass for living. In large part, this blessed change to my being occurred because of Saumya Ayurveda. Veena has become (she always was) a true soul mate of mine. Saumya Ayurveda is a design for living more deeply with grace and compassion, which Veena exemplifies.

Saumya Ayurveda has helped me to eat, think, see, and feel much better. For me, Saumya Ayurveda is a grand lighthouse that guides us through turbulence, providing the ceaseless illumination to navigate the darkness toward a safe, undiscovered harbor of the soul. Veena’s dedication and knowledge can lead us to ease up and ease out in a world whose longevity depends on us doing exactly that.

"It is essential for our community to provide mutual support as we navigate inflammatory times. Despite geographical differences, my clients are encountering escalating difficulties and uncertainties daily, alongside increasing demands and a constant state of busyness.

Recognizing the intensity is valuable, as it often goes unnoticed until we are suffering and sick. Take a moment to pause, reflect, and connect. This pause allows for a new perspective. An Ayurveda consultation offers the chance to reestablish a healthy connection with our breath and our lives.

This contemplation is crucial now, not later. Please pay attention to warning signs. Don't endure symptoms just because you can, as the repercussions will catch up with us eventually. It is important to heed the messages our body and mind are conveying, as they serve as wise guides in our journey.

We have grown accustomed to living under constant pressure, but it is vital to free ourselves from it whenever feasible, to create room for being instead of constantly doing, and to find nourishment and balance for a smoother voyage along the river of life. Ayurveda provides you a compass for living in a way that not only supports you, but honors your true nature."

-Veena, Saumya Ayurveda

I want to express my sincere gratitude to "Donald the FreeMan" for his generous sharing, eloquent writing, and impactful message. It's a joy to walk together with you for so long.

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MEET VEENA: YOUR AYURVEDIC GUIDE

Veena is a Certified Ayurvedic Practitioner and meditation teacher, and monk.

She is President Emeritus and teaching faculty of the Meditation Center.

Veena fell in love with the traditional medicine used in her family’s home, learning herbal remedies at her grandmother's knee.

An experienced Certified Ayurvedic Practitioner, Veena’s deep, intuitive knowledge of Ayurveda empowers her clients to reclaim their fullest, most vibrant lives –mentally, physically, and spiritually.

Veena individualizes treatment plans to each person, rather than offering a one-size-fits-all approach, so it fits your life and becomes woven in your lifestyle, naturally.

Learn more about Veena's work and book your FREE discovery call today.