It's a hot week again here in Edmonton and I wanted to share some tips on how to stay cool, reduce inflammation and keep your lymphatic health in balance.

In Ayurveda, this is PITTA season, it's hot, passionate, fire-y, when we can bring our visions to life, but it can get us out of balance with the strong fire element. Pitta also has the water element too, so bask in the water in as many ways as you can to stay comfortable and keep in the joy zone.

Symptoms of lymphatic stagnation that we can experience in the heat are:

• Swelling  - hands, feet, and face and face are common and we would call this type of swelling (edema) or you may experience an increase in swelling if you have Lymphedema.
• Fatigue - take a rest and don't go out at the hottest time of the day, or stay in the shade or get wet if you do.
• Headaches - sign of dehydration. Drink up!
• Pain and Inflammation - rest, elevate, cool off, and try some herbal remedies like a clay mask/poultice, or balm
• Trouble breathing or respiratory issues - rest, seek help right away. Shortness of breath in the heat can be a very serious issue.

Your rivers of immunity are slowing down when you are experiencing these symptoms. But, you can get things flowing normally for you again with a few adjustments.

• Massage - Incorporate some manual self lymphatic drainage! 
  
  This stimulates flow and helps get your rivers of immunity flowing well again, it dissipates heat, and can help reduce pain and inflammation as well. A wonderful resource is Lisa Gainsley from the Lymphatic Message who has a new book out called the Book of Lymph with lots of self-massage sequences in it for a variety of lymphatic stagnation issues.

• Try some clay!

  

  Clay is very cooling and excellent and drawing out inflammation out of the body. Try our new Cooling Purple Clay & Honey Mask, likeshown here, or our Body Mask called Inflammation Tamer.

• Get Wet - This helps drop your internal temp down too and hydrates from the outside in as well. 
  

• Stay hydrated! This is so important year round but especially when it's hot, we need extra hydration. Think about drinking your water as well as eating it! Herbal teas with cooling plants like mint, lemon balm, rose petals, cucumber, hibiscus.

   Try our Glow from the Inside Out Tea Blend as an Iced Tea! Cooling foods that are hydrators too are watermelon, berries, cherries, cucumber, lettuces, etc. Have fun with making popsicle blends too! We made some vegan fudgesicle ones the other week as well as banan strawberry, watermelon & pineapple! 
• Sunscreen & Shade - get your outside time away from the peak hot hours of the day if you can, or plan for things you will need to stay cool like proper clothing, sunscreen, how you can get a bit wet in the heat, bring drinks, etc. Plan down time into your day to put your feet up even for 5 minutes makes a big difference in how you feel and may reduce swelling too!