Suppression of Natural Urge and its ill effects on our Health

Suppression of Natural Urge and its ill effects on our Health

A lot of people who suffer from bad health, keep wondering that while they have followed a fairly good lifestyle and good eating habits, why is it that they are suffering from various health issues such as Arthritis, Cervical spondylitis, Knee pain , Back pain, Diabetes, Thyroid disorder, Heart disease, Digestive system disorders, Gynaecological issues etc. In this article, I have tried to explain why this happens, and what we can do in order to bring ourselves back to good health.

While there are several causes for health problems, one of the major reasons for health issues in today’s scenario is due to supressing natural urges. Most of us do this unconsciously and this in turn leads to severe Vata system disorder and in turn leads to various other health issues in the body.

Let me first explain what is Vata all about and what causes this to get disturbed. Vata (or Vaat), as per the Ayurved system of medicine, is the system that governs the flow mechanism in our body. The flow of blood, urine, stools, air, gastric fluids, nerve impulses, sweat, tears, menstrual fluids, flow of all endocrine gland secretions (Hormones) and also the pushing out of the baby from the womb, all happens by virtue of the flow mechanism of the body. This involves creating a high pressure at one end and low pressure at the other end, so that flow happens from one point in the body to another point that may be outside the body or in an organ inside the body.

When this flow mechanism gets disturbed, all of the above flow (blood, urine, stools, etc etc..) get disturbed and lead to various health issues. As a consequence of the ineffective flow mechanism, soon the body’s clean-up system fails, toxins start accumulating in the body, nutrition doesn’t reach organs, blood doesn’t reach organs and same is with hormones, oxygen and all other things that are needed for a healthy body. This leads to diseases in the long term and one lands up into a hospital or travels up to the heavenly abode.

Now, let’s come to the reason why this flow mechanism gets disturbed. I have mentioned earlier that for the flow to happen, a pressure difference has to be maintained. Now, whenever there’s an imbalance in the pressure i.e. if the actual pressure gets higher than what level is required, then the body immediately tries to regulate it by releasing the excess pressure from the body and this is done by releasing gas in the form of burps, farts, yawns or sneezes. However, if we try to suppress these burps, farts, yawns or sneezes, then the pressure remains in an imbalanced state and that high pressure starts accumulating further at one end, causing discomfort. Soon, more and more pressure keeps accumulating at that region and very soon it leads to intense pain. The pain is basically because of the intense air pressure that has formed at that place. If a doctor does an MRI Scan, he will not see anything since it’s just air pressure and nothing else. Soon this pressure starts causing physical damage in the area, leading to health issues. Sometimes the pressure becomes so high that it starts pushing bones and discs out of place leading to issues such as cervical spondylitis, slipped disc etc.

In Ayurveda this suppression is called as ‘Vega Dharana’

Let’s look at 16 types of suppression that we commonly do and what are the consequences of it.

1. Suppression of Burps:

Burping is a natural process of getting the air out of the stomach when we eat or drink as well as for releasing the extra vata pressure as explained earlier. However, very often it is considered inappropriate to burp when in the presence of others so many people suppress the urge to burp and this leads to accumulation of the pressure in the abdominal and chest region leading to problems.

2. Suppression of the urge for defecation:

Downward pressure in the lower abdominal region is created by the body due to two reasons. One type of pressure is the Apana Vata pressure (Pressure that’s responsible for downward flow such as stools, urine, menstrual bleeding, discharge etc) and the other type is to release the excess pressure generated in the flow mechanism (in the form of a fart) so as to achieve a balance. However many a times, we tend to suppress both of these pressures and prevent them from doing their job.

Very often, when we feel the urge to empty bowels, we might not be in a position to do that because we may be in an official meeting, or may be traveling or attending a social function. Very often, this happens also due to unavailability of a washroom nearby at that time. Sometimes we get so engrossed in what we are doing, whether it is a TV episode or a movie or a book that we are reading, that we avoid taking a bio-break and keep holding back the urge to empty bowels hoping that we will go for it after finishing the current activity. Unfortunately, by that time, the pressure has already moved either down to the hips/ knees/ legs or upwards to the spine and is no longer available to push the waste out. So even if we go to the toilet later, we come back without success, else we need to apply pressure to get the job done. This creates more trouble in the long term. Besides the vata that has gone down to the leg or knees might create cramps there.

3. Suppression of Farts:

When pressure develops and we feel the urge to fart, we don’t do it since it’s not considered appropriate to do in a social setting or at the workplace and we forcefully hold it inside by tightening the anus muscles for a while repeatedly when the urge surfaces. This ‘Apana Vayu’ pressure then moves upwards creating a lot of trouble in the abdominal area or else in the groin causing hip pain/ leg pain/ knee pain. Sometimes it moves upwards to the back/ spine and even towards the head causing back pain or headache depending where it reaches.

4. Suppression of Sneeze:

I have often seen people suppressing sneezes trying to hold them back forcefully or to do a partial release. This happens all the more in the post-covid scenario where people around us tend to get worried when we sneeze and so we try to avoid a sneeze while in the proximity of other people. We must note that there is intense pressure created by the ‘Udana Vayu’ to make the sneeze happen and if this is suppressed, all that pressure can get diverted to other areas such as the eyes, ears, jaw, throat or head thereby leading to problems there due to vata accumulation. This in turn also disturbs the flow mechanism in the head leading to headaches, migraine, eye trouble, ear pain or tinnitus etc.

5. Suppression of Yawning:

Yawning is body’s natural way to release excess Prana Vata in the upper region (Eyes, ears, head, jaw, neck, thyroid, chest etc.). You might wonder how I know this. Well, I know this because when I do Quantum healing to patients with health issues related to all the above mentioned regions, they often instantly start releasing vata in the form of a series of yawning which their body triggers so as to release the excess pressure.

We often tend to suppress Yawning since it may not look good while we are in a discussion with seniors, a meeting with clients or we are in a classroom, listening to a trainer or speaker. This suppression causes lot of problems in the long term.

6. Suppression of Hiccups:

I have observed that when hiccups occur, most people tend to take actions intended to stop the hiccup since the hiccup puts us in a state of discomfort and we may not be able to continue the work that we are doing or continue with a discussion that we are into at the workplace. There are various home remedies that people try so as to stop hiccups. However, stopping a hiccup is not good. We need to let it happen and allow it to clear off the stuck vata.

7. Suppression of Emotions/ Crying :

When the body needs an emotional clean-up, it achieves that pressure release by releasing tears along with certain repeated movements of the diaphragm that you’ll typically observe when a person is sobbing excessively. This helps in relieving the pressure (of Prana Vata) that’s built up in that area and brings the body to a state of harmony. However, very often, people tend to suppress their emotions. Men often end up holding back their emotions since they feel that being a man, they shouldn’t cry. Women also may not be able to express their emotions several times and end up holding back tears. This causes huge emotional pressure to get blocked up in that particular area and often leads to problems such as Thyriod disorder, problems with the Reproductive system and sometimes Headache, Migraine or Back pain.

You might ask, how do I know that? Well, several times when I am doing a quantum healing session for people with these ailments, for no reason they start crying a sobbing uncontrollably and then after they finish the release, they instantly start feeling better and the body pain also vanishes.

8. Suppression of Hunger and Thirst:

The suppression of hunger/ thirst happens usually in three cases. One is where due to unavailability of food or water at the time when hunger pangs or thirst is felt. Second reason is that we delay eating and drinking water, just because our favourite TV episode is going on and we don’t want to get up. Third reason is that we are on a diet and so don’t want to eat even when our body has created hunger pangs. This causes trouble with the flow mechanism in the digestive system and in turn causes problems of hyper acidity, bloating, gas and other digestive disorders. Lack of eating on time also causes lack of nutrition to cells and unavailability of energy to body and brain and therefore can lead to other disorders.

9. Suppression of the urge to Urinate:

Very often, we tend to suppress the urge to urinate because we don’t want to get up and go to the washroom since we are busy with something important (Yes. Body is the least important thing for us in this universe. Everything is more important) . We think that our bladder will definitely be able to hold it for longer and so keep delaying the process of emptying it. This leads to imbalance of the downward flowing Vata called Apana Vata and in due course causes trouble with the bladder, prostrate, kidneys, adrenal glands and other organs in the lower abdominal region. It also is a primary cause for urinary tract infections in ladies. Don’t forget that this can cause kidney stones as well.

10. Suppression of ejaculation of Sperm:

This is very important to ensure the proper functioning of the reproductive system in Men. A male may naturally get sexually aroused in the presence of a stimulus or even by engaging in reading or viewing images that may cause sexual arousal. Within moments the body starts building the required vata for creating ejaculation of sperm. Now, if that person engages in the sexual act immediately or else masturbates to cause the release of sperm, then the Apana Vata pressure that’s built up by the body gets released successfully. However, if this is not done, then the vata pressure remains built-up in this region till the next release and can cause problems in the testicles, prostrate or even other organs in the lower abdominal or pelvic region. It can also cause pain in the testicles which is commonly experienced by many men who get aroused but aren’t able to go through a sexual release.

11. Suppression of Apana vata release due to C-section delivery:

At the time of delivery, the body of a lady build up huge pressure inside using the Apana vata mechanism which is instrumental in pushing the baby out of the womb. You can imagine how much pressure this would be, that pushes the baby out though the relatively narrow opening. However, these days, doctors commonly advise ladies to go for C-section delivery to ensure painless delivery for the lady (and also for obvious commercial reasons as well). Due to this, the accumulated vata pressure doesn’t get a chance to get released in a natural way. This huge amount of pressure then remains stuck there in the lower abdominal region / pelvic region and often is the primary cause for back pain after delivery. I have come across several ladies who experience back pain immediately after a C-section delivery and suffer from that pain for several years and in many cases, for a lifetime.

In addition to this, Doctors often administer epidural injections in the lower part of the spine to help ladies deal with delivery related pain and this also causes problems of back pain for a very long time.  I have observed that these days almost 90% of today’s generation opts for C-section delivery and they are unknowingly choosing an option that will create back pain for the rest of their life.

12. Suppression of Free-Flow of Menses by using Menstrual Cup:

Menstrual cup is actually a fantastic alternative to using Pads or Tampons and I would highly recommend ladies to go for it. However the only issue with these cups is that when inserted in the body, there is a chance that the Apana Vata (Downward flow creating vata) could get affected. I have not yet got sufficient data to confirm this however, logic says that normally for a lady who uses a pad, the blood flows from a Higher pressure level (Whatever pressure the Apana vata has created inside the body)  to a lower pressure level (Which is atmospheric pressure). However, with a lady wearing a cup inside her body, the lower pressure level is no longer atmospheric pressure, but instead the pressure that’s built up inside the cup. This pressure will keep increasing as the flow continues and blood keeps accumulating in the cup. I have observed that there are tiny micro holes made on the sides, maybe to allow air to pass but prevent blood from going out. However, we need to do some research before we conclude that it’s allowing the inside of the cup to be at Atmospheric pressure. I have my own doubts.  When my wife initially started using a Menstrual cup used to experience unusual pressure in the lower abdomen while using the cup, which she would later release in the form of burps. This clearly means that it definitely has some effect on the Vata system.

13. Suppression of Sleep:

Sleep suppression is very common. We often experience yawning and know that our body needs sleep, but we keep resisting it and stay awake for some or other reason. Imbalance in the vata then causes a lot of problems such as headaches, migraines and also other issues in the ENT and respiratory system. Many people these days suppress sleep just because they enjoy staying up till late. I remember how 30-35 years ago, people would go to bed at 9 PM. These days most people sleep near to 11-11:30 PM, some stay awake even longer. The Mobile phone keeps today’s generation awake even longer for chatting on whatsApp or watching Netflix.

14. Suppression of the urge to Vomit:

I have observed that people often suppress the urge to Vomit when they are unwell, or have indigestion, infection or hyper acidity and even take allopathy medicines to suppress it. This disturbs the ‘Udana Vata’ system. Also whatever toxins the body is trying to throw out urgently, eventually don’t get out of the system quickly and so the infection, acidity or whatever problem it was, continues for much longer. People also suppress loose motions by taking allopathy medicines which is also not a good thing to do. Sometimes when we travel, we suffer from motion sickness. In such cases also while the body wants us to throw up, we keep resisting it forcefully. This often creates trouble such as headache.

15. Suppressing the urge to Cough:

I have observed that many people try to suppress the urge to cough and do not cough fully and properly. We must understand that the body creates the urge to cough so as to get rid of something that needs to get out of the wind pipe/ lungs/ throat and if this is not removed, it can be harmful for the body. Also, if we don’t cough properly, the huge pressure that’s created by the body for the coughing action remains unreleased and therefore can create issues with Vata accumulation in the chest region. This disturbance in ‘Prana Vayu’ can cause issues with the respiratory system or the heart as well.

In addition, I have seen a lot of people who pull mucous inwards and swallow it when they are suffering from a running nose or excess secretion of mucous. So, while the body is trying to get all of this out of our system, we end up pulling it back in. Isn’t that a crazy thing to do? We must understand that everything that the body does and every natural urge of the body has a valid reason and must never be stopped.

16. Suppressing the urge to Scratch:

Whenever the body wants us to rub or stimulate our skin of a certain area on the body, it develops an itch, thereby making us scratch it. This action of scratching is important to increase the blood flow in that region, push something out of place or help in regulating the flow of stuck vata. One should avoid suppressing an urge to scratch the body. I have observed that during quantum healing sessions, people often suddenly feel a massive urge to scratch their body and when they do it, they get quick relief from pain or stiffness in that part of the body.

The above are 16 common suppressions that I have observed people doing regularly. I am sure that you too must have experienced most of the above and might have tried suppressing these at some or other time.