KK Ayurveda

In short, because I'm Karen Klutznick--a practitioner-level member of the National
Ayurvedic Medical Association and member of the Association of Ayurvedic
Professionals of North America-- and I said so.

In long, because I'm Karen Klutznick and I'm no different from you. In 2002, at the
age of 40, I took my first yoga class. I was scared, overweight, weak and inflexible. I
had high cholesterol, a slow thyroid, menstrual difficulties and depression. I was
doing two jobs at the same time and was very successful professionally. Personally, I
was pretty uncomfortable. And, although I had respect for those who did, I had no
time or interest in a spiritual life. I have an MBA, for Ganesha's sake, I couldn't be
chanting and meditating and all that stuff!

Yoga class eventally led me to a week-long detox (called panchakarma) at
The Ayurvedic Institute in Albuquerque, NM and world-renowned ayurvedic physician,
Dr. Vasant Lad. I became enthralled by ayurveda and its teachings. The subject is so
enormous, one can never reach its end or breadth. With gradual (I can hear Dr. Lad
saying,"Ayurveda isn't a quick fix!") changes in my diet and lifestyle as well as
subsequent panchakarmas, the weight came off, the cholesterol came down and my
appetite for chanting and meditation increased.

Eventually, in 2006, I gave up my twenty-two-year career in real-estate
development to attend The Ayurvedic Institute as a full-time student. I moved to
Albuquerque and a culture completely different from any I'd known before. It was
suburban! There were drum circles and potlucks and vegans! It was suburban! We
took our shoes off and sat on the floor for classes! Did I say it was suburban? We
chanted prayers in Sanskrit before and after every class! I loved it.

Leaving my job and moving to Albuqueruqe to study a field that very few
Americans have heard of and for which there is no licensure or certification in the U.S.
may sound extreme to some. To me, it made sense.

It's hard to break old patterns. Even if we know certain habits are bad for us,
they're familiar and they provide some measure of comfort. Change requires courage.
For some people, quitting a job and moving to a new place is a tolerable (even enjoyable)
change. For others, switching from ice-cold beverages to room-temperature ones or
the thought of changing his/her diet is almost unbearable. Magnitude is a matter
of perception.

My job is to help manage your change from one way of life to another, more healthy,
one. Don't worry, I won't be teaching you to meditate and chant (though I'd love
to...it would change the world) unless it's something you desire!

Namaste
(Sanskrit for: "the divine in me bows to the divine in you".)