Dr Charlotte Bech
Charlotte Bech graduated as a medical doctor from the University of Copenhagen. After becoming a teacher of Transcendental Meditation (TM) in 1983, she trained in Maharishi AyurVeda in 1986.
Charlotte is currently running a private clinic in Copenhagen Denmark, integrating modern medicine and Maharishi AyurVeda. She has taught TM to more than 1000 people, has given more than 30,000 Ayurvedic consultations and has created and taught numerous course on Ayurveda and health.
Charlotte previously worked as a surgeon in Gentofte Amtssygehus and as a medical doctor in the area of haematology at Rigshospitalet, the most renowned referral hospital in Denmark, and as an obstetrician in the USA. For the last few years she has taught at medical school in Copenhagen.
Charlotte writes as a columnist in several Dutch magazines and she is the author of fifteen E-books on topics of Ayurveda.
She is Vice President for the European Ayurveda Medical Association (EURAMA), is on faculty for Maharishi Invincible Nation University, teaches courses for other medical doctors on Maharishi Ayurveda, including the Healthy Happy Mother and Baby Programme.
During January Dr Charlotte Bech, a medical doctor trained in Ayurveda who has been in practice for over 30 years, will run a series of Ayurveda seminars on health-related topics, including women’s health, sleep, digestion, weight balance, well-being and rejuvenation.
These seminnars will be held in both London and Skelmersdale, Lancashire and will be limited to nine people on each course.
Seminar 1: Ayurveda for women’s health and beauty
“The advice I give on my seminars for women will depend on the ages of those who attend, but in general I show them how to maintain balance in their hormone systems and how to increase their beauty”, says Dr Bech.
She goes on to say that women have between 20 and 25 female hormones that are constantly changing throughout each month and throughout their lives.
According to Dr Bech, “This means that women find their moods, their feelings of well-being, their physical, emotional, and mental state, and their social life are often changing.
“The time-tested health system of Ayurveda offers women many ways to maintain balance in the midst of all these fluctuations in their hormone system. Women who are going through their monthly cycle will benefit, those who are going through the changes that menopause brings will find help, as will women who are passed the menopause stage.”
Some advice that Dr Bech will give will be relevant to all women, but much will be very specific and tailored to the needs of each course participant.
“A very important subject I always talk about is beauty and this is something that every woman can relate to”, says Dr Bech. “I will talk about three kinds of beauty that Ayurveda cites and I’ll show how to achieve them:
- The first is Shukra beauty and this type of beauty attracts men on the physical level. In Ayurveda, Shukra means reproductive tissue, so Shukra beauty attracts a man to desire her and have her in his life.
- The second is Ojas which is a beauty that is universal and that everyone likes – men, women and children.
- The third is Vayastapana beauty and that’s all about youthfulness – how to maintain physical and mental youthfulness.”
“My seminar will show how every woman can increase and maintain all three types of beauty throughout their lives.”
Seminar 2: Ayurveda for digestion and weight balance
“How easily you lose or gain weight depends on your body’s ability to digest, transform and metabolise your food”, according to Dr Bech. “To lose excess weight and maintain slimness you have to improve your digestion and increase your body’s ability to metabolise what you eat.”
On her seminar Dr Bech will give many guidelines on how to increase metabolism and improve digestion. “Most of this advice will not cost you a penny and it will not involve a drastic change of diet”, says Dr Bech.
“The advice I offer on this seminar is documented by classical Ayurveda and also verified by modern scientific research.”
On the course, Dr Bech will talk about:
- the seven most important points for losing weight and staying slim
- how to increase metabolism and improve digestion
- how to prepare different kinds of drinks that help you lose weight
- what foods help you lose weight.
Dr Bech will look at how those with different Ayurvedic body-types or Doshic-types digest food and how this can affect their weight. Mostly, those with a Kapha, or heavy body-type are prone to over-weight, yet even those with a hot Pitta body-type, who usually have a medium build, and those with a usually thin Vata body-type can have weight issues.
As with all of her seminars, Dr Beck will give specific advice to each participant.
Seminar 3: Ayurveda for blissful sleep
According to Ayurveda, sleep problems are mostly caused by imbalances in the three main elements or Doshas that make up your body: Vata (movement), Pitta (transformation) and Kapha (structure).
Dr Bech says that the reverse is also true, “If you have sleep problems the result will be imbalances in your physiology. And that is why sleepis one of the Ayurvedic pillars of good health.
“The advice I give will depend on the needs of the group who attend, but in general we will discuss why those with imbalance in the moving Vata aspect of their body tend to wake up too early in the morning, why those with excess Pitta get overheated in bed and why Kapha body-types may sleep a long time but still feel tired in the morning.
“We will also talk about the Ayurvedic programme for improving sleep, which will include:
- dietary therapy
- massage therapy
- oil therapy
- herbal therapy
- light therapy
- colour therapy
- sound therapy
- aroma therapy.”
“What therapies I recommend will depend the needs of each person on the seminar. Most of what I recommend can be termed ‘kitchen remedies’ – things that people can do in their own home and start straight away.”
Seminar 4: Ayurveda for Well Being and Rejuvenation
“When Ayurveda talks about rejuvenation”, says Dr Bech, “it is talking about remembering and re-connection. Somehow, we have lost memory or connection to our own inner intelligence. Essentially, Ayurveda is all about waking up that intelligence which is the source our body.
“That means waking up the intelligence of every cell, tissue and organ system. When a cell is connected to its own intelligence and to the intelligence at the root of our whole body/mind system, then it is a truly health cell functioning at its optimal level.
“This is the real essence of rejuvenation, to bring back the memory of the cell, the tissues and the organ systems.
“Due to stress, poor lifestyle, bad diet, poor digestion, lack of the right nutrients, hormonal imbalances, toxic build-up or imbalances between the Doshas, our cells can lose connection to their own intelligence and thereby lose their vitality. When this happens, the ageing process starts to accelerate.
“When we overwork, get stressed, get pressured or lack good sleep we go out of ourselves. Our sympathetic nervous system gets triggered and the fight-or-flight response kicks in. In itself this can disrupt our whole body, but it can also lead to bad health decisions, such as eating sugary sweets as a form of self-medication.
“The different rejuvenation strategies of Ayurveda are designed to take you in the opposite direction. They tend to trigger the parasympathetic nervous system and bring you back to yourself. The techniques Ayurveda offers helps you re-connect to your inner nature on all levels, spiritually, mentally, emotionally and physically.
“On this seminar, I will show how Ayurveda can help you have:
- Better Sleep
- Improved Digestion
- Stronger Immune system
- Increased hormonal balance
- Healthier tissues and organ systems.”
“And all this is the basis of rejuvenation.”
Every seminar is different
“Every seminar I run is very different”, says Dr Bech. “You could come to 20 of my courses on the same subject and each one will differ, according to the needs of those who attend.
“I always start by asking each person about their health concerns and I give information according to everyone’s needs.
“I love teaching group sessions on Ayurveda as it brings up many health issues that each person in the group can learn from.”
Individual consultations
As well as group seminars, Dr Bech will also be available for one hour individual Ayurveda consultations and 1.5 hours 2-people consultations. The 2-people consultations can consist of family members or friends and they don’t have to have the same health issues.
Skelmersdale, Lancashire courses (max 9 people)
Ayurveda for Digestion and Weight Balance
Cost: £60
Sunday 14 January, 10.00 – 12.30
16 Rowan Lane, Skelmersdale, Lancs WN8 6UL
Tuesday 16 January, 14.00 – 16.30
16 Rowan Lane, Skelmersdale, Lancs WN8 6UL
Ayurveda for Women’s Health and Beauty
Cost: £60
Sunday 14 January, 14.00 – 16.30
16 Rowan Lane, Skelmersdale, Lancs WN8 6UL
Tuesday 16 January, 10.00 – 12.30
16 Rowan Lane, Skelmersdale, Lancs WN8 6UL
Ayurveda for Blissful Sleep
Cost: £60
Wednesday 17 January, 10.00 – 12.30
16 Rowan Lane, Skelmersdale, Lancs WN8 6UL
Saturday 20 January, 10.00 – 12.30
16 Rowan Lane, Skelmersdale, Lancs WN8 6UL
Ayurveda for Well Being and Rejuvenation
Cost: £60
Friday 19 January, 10.00 – 12.30
16 Rowan Lane, Skelmersdale, Lancs WN8 6UL
London courses (max 9 people)
Ayurveda for Blissful Sleep
Cost: £75
Sunday 21 January, 10.00 – 12.30
Browns Covent Garden, 82-84 St Martin’s Lane, London WC2N 4AG
Ayurveda for Women’s Health and Beauty
Cost: £75
Sunday 21 January, 14.00 – 16.30
Browns Covent Garden, 82-84 St Martin’s Lane, London WC2N 4AG
Consultations
Skelmersdale Maharishi AyurVeda Consultations
Cost: £115 for 1 person (1hr), £85 each for 2 people (1.5hr)
Monday 15 January, 9.30 – 17.00
Thursday 18 January, 9.30 – 17.00
Friday 19 January, 14.00 – 17.00
3 Rowan Lane, Skelmersdale, Lancs WN8 6UL
To Book
To book your course or consultations contact: 01695 735351, info@maharishiayurveda.co.uk
More about Ayurveda: www.maharishi.co.uk/blog and www.maharishiayurveda.co.uk
