Ayurveda has a lot to say about getting better sleep. In this ancient medical system, which originated in India 5,000 years ago, sleep is revered as one of the three core pillars of health, alongside nutrition and energy management.
Ayurveda doesn’t offer a one-size-fits-all prescription for improving your slumber, though. Instead, it honors the individual by looking at the intricate interplay of the three energetic forces (or doshas) — Vata, Kapha, and Pitta — that exist within all of us from birth in different proportions.
Your unique ratio of doshas plays a big role in which sleep problems you’re more likely to deal with when you hit the hay. And tailoring your daily habits and bedtime routine to balance your dominant dosha could help you get the restorative sleep you need to feel your best.
Here’s what Ayurveda says about the impact of doshas on your sleep, along with specific things you can do to sleep better based on your dominant dosha.
What are doshas?
According to Ayurveda, doshas are fundamental energies that control every function in our body, from our sleep, heartbeat, and digestion to our mental health and personality. These doshas are called Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. Each one represents a combination of two of the five elements that make up the entire universe: air, water, ether, fire, and earth.
Each of us is born with all three of the doshas but in different quantities. You might skew slightly or heavily toward one or two of the doshas, which affects your sleep, health, and demeanor.
“It’s rare for someone to be born with completely balanced doshas,” notes Nidhi Pandya, an Ayurvedic doctor based in New York City.
The ratio of your doshas won’t always be what you were born with. In fact, they can change based on what’s going on in your life, adds Bridge Ochoa, Ayurveda practitioner, occupational therapist, and CEO of Bridge Ayurveda.
“Your lifestyle, behaviors, thoughts, food — all of these can affect the current state of your doshas, which is called vikriti,” Ochoa explains.
She adds that your vikriti makes a bigger difference in your well-being than the ratio of doshas you were born with. “That unbalanced state will always mask whatever’s going on for you genetically,” says Ochoa.
Having one dosha drastically askew from the others or a ratio that’s not aligned with our original composition can show up in the way we sleep. For example, Vata dominance can show up in sleep disruptions in the middle of the night, says Ochoa. Pitta exaggeration can make it difficult to fall asleep. And a dominant Kapha dosha can make it hard to get up in the morning.
The key is to identify which dosha is affecting you most profoundly so you can work to bring things back into balance for better sleep and overall health.
How do you find your dominant dosha?
Want to know which dosha’s influencing you most right now? You can start by taking an online quiz, like this one from the Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health. These types of assessments rely on your answers to a series of questions about your physical traits, speech patterns, weather preferences, memory skills, and other factors to tell you which of your doshas is dominant right now.
Like a personality test, dosha quizzes are a fun way to learn more about yourself, but they’re not the most scientific way of assessing what’s going on inside.
“It’s about the same as having a health concern and plugging in your symptoms [in a search engine],” says Ochoa. “That’s not the way we do things in Western medicine, nor is it the way we do things in Eastern medicine.”
If you really want to understand your doshas, make an appointment for an assessment with an Ayurvedic doctor. They will examine your body, ask about your symptoms, and take a detailed health history to determine if one of your doshas is off-kilter and make recommendations for treatments. It typically takes eight weeks to start seeing results, says Ochoa.
Sleep tips for different doshas
Vata, Pitta, and Kapha imbalances can each throw off your slumber in different ways. Here’s a look at how each dosha affects sleep and the specific Ayurvedic remedies that can help.
Vata
The Vata dosha, which is associated with air and ether, controls functions that involve motion in our minds and bodies, such as blinking, breathing, and circulation. It can promote creativity and vitality. But when it’s imbalanced, Vata can cause anxiety, leading to restless nights.
“People with a dominant Vata dosha can be scatterbrained, wake up a lot at night from bouts of anxiety, and move around a lot while they sleep,” explains Pandya. “They also tend to sleep the least but need sleep the most of all the doshas.”
More specifically, you’re most likely to wake up between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. — the hours associated with Vata on the Ayurvedic clock. “It’s a very spiritual time when we have a light quality of air and ether in the physical world,” says Ochoa.
Vatas can start improving their sleep by developing a consistent bedtime routine that feels grounding, Ochoa and Pandya say. Dim the lights an hour or two before bedtime to set a soothing mood, dab a little lavender essential oil on your wrists to tap into your senses and induce relaxation, soak in a warm tub, or try meditation. These practices can calm the mind and help you settle into sleep mode more easily.
“Vatas do extremely well with a routine because they tend to be all over the place,” says Pandya. “They need regular sleep timing and evening rituals.”
If you wake up in the middle of the night, try to avoid actively engaging with anxious thoughts and instead observe your mind in a non-judgmental way, says Ochoa.
“While lying down in bed with the lights off, just watch your thoughts move back and forth in your mind like clouds passing in the sky. Then, let it go like a cloud in the sky to relax and calm down,” she says.
Kapha
Associated with earth and water, Kapha affects growth and functions that hold everything together in the body. It helps parts of your body stay lubricated and moisturized, and it maintains the immune system. When imbalanced, Kapha can make you feel excessively sluggish and fatigued.
As sleepers, Kaphas tend to sleep the deepest of all the doshas, which isn’t always beneficial, says Ochoa.
“They’re good sleepers until about 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. — Kapha time on the Ayurvedic clock. The longer they sleep into that time, the more sluggish they feel throughout the day,” Ochoa says.
Since they generally don’t have trouble falling and staying asleep, Kaphas should focus on their morning routines. Avoid the temptation to sleep in by setting an alarm for a consistent wake-up time every day, even on the weekends.
“Adjust your thermostat so it starts naturally warming up in the morning. If the room is cold, Kaphas won’t want to get out of bed,” Pandya advises. “You also want to start stimulation as early as possible to prevent stagnation.”
In other words, don’t just stay in bed scrolling on your phone in the morning — get up, let the sunshine in (which helps support your circadian rhythm), and start your day.
“We always treat issues with the opposite qualities in Ayurveda, so if you’re sluggish, we want to get you moving,” notes Ochoa. “Anything that gets your blood pumping, whether that’s yoga, walking around the block, or some sort of cardio routine, is good for Kaphas.”
This is especially true if you start to feel sleepy during the day. While Kaphas might be inclined to take a nap during the afternoon slump, engaging in physical activity can boost your energy and keep your body on track for sleep when nighttime rolls around, says Pandya.
Pitta
Pitta, which is linked with fire and water, is responsible for the body’s metabolism, digestion, and hormones. People with a dominant Pitta dosha tend to be strong-willed leaders who are confident and focused. When out of balance, Pitta can make you overly excited or enraged.
Pittas can usually sleep through the night, but falling asleep is another story.
“Pittas tend to work late into the night, which causes issues when they try to sleep,” Ochoa says. “They need a hard cut-off from work at 6 or 7 p.m. at the latest.”
Pittas tend to be hot sleepers, so keeping the room cool with air conditioning or a fan can support better sleep. You might consider upgrading to cooling sheets and pillows to ward off night sweats.
“Pittas also do well with water sounds because their mind is so hot,” Pandya adds. If you have a sound machine that plays sounds like ocean waves or a trickling stream, you could play it to help you wind down at night.
Try to get to bed on the earlier side, if you can. Ochoa says Pittas tend to get a second wind of energy around 9:30 p.m. or 10 p.m., so it’s important to try to get to sleep by about 9 p.m. or so to let the body fully rest.
Finally, keep your room as dark as possible. While this is a helpful tip for everyone who wants to sleep well, it’s especially important to Pittas because they tend to be sensitive to heat and light, says Pandya.
