These two movies have motivated both me and my husband to increase our vegetable intake, and reboot our bodies.
Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead
Forks Over Knives
Today is Day One out of 10 of our juice fast. It won't be easy, but it's one form of treatment I've yet to try to minimize my migraines. Juicing for 10 days helped a migraineur in FS&ND, and I'm hoping I'll see positive results as well.
Following an Ayurvedic diet (not as strict as I should) has greatly diminished migraines caused by food triggers, but I still suffer from daily headches and hormonal migraines (as well as those triggered by climate changes, chemicals, and hormone fluctuations).
I'll be posting updates, so you can track my progress. For the record, we'll be consuming organic fruits and vegetables. Just say no to genetically modified foods and pesticides!
Day 1
Weight: 171.5 lbs
Waist: 37.5 inches
Migraine: 2 out of 5
Headache: 3 out of 5
Feeling sluggish, and tummy growling here and there. Watching television can be torture, but most of the fast food commercials I see make me gag anyway because I know how bad their processed [you-can't-even-call-it] food is.
Day 2
Weight: 169.5 lbs
Waist: 37.5 inches
Migraine: 2 out of 5
Headache: 3 out of 5
I fell asleep last night with a hormonal migraine on the right side, and overnight it had spread to the left. Maybe I shouldn't have picked this time of the month to start, but no matter...I'm determined to see this through.
Day 3
Weight: 168.5 lbs
Waist: 37 inches
Migraine: 3 out of 5
Headache: 4 out of 5
The day started off great; my head pain was minimal and I had lots of energy. But then afternoon sluggishness and head pain came on. It could be from going to dog park (pesticides), but it could also be because I haven't stopped taking my daily detox herbs after this mornings juice (versus the solid meal I usually consume). I will stop taking the herbs starting tomorrow and see if that helps.
Day 4
Weight: 168.5 lbs
Waist: 37 inches
Migraine: 2 out of 5
Headache: 3 out of 5
Felt blah most of the day due to the climate (chilly, cloudy with drizzles). I had to get into bed to get the chill out, after taking Harley to the park. Hoping to feel more energized in the coming days. My skin looks great, and I don't have any other pains at the moment besides head pain. It's so strange to not feel as hungry as I thought I would. Don't get me wrong - I'm definitely hungry. But I'm not anxious about getting something in my system as I normally would be.
Day 5
Weight: 168 lbs
Waist: 36.75 inches
Migraine: 2 out of 5
Headache: 3 out of 5
I woke up feeling pretty good, but by afternoon I didn't have much energy. Gyan commented about skin issues, and this morning I noticed two strawberry patch rashes on my upper chest. I've experienced this with detoxes in the past, and know it's a good thing. Itchy and annoying, but good.
I'm worried because I'm starting to get grossed out by the green juices (gagged a couple times). I know it's not healthy to do fruit juices all day, so I'll have to find a way to tolerate greens. I seriously need to review my Ayurveda paperwork that states what fruits and vegetables to eliminate from my diet. Because I went about this Reboot thinking I was a "normal" person instead of a Pitta, I'd been consuming a lot of spinach, citrus, carrots, beets, etc. Healthy foods yes, but known triggers for me.
Day 6
Weight: 166.5 lbs
Waist: 36.5 inches
Migraine: 2 out of 5
Headache: 3 out of 5
Success! I was able to drink this afternoon's green juice without gagging. Substituting tolerable veges was the right call. I didn't feel sluggish, nor did my head pain increase afterward. Now let's see if we can get those head pain numbers to drop even more in the next few days!
Day 7
Weight: 166 lbs
Waist: 36.5 inches
Migraine: 2 out of 5
Headache: 2 out of 5
Much easier dealing with this fast knowing I'm not adding more issues (besides desiring every food I smell and fighting not to scratch my rash). Hubby was curled up on the bed, clutching his stomach, suggesting we order pizza. I knew he was kidding of course, but it was so tempting.
Day 8
Weight: 166.5 lbs
Waist: 36.25 inches
Migraine: 1 out of 5
Headache 2 out of 5
Found another strawberry patch on my mid-back. Organic coconut oil helps keep the area cool in this warm weather.
Day 9
Weight: 164.5 lbs
Waist: 36 inches
Migraine: 1 out of 5
Headache: 1 out of 5
Thinking of Troy Davis today instead of myself.
Day 10
Weight: 163.5 lbs
Waist: 36 inches
Migraine: 0.5 out of 5
Headache: 1 out of 5
Seeing incredible results all around, but I can't wait to eat solid food. If I had omitted trigger fruits/veges at the start, perhaps I would have experienced totally pain-free days. I'll have to wait until the next juice fast to find out.
Conclusion
This experience wasn't easy, but maintaining those low pain numbers as I re-introduce solid foods will be the real test. I need to be less lazy about omitting pitta-aggravating foods. It's just so easy to fall back into old habits, especially when pain and other personal issues can cause stress.
The more I stay away from processed and fast foods, the more I see just how addicted I was. I was high on caffeine, MSG and HFCS when I was eating fast food twice a day, almost every day. My excuses being I was in too much pain to prepare healthy meals, and I had no idea where to start.
When I wasn't eating, I was thinking about eating. And when I was sleeping, I was dreaming about eating. I experienced mood swings (very easily irritated), anxiety and depression, terrible PMS, GI issues, brainfog, stuttering, vertigo, difficulty sleeping, I was fidgety, extremely sensitive to touch, and of course I suffered from chronic, high pain levels. Since finding Ayurveda, I've erased so many of those issues.
Food is an easy way to comfort ourselves, but there are always consequences. We may not notice them right away, but before long pain levels are more and more difficult to manage. So you consume more things to temporarily comfort yourself, and then you're in such an unhealthy state (physically, emotionally, and mentally) that you simply give up doing something about it. You have to decide now is the time, and take action.
8 comments:
Very cool. Can't wait to see your results!
Thanks, Steph. Having the hubby go into this with me is a huge help. The gal in the documentary who suffered from migraines had to cook for her family while juicing. Must have been torture for her lol.
What a great post. I will be VERY interested to see how the fast impacts your migraines. I have done a 10-day fast but it was many years ago. What I noticed is that the fasting process detoxes in a big way and can manifest as skin problems. Herbalists call this a "healing crises" -- you get a little worse before you get better. Hang in there and baby yourself -- let your body rest when it needs to and don't overdo it as you won't have the stamina/energy resources available. Sending you gentle hugs and hoping that you'll see a major shift in your migraine pattern. xoxo
Thanks for the support, Gyan. So far, no skin issues, but I have experienced the healing crisis you mentioned (in the form of a rash) in the past.
Doing my best to rest up, and take things slow. xoxo
A juice fast is something I haven't tried yet; I'll add this to my future list. Of course, my husband would never do this so I'd have to cook for him (or just have him eat out the whole time); his work schedule hasn't allowed him to cook in a while. Thanks for documenting this!
My pleasure Heather. I knew if I put it out there publicly, I'd stick to my goal.
Hi Jasmine, sorry to leave an unrelated comment, but I couldn’t find any contact info for you. I’m wondering if you’d be interested in having a guest post on your site. I'd love to hear your thoughts on some ideas I could pitch to you! Thanks, Emily
Hi Emily, since I moderate comments, feel free to leave your contact information. I won't publish it.
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