That's it, I am in for it

[Essence-Of-Being]

welp I just blew it. Whatever you do, don't do what I just did. After Nine full days of detox, cleansing and a wonderful feast I had a really bad day and blew the whole thing. It started at the whole foods where I ended up overdrawing for my juice feast... whoops! I basically just can not afford this at all. I totally wanted to go the whole time and hope to one day. I am proud of myself for going that far, BUT not for how I broke my feast... I didn't have prunes on hand and didn't want them anyway, all I have thought about for days was an avocado, and I ate one. I ate of of those which led to hummus, pita chips, and lentil stew... and I basically just threw my body into a tailspin. My tummy is girggling and my whole mouth is numb from crunching. I have to say I am a bit disappointed for succumbing. I won't beat myself up, no no no... can't do it. I know I can't afford to keep juicing totally but will have a green juice tomorrow for breakfast and then don't know what to do from there. I am feeling a little sick at the moment. David, if your reading this, HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! please tell me I am not the only one that has screwed myself up this bad! have mercy what was I thinking... i take that back, I wasn't. WOW. insane. and I am airing it out to top it off, LOL.

anyway, good luck to all y'all and hang in there... if your lucky enough to have the cash to do this, RELISH it for me! AND don't pig out like I did. I know I must be in for it.

[liponeer]

I can imagine how miserable that must feel. I think you're doing the right thing by just moving forward.

[Rhina]

Money will certainly determine my feast as well. I am on day 5, and it is a bit crazy financially. I am hoping to cook for the family out of the freezer and cupboards (and fresh veggies) to save some money. I have been wanting to clean everything out anyway.
I am sorry that you went nutty with the food, I am sure you are not alone. The 9 days of feasting was still awesome for you and once you digest everything, I am sure you will feel ok. Just remember that 9 days of feasting is a lot and it is more than a lot of people do on fasts. You have done a great thing for yourself!
I jumped into this very quickly, I know the next time I will have to prepare myself by saving up. Hey, did you see that David is going to be promoting weekend juice feasting? Maybe you can enjoy do it that way?
Hey, if you overdrew and walked away with veggies you are good to go for a bit at least.

[UtoPia]

Dearest Essence Of Being,
Love, it seems you're at least able to look at your situation with humor and forgiveness, which is perfect. Frankly, your post-feasting fiasco is totally typical and a very VERY commonplace occurrence. The important thing is to stay positive about the great benefit you brought to yourself and your well-being while detoxing and not to dwell dramatically on the final outcome. Honestly, I can not stress more to you that you are not alone in your experience and it probably happens to people more often than not, seriously. Often people will resort directly back to their worst eating habits or addictions, so give yourself a break for not consuming a pint of Ben & Jerry's for example.
The best thing you can do now is calm and center yourself again and return to that place of nurturing and continue on your journey, with a lesson learned. Now your system is processing all this initial solid food over load and the best thing you can do is give it time to complete its laborious digestive tasks. Don't consume anymore food without intention. Make hydration your focus and drink a lot of warm water with lemon which will aid your stomach in its duties. Also investigate what herbal teas like peppermint are calming on the stomach and nerves. If you're feeling so regretful that you'd like to expediently eliminate your recent snacking mayhem, try a laxative tea before bed and a salt flush of 2 tablespoons salt in a liter of water in the morning; this is only advantageous if you feel like energetically you can't have this food culminating in your system. Then, simply get back on the wagon, honey. Even if the cost of feasting is prohibitive for you, you can still pursue detoxing by simply maintaining a raw food diet, start incorporating all the luscious greens you've been ingesting into big healthy salads. Eat the most simple and natural things you can find and afford. The easiest foods for your system to process are going to be fruits over the next few days, and ingesting the prunes now will help as well. The most important thing is that you not be too harsh on yourself because you want to maintain an entirely positive outlook on the journey you've just taken and the one you are on now. Detoxing is a lifestyle. Take a moment to reflect or even write down some of the feelings you had in your moment lacking clarity and maybe develop a plan of how you can avoid that behavior in the future. Don't be hard on yourself! This is all part of your learning experience and a trial that you designed and put yourself through - so come out of it flying, renewed, recommitted and with a better understanding of who you are.
So, yeah darling, no worries, it's practically a requisite trial and it will make your future efforts more successful. And just because you are not able to juice feast does not mean you are not partaking in a lifestyle of detox. Dust yourself off and try again!
Create a beautiful day!

[Essence-Of-Being]

I AM SOOO utterly touched by this reply and that you would take time out of your day to write such a special and meaningful reply to a stranger in need. I really woke up this morning with a bad tummy ache and feeling very disapointed in myself. It means so much to get the support. Thanks everyone for taking time to write to me.

[Shari]

EOB - I too am very touched by UtoPia's respons. It is always so heartening to get support like this when we tank. I'm only on day 3 and doing well so far, but I know I can always fall on my face as well. I remember trying to fast one time and I got the shakes so bad all I could hear in my head was "watermelon, watermelon, watermelon" so I got out of bed and dropped a watermelon in the sink, literally, and began shoving it in my face as fast and furious as I could. I made myself quite sick doing that even though it was watermelon. And then the feeding frenzy began. I don't remember what all I ate, but I do remember laying on the couch most of the next day just being sick and so very tired.

Someone said something about green juices for the morning and that's what I was doing for about a week prior to the Feast beginning. It seemed to make a huge difference in my appetite and my attitude, so if you can, I'd say juice once a day.

Hang in there babycakes, things will improve, if you let them.

Shari

[rawprincess]

I'm sorry that you found yourself in a predicament without funds and also without a relaxed friend nearby to lend a shoulder. With more support you may have passed on the solid foods and gotten out the feelings. I haven't read the whole thread but it looks like you did get some great responses here, such as, yes, we all have been exactly there where you ended up.

Hurting our tummies because solid food wasn't a good idea after juicing for alength of time, huh? Yep. I've totallybeen there and it is a form of living hell. It's true. It's hurtful to our own guts to do that but the compulsion is pretty strong. A strange type of temporary insanity or something BUT, I try to remember that I DID Make the Choice.

No matter how crazy it may have seemed I try to realize that I truly am in charge of what goes into my mouth. Food doesn't just go into my mouth by itself. That way I slowly and slowly (after trial and error, believe me) begin to get it. I am in charge of what goes into my mouth and I don't have to eat solid food during this feast time no matter what. Period. It doesn't matter how bad I feel emotionally. How hungry, broke, lonely, tired I am.

I haven't been able to do a gallon of fresh green juices but have been able to do at least a large 16 ounce green juice each day plus supplement apple or carrot (from store or homemade) with green powder and dulse. I occasionally get a little bee pollen.

I've been doing liver flush drinks with apple juice, lemon, fresh ginger, garlic and olive oil plus cayenne followed by several large cups of herbal polaritea (licorice, fennel, fenugreek, flax and peppermint). In fact that tea would probably soothe your stomach right now quite a bit if you're willing to have hot tea.

Anyway don't mean to ramble. Just wanted to give you a little support. You are definitely not the only one who has made this kind of mistake. And for me, it's a learning experience which I avoid the next time by transitioning more gently to solid foods each time. Taking the time to pick out fruits and eat them for a few days, or prunes like you said, and giving my body time to be ready for the yummies such as hummus and other nice whole foods, yum! Yes, they taste wonderful. but isn't it awesome when (read: me :-)) we eat to live not eat to fix emo? LOL

well, love ya and hope this day is a great one. On track in the direction you want to be going. I wish you all the best today. It's really one day at a time. Just for today we can do together what alone seems impossible. Blessings and thank you for your post because it actually reminds me to stay on track today so you have really supported me too. Others have also benefited similarly I'm sure. Keep posting! :-)

[Essence-Of-Being]

You all RAWK so hard for sharing with me and lending support and advice, thanks sooo much, so far I have laughed and cried and smiled big... it is soo great to have friends like y'all. my mom and husband were with me when I fell and yes I wish they would have helped to not break my feast like that... but their hearts were in the right place I guess. they felt bad that i wanted food so bad, i was irritable and just plain hungry. I really hope one day to do a longer cleanse but ill take it moment by moment. and right now i am having a quart of juice. i am sort of afraid of food... i am guessing ill do the fruit and maybe some smoothies... maybe a salad?
I LOVE ALL OF YOU!!!!!!

[TrinaD]

I love that I ran into this string of emails today. It's wonderful to hear people supportive! I'm only on Day 4 of my juicefeast and all of my friends and family And coworkers have told me they feel I should not do this and done things such as bring food to my desk. It's actually annoying me to the point of making me stronger but in those difficult moments its great to at least have a website for support. I'm thankful for reading your post and knowing that someone like me is out there and feeling that and all of the supportive responses! This site rocks!

[Shari]

I didn't tell anybody at work and outside of there only my husband knows and he is very supportive. I think I read something, maybe in Angela Stokes' book, but I do remember it said (paraphrased) be selective who you tell about feasting.

And then there's always my old friend, David Icke, who says: "When you are constantly moving forward, searching for the cutting edge, everyone behind you always believes you have gone too far. The further back from the cutting edge they are, the more extreme and, indeed, insane you appear to them, to be. In this way, one person’s “madness” can be another’s commonsense."

Hang in there babycakes, I'm with you! I work in a technical high school in the culinary arts department and have to be around fresh baked bread, desserts, roasting meats, all day, every day! I'm on day 4 and today was hell.

I'm hanging by a thread.

Shari

[rawprincess]

@Shari @TrinaD @Essence-Of-Being Hi, I'm on day 10 and have lost so much bloat and also sludge in colonics plus even though I haven't eaten food I'm having solid, dark and stringy bowel movements. Everyone is telling me I'm looking so beautiful. they think it's the jeans or the outfit or the make-up. But I've lost actually well over 5 lbs of bloat and sludge and my eyes and face are sparkling.

I know it's the juice feasting even when I can't take four quarts of green juice for financial reasons. I still am getting apple and carrot and at least 16 ounces of green drink each day.

I hope to stay on this and do my body a service of the full detox. Good luck to you too. I know there's a lot of discouragement out there. That's why I'm doing it too, to be strong through this economic crisis we need people who are hopeful, sparkly, and healthy.

[Shari]

Rawprincess - is the 16 ounces all you are consuming in the day or are you eating? I'm finding working in the restaurant is too much for me. I do great from 7:30 a.m. until about 12:30 p.m. and then I really want a taste. And the kids are feeling bad because I won't taste what they have created and that's part of my job, giving them reassurance they have created something that tastes good. I don't have to eat a plate of anything, just a taste. And they know not to ask me to taste anything with meat products.

And the cost is about to break our bank. I just bought a case of romaine and a case of oranges so I'd best be using them. I'm very comfortable and have seen changes with three quarts of green juice and raw the rest of the day. I did that for almost two weeks before the feast. I may resort back to that to save my sanity and my bank account!

Anyway, it just might be detox talking, but I'm really discouraged and I'm feeling really crabby with the kids and it's only been four days! Just think about it, surrounded by teenagers and food all day for your job.

Thanks for listening, this probably should have been on my blog, but I get more feedback here than any where else.

Shari

[rawprincess]

@Shari, I'd love the link to your blog. I'll check your home page.

No I'm having a large liverflush drink in the morning the past two days. I am very "woody" that's a term in traditional chinese medicine. Meaning that I've got gallbladder/liver deficiciencies and anyways, probably due to all the high fat vegetarian years but anyways.

I begin with my favorite it's a large applejuice blended with fresh garlic and ginger root, add a little lemon juice and cayenne pepper and olive oil 1-2 TBSP. blend and strain then drink and follow with very large mug or two or hot herb tea. Ideally it's a tea called Polaritea which is licorice, fennel, fenugreek and flax with peppermint but if I don't have it on hand I just use green tea with chamomile or lemon verbena.

This fills me up for hours and really gradually flushes out gravel and stones in the gallbladder. It works really well for me.

Then I try to have the large fresh green juice and sip it slowly savoring and "chewing" it.

I have the TBSPN of bee pollen at some point in the day. (sometimes a little more trying not to overdo it)

Kombucha tea (not recommended by David) but it really helps sometimes with fullness energy and good spirits.

If I'm cranky I'll go buy several jugs of carrot juice at trader joes and drink all I can. lol. it's pasteurized i know but it's flash pasteurized quickly and for what it's worth it is affordable, readimade on the go. I need to get setup with some nutmilk bags at home with my vitamix.

Hot herb tea and going to bed early with a hot water bottle on my tummy have been good. Exercise at least a brisk short walk everyday really reallymakes a BIG difference in my attitude of cranky or sparkly.

It's spendy but right now, I'm such an emo eater that the juices have given me time to work on my stuff around that and hopefully be ready to eat normally when I go back. I've been going to certain meetings for the emo eating thing. feel free to email if you want more info on that.

Yes that would be sooo hard but you're right at the hardest part I think. Maybe it is detox talking. If you have to taste things as part of your job or else lose your job then it sounds like you really have to But maybe you can just do a ritual of really enthusiastically smelling the food and noticing all you can tell about the wonderful aromas and use that as a way to praise the teens. Can you try that?

For me, once I start tasting, I'm pretty much on a run as far as craving more and then I'm gaining weight and eating everything in sight. But that's just me, if you can do it hats off to you. I would just personally do whatever i could to not actually put the food in my mouth.

Does that fit for you at all?

best,
cindy