Day Twelve of the Juice Fast

Day Twelve...and admittedly, I wasn't feeling the greatest today. My acid was up and I ended up puking at the end of the day, after struggling not to for several hours. Also, my skin is breaking out today. I find it hard to believe that this is all from yesterday's free day...but I think it is. :p 

The Cute Boy and I stocked up on fresh produce, and less acidic fruits and vegetables for tomorrow's juice. in the meanwhile, I took my acid suppressor today, and I plan on making my juices slightly more vegetable and less fruit to cut down additionally on the acid. 

On the plus side, I found myself cooking today. I'm not going to eat any of it, but I realized after a slightly stressful day with the dog trainer and hounds...and getting chastised for my lack of control over my dogs, I was completely frazzled and stressed out. I needed to unwind. Now normally when I feel this way, I would make something delicious to eat and have it. But since I've been on the juice fast, I've stayed largely away from the kitchen and food, unless I was preparing my juices. I like to cook though. It's relaxing for me. And the absence of it from my life these past weeks has been building up stress. Mainly because I haven't started developing alternative means of de-stressing in my life. So...I've got to work on that. -Tomorrow, I'll put some thought into it. But right now, I'm thinking walking the dogs, bike riding, and going to the gym are good ways of relaxing instead of cooking and eating. 

Tonight, however, I put the oats and buttermilk to soak over night for the pancakes tomorrow morning. And I also cleaned and sorted a big bag of pinto beans, which are currently soaking over night as well. The Cute Boy is going to have some tasty/healthy grub come tomorrow. 

Things I learned today:

1. Yeah...I can eat whatever I want on my free days...but I should know by now that if I eat junk food, my body will only spaz out on it and create nausea inducing stomach acid. Next time, eat light.
2. Cooking has been a way for me to relax all these years. 
3. I need to find better methods of relaxation that are not so food oriented. 
4. When all else fails...take a nap. You'll feel better, I swear.

Day Six of the juice fast.

Day six is over and I am actually shocked that it has almost been  a week. I have never done anything like this in my life. Before this juice fast, I was actually AGAINST juice fasts. I thought of them as unhealthy, extreme, and gimmicky. I didn't think they really worked. My arguments were, that the people who lose weight, are most likely losing water, muscle, and possibly pounds...because they were STARVING themselves. Not only did I think that it wouldn't work long-term, but that they would more than likely make things worse by slowing your metabolism and cause your body to hold onto every calorie consumed. It was not something that I was interested in, until my GI tract issues came into play. I was in so much pain that I was willing to try it simply because of the consistent nausea, vomiting, intestinal and abdominal pain, and diarrhea. Not to mention my excessive acid production which has caused painful acid reflux and bleeding. Weight loss was like the cherry on top. The main catalyst to me actually *starting* my juice fast, was the pain. 

Flash forward to today, and I've checked back in again with my Dr. (this time my regular primary care physician -so a 2nd Dr.) and she "fully endorses" my juice fast. She said that after reviewing my lab results from last week, she doesn't think that it's a gallbladder issue. My liver and kidney functions are excellent, and my cholesterol was as well. She seemed to think that it was most likely stress related, but that the "radical" actions that I had taken, by changing my diet so severely, seemed to be working. My blood pressure is great and I am happy to report that since I've begun this juice fast, I have lost 7 pounds! I was surprised at the number because I wasn't really sure if I had lost any weight. The Cute Boy has also lost 7 pounds...but it looks like more on his body. I can see his abs and back have leaned out. In a month, I will be checking back in with my Dr. and running a new panel of lab tests again, to see how my body is responding. I am off of all of my medications except for my anti-depressant, and I feel great! I still have some minor GI tract issues (diarrhea) but my physician said that that would be the last thing to correct and would take some time to completely go away, but that as long as the juice fast keeps going the way it has, it seems like it should be gone soon. 

Around this age, my skin went crazy. 

Some other positive and surprising side effects are related to my skin. I have always had a hard time with my skin. Before I was a teenager, I effortlessly had beautiful, flawless skin, as most kids do. But when puberty hit, my skin went crazy. I had horrible acne that I controlled with oral antibiotics and topical prescription ointments; and even then, I'd still get break-outs! My acne followed me into adulthood. I get deep, large, sub-dermal pimples called cystic acne, and I almost always have some on my face or neck area. They hurt, they leave scars, and of course they're not particularly pretty either. Getting rid of my acne has been a very long struggle and I've tried a lot of different things. It was so bad that I was even considering Accutane. But one of the most unintended yet wonderful side-effects of this juice fast has been my skin. It's not producing as much sebum. If I forget to wash my face, I do NOT wake up with a face full of fresh pimples. It is noticeably brighter, more radiant, and kind of glowy looking. AND it's not oily at the end of the day! All of this is amazing! I wonder what my skin will look like long-term if I keep ingesting lots of fresh fruits and vegetables after this fast? It's kind of funny because this juice fast is just as radical as taking Accutane is, except that the side-effects are so much better for my long-term health, it's cheaper eating this way, and my skin gets better instantly and naturally. So apparently you really can fix skin problems from the inside out. :) I am very happy about this. 

My cravings are getting more manageable. And my overall health is better. At this point, The Cute Boy is back on solids. He doesn't have the same GI tract issues, and he has far less weight to lose then I do, to achieve a good healthy body weight. He broke his fast with Carl's Jr.! OMG! I cannot tell you how much I wanted a chicken sandwich today. I've never even had Carl's Jr's grilled "Santa Fe Chicken Sandwich" before but after hearing about his, I wanted one. In fact...I wanted TWO! The Cute Boy talked me down, and I went home and made a really nice juice. A few sips in and my rabid desire for a chicken sandwich began do dissipate. I gained control again, and then I relaxed and enjoyed the evening. Once I had made up my mind that I just wasn't going to do it, I wasn't going to eat junk food and break my juice fast, that I was going to follow through on my goal of doing 10 days on juice and see what that feels like (actually accomplishing a goal like this) I had an easier time of it. So I'm still going strong and looking forward to what tomorrow brings. 

Things I learned today: 

1. I learned how to distinguish between hunger and a craving. If I'm actually hungry, then a healthy alternative to the craving like fruit, veggies, or juice will sound appealing. If not, then it's just a craving and it will pass in 20 minutes. But if it's really hunger, then I go and make myself a juice and it goes away. Learning what is genuine hunger and what is a psychological/emotional craving is a true life skill. And I'm glad to be finally learning this. 
2. That being said...I am looking forward to eating again in a few days and I've been having a lot of fun on Pinterest finding tasty and healthy recipes. Who knew social networking sites would make "shopping" for tasty healthy recipes so much fun, so easy, and so organized? It's great! 
3. I lost 7 pounds in six days.
4. My skin is clearer. 
5. And oddly enough, I realised that I haven't been depressed. I've been so focused on sticking with the juice fast so much that I haven't had time or the inclination to feel sad. My therapist said that it may also be dietary related which is such a strange idea to me. But plausible after this personal experience.