My health has been a little iffy this year. Normally I’m someone who doesn’t get sick but this year I’ve had a bronchial infection after skiing in -11 celcius weather, working with a dicky lower back (from lifting heavy things at work, salsa dancing, sea kayacking…I don’t know…) and have found out I have scar tissue-issues. Noice! I am certainly not one to sit around and let a GP tell me I’ll need pain meds for the rest of my life I decided to see a Traditional Ayurvedic doctor. And this is how I managed to wedge a 21 day Panchakarma between my neice’s wedding and Christmas!
It was totally worth it! I feel great – even writing this the day after Christmas when over-indulgence is a team sport – I feel really good and know that I can fall back on the easy dietary guidelines.
What did I learn during my Panchakarma?
I learned you can drink a lot of water and still be dehydrated! Easy fix – the doctor told me to drop a few crystals of Celtic Salt into my large cup of hot water each morning along with my usual lemon juice. It’s amazing – I have found that I am visiting the bathroom far less even though I am drinking the same amount of water! It’s a miracle!
I (re)learned that I usually eat far too much. sigh…
I learned that people who worry about the protein intake of Vegetarians should be far more concerned about the iron. I was pretty low in iron and my circulation was rubbish! Doc has me on herbal iron supplements and has tweaked my diet to up my intake of iron. (I have plenty of female friends who are low in iron who eat all kinds of meat so it’s a woman problem, not a vego problem!)
I learned that enemas are nothing to fear.
I learned that cutting down on coffee, dairy products, and sugar makes the first week of a detox a breeze. No headaches, no crankiness – I just felt great!
I learned that if they doctor says stay home on the Purge Day, you should STAY HOME. Thank heavens I listened and didn’t go out anywhere. I will not tell you the details but yes, I lay around all day (when I wasn’t err – otherwise occupied) and binge watched Kidding (Jim Carrey’s newest series – OMG). I felt clear and clean and ready to take on the world, but I needed a lie down after watching Kidding. It’s full on.
I feel great, I’ve lost belly fat and I am sleeping very well. My skin is glowing and smooth – I was having trouble with mild dermatitis before the cleanse. Best of all, my husband loves the lentil dishes I’ve been making so that’s a win!
On the subject of hubby – he has been on a bit of a health-kick himself but he’s been on a DIY detox – cutting down on his portion sizes, dropping unwanted calories like cakes and chocolate but treating himself on the weekend, cutting out fizzy drinks and increasing his exercise. He’s found a lot of videos on Youtube to follow and has dropped around 5 kilograms in 3 months. He feels great, looks amazing and has a whole new wardrobe of clothes that fit him again!
The Detox Debate – Just as many people seem to get annoyed at vegans and vegetarians for avoiding animal products, there are those who cannot and will not accept that a detox or cleanse can be beneficial for the human body.
I regularly see posts on Facebook along the lines of ‘you don’t need a detox – if your liver isn’t working you need a hospital not a cleanse.’ Gah – enough already with the BLACK AND WHITE THINKING!
Why do people wait until their organs fail? Why wait until you are 50kgs overweight to start monitoring your food intake? Why wait until you have a major health crisis to start taking care of yourself?
We change the oil filters on our cars. We clean the air vents on our air conditioners. If cleansing or detoxing our systems doesn’t work then why don’t we all just eat and drink anything we want? Our bodies should be able to expel all the unwanted and unhealthful food and drink we take in. But it can’t – eventually, the body gets overloaded and things stop working properly. I am no expert – I can only vouch for how I feel when I take good care of myself and I highly recommend doing any cleanse, detox, diet or fasting with the help of a qualified practitioner. My GP was able to point me in the direction of a qualified dietitian and expert in the kind of cleanse. Even cutting out one nasty (fizzy drinks, candies or excess alcohol) can give our body a break.
So glad you had a good experience with your detox. A detox in my late 20s both saved my life and helped to turn it upside down. I found emotional and spiritual clarity along with physical energy. I’ve done a few minor cleanses sense then as well. Always leaves me feeling great!
I had a similar experience in my early 20s. I had to starve a virus out of my system and boy oh boy did it turn my world upside down. I wish I had found this doctor back then, although considering he is probably about 30, I doubt he was practising 25 years ago lol!! I always have to remind myself that everything happens in its right time.