Help, I'm sick!

April 26, 2004

Mary Ellen wrote:

I have the head cold from hell. I think this is day number 3 of sniffles,

sneezing, coughing, etc. I have been 100% raw for 32 days in a row and I

just cannot understand how I can be this sick. I mean, I eat so good! Can

this be detox? Aren't we supposed to eliminate sickness when we go raw? I

really feel like " death warmed over. " Should I fast? Should I just drink

water? ...What do you do to get over it?

~*~Mary Ellen~*~

Dear Mary Ellen,

Colds and flus are detoxing or a healing event. Yay! It really is good

news. Very sick people do not detox because their body isn't strong

enough to do the work. What I do is give myself plenty of time to heal

and just realize my body is doing " spring cleaning " and getting out all

that mucous and acidic waste from the tissues. I try to get extra sleep,

relaxation, water, sunshine, and IF hungry eat lightly of fresh fruit

(very cleansing, with high water content). Also, I enjoy hot baths to

keep the skin clean. Skin is largest eliminating organ. Toxins come out

the pores of our skin and the perspiration, (exits are also breath,

through bowels and urination). A good soak in the tub is so healing! I

always feel a little panic come on with a detox like my mind is off

balance. However, afterwards I move to a new level of health and feel SO

terrific. It is worth it! (The alternative is developing disease.) It

helps me to talk to someone familiar with the healing process or read a

bit online or in a book. There's a lot out there on detoxing and it is

fascinating reading to us raw food folks. I'll paste up an article here

for your reading pleasure...

Happy detoxing!

Jenny

Don't Fight The Healing Process

Dr. Jimmy Scott, Ph.D.

Cleansing Reactions or detoxification are adjustments made by the body to

purge waste material from within. The elimination of stored toxins,

sometimes called a healing crisis, is part of the body's healing process.

During a Healing crisis toxins are pulled out of the body tissues and

into circulation to be eliminated. Some uncomfortable symptoms may occur

during a healing crisis.

general fatigue

aches and pains; such as headaches, low back pain

skin discharges; rashes, pimples, unusual sweating and body odors

frequent urination, diarrhea or constipation

fever or feeling of coldness

mental irritability, restless dreams

mucous discharge; signs of a cold, clearing throat, runny nose, watery

eyes

Normally a healing crisis will develop within three months of a positive

change in lifestyle. A healing crisis may last from a few hours to a few

days, rarely longer. A young person will detoxify more quickly than an

older person. A person may experience more than one healing crisis to

fully discharge toxins from the body tissues. Each healing crisis is

followed by increased vitality and greater physical well being. Perhaps

the greatest challenge of the healing crisis is not to become

discouraged, but to learn from the experience.

The most common symptom my clients report is a temporary reduction in

energy. They may find themselves sleeping longer, perhaps as much as 12

hours a night. Some people also report aches and pains in various parts

of the body, digestive system disturbances such as gas, constipation, or

diarrhea, or other miscellaneous complaints.

These symptoms occur because the body is ridding itself of the substances

that have been making it toxic - not only the materials that have

accumulated in the colon, but also the antibodies and other substances

that have built up in the individual cells, interfering with their normal

functioning. As these substances are ejected out of the tissues, they are

dumped into the system, making the body temporarily more toxic until they

can be excreted. This is partly what produces the symptoms of the healing

reaction. This effect is accentuated by the body's process of tearing

apart defective tissue, repairing damaged cells, destroying parasites or

infective agents, and otherwise producing debris from the

re-construction...

Drugs that block pain may also block healing

Experiencing such healing reactions can be very distressing for many

people, because we are taught in our society that symptoms are somehow

bad. Although it is tempting to take pain killers, antihistamines, or

other drugs when uncomfortable symptoms occur in the course of healing,

it is very important to follow the prescribed program correctly and to do

nothing to interfere with the healing process. If in the past an

individual went through a period of pain, taking pain killers or other

drugs at this point to relieve the symptoms actually prolongs the

discomfort.

You see, aspirin and antihistamines work by blocking the prostaglandins -

chemical substances found throughout the body which regulate many bodily

functions and metabolic process. Generally the prostagiandins work in

opposing pairs. One, for example, may produce inflamation and swelling in

response to a specific stimulus, while another undoes these reactions.

When a person takes aspirin or an antihistamine to stop an uncomfortable

reaction, he may not experience the pain or inflamation, but he also does

not get the healing process that undoes the reason for the pain and

inflamation. He has achieved a stalemate rather than a cure.

One of my clients, Alice, has had a history of many years of pain, and is

now going through a lot of healing reactions, including " spasms " in her

digestive system. Although I have explained to Alice that she must go

back through her painful symptoms in order to be cured, she insists that

something must be wrong.

When she has pain, she stops taking her supplements and uses medication

to reduce her spasm. It is a real dilemma for her because she really is

in pain, and she believes that it is not good to experience pain.

Unfortunately, by blocking the pain with an inappropriate medication she

is keeping herself from getting healed. And so she is going back and

forth, keeping herself at precisely the level where she is bound to have

the pain.

It is difficult for people accustomed to having symptoms suppressed by

medications to understand that a healing crisis is a natural process,

which may cause some initial discomfort. It is important to understand

this natural process occurring inside the body instead of resorting to

drugs, which may defeat the regenerative intent of the body. Symptoms

represent the body's efforts to heal itself.

Therefore, they are stimulated to complete the curative process. Minor

ailments are often compounded by the use of drug therapy, which

suppresses symptoms and weakens the body's line of defense.

Rather than suppressing symptoms we need to interpret and understand the

changes that arise from introducing higher quality foods, or

discontinuing the use of stimulants such as coffee, tea or chocolate.

There are basically three phases the body goes through as it strives for

a new level of well being.

The first is catabolism, the elimination or breakdown of tissue Wastes

are discarded more rapidly than new tissue is made from the new food.

This is evident in weight loss.

The second phase is stabilization. The amount of waste material being

discarded daily is equal to the amount of tissue being formed. Weight

remains more stable.

The third phase, a build up period called anabolism, occurs when weight

increases. At this point, new tissues are being formed faster. The body's

need for the usual amounts of food decreases and we are able to maintain

weight and increased energies with less food.

Remember: Good health will follow in the wake of a healthy lifestyle.

Cleansing Crisis

Happens at:

1-7 day mark

5-6 week mark

3 month mark

6 month mark

then further and further apart and the signs are milder as time goes on.

Handling Your Healing Crisis

The goal is to help the body function effectively in a healing crisis.

The use of medication that suppresses symptoms can compromise the healing

process and is therefore discouraged.

During this period of cleansing, foods heavy in protein or fat should be

avoided, because they are not easily digestible and place high demands on

the body. Meals should be kept simple, light and nutritious. Plenty of

pure water, whole grains, fresh fruit and vegetable are recommended.

The skin is an important organ of elimination and toxins can be released

more easily if it is in proper condition. To aid this process, try the

detoxification bath described below.

Using a body brush, stimulate lymph and blood flow by dry brushing the

skin - from the ends of the limbs toward the heart, including the

abdomen, repeating daily until the crisis passes. (Many health

professionals suggest daily dry brushing of the skin to help keep the

lymphatic system in optimum condition.)

Reducing stress will help the healing crisis pass more quickly. Some

people may need to evaluate their daily stress level: poor diet, smoking,

caffeine, sugar, white flour and other lifestyle elements that have

contributed to their poor health over the years.

Elimination

During a healing crisis toxins and waste will be eliminated through the

intestines. If the waste is trapped in the body, toxins will be absorbed

into the blood from the colon and recirculated throughout the body, thus

autointoxication (re-poisoning) the body. It is important to have regular

eliminations...

Exercise is Essential

Exercise will aid the detoxification process. Find or devise an exercise

program that is fun and not so ambitious as to be impossible to adhere

to. Many people begin an exercise program with the best of intentions,

only to find that it is either too difficult, or takes too much time.

Find something that is easy and then add to it, as you are able. A little

exercise is better than none.

One of the best exercises is walking. Toxins, which cause stiff and

aching muscles, are eliminated through the sweat glands and the distance

and pace, can be upgraded, as time will allow. Walking 20-30 minutes,

four to six times a week will help prevent the toxins from overloading

the system and being reabsorbed, and allowing the body to eliminate more

toxins.

Detoxing Bath

Another way to eliminate toxins through the skin is a detoxing bath. Soak

in a hot bath for half an hour to which has been added 2 cups of either

Baking Soda (which will help neutralize the acids of the toxins), or

Epson Salts (giving the water a higher ion content than the body, which

will draw the fluids, therefore toxins, out of the body). Mote: It is

important to drink water while soaking to replace the fluids drawn from

the body. If one has an open rash, Epsom Salts should not be used, which

will cause the rash to sting. Oatmeal Powder is an excellent emollient

for dry skin. Make your own, cost effectively, by reducing 1 - 2 cups of

regular oatmeal to a fine powder in a blender (larger particles should be

sifted out) and add to the bath water.

Hering's law of cure

The healing crisis has been expressed over the years by the following

definition, which has gained widespread acceptance:

" All cure starts from within out, from the head down, and in reverse

order as the symptoms have appeared. "

Remember, your body is infinitely intelligent, and, if given the proper

tools (good nutrition, sufficient fresh air and water, adequate rest and

sleep and a positive mental attitude), will manage to work itself through

the healing crisis and " miraculously " heal itself.

April 26, 2004

Thank-you Jenny! I am off to soak in the tub!

Peace, ~*~Mary Ellen~*~

-

jennysilliman

rawfood

Sunday, April 25, 2004 11:57 PM

[Raw Food] Help, I'm sick!