First Juice Fast

Raw Vegan Quiche

On January 2nd I began my very first juice fast. I had been thinking of doing one for a few months after trying a couple 24 hour water fasts and reading extensively about the physical, mental and spiritual benefits of fasting. When you stop eating food you allow your digestive system to finally have a rest and the energy can then be used on deeper healing processes in the body. Some of the benefits of a fast are to:

• allow for cleansing and detoxification of the body
• create a break in eating patterns, while shining a spotlight on them
• promote greater mental clarity
• cleanse and heal "stuck" emotional patterns
• lead to a feeling of physical lightness, increasing energy level
• promote an inner stillness, enhancing spiritual connection

For 6 days, 3 times a day, I only consumed raw fruit and vegetable juices. I juiced everything at home with a commercial grade juice that I borrowed from a friend. Apparently any of the cheap juicers would not have worked for the amount of juicing I was doing. Some of the items I was using to make my juices were: kale, swiss chard, apples, lemons, carrots, beets, papaya, celery, ginger and parsley (not necessarily in this combination). The juice was almost always pretty tasty and I had no problem gulping them back (except for the time I added broccoli to one of my green juices...eww).

I remember the first day I was really excited about doing the fast so that's pretty much what got me through the day. It wasn't until the 2nd and 3rd days that the hunger pangs became really intense and I was having feelings of doubt and frustration. I wanted to eat so badly, but didn't give in because I was certain that it would be beneficial for me in the long run if I just stuck to it. After that, the physical feelings of hunger much disappeared and the struggle transformed into an emotional and mental battle with all of the attachments that I had to food and to eating. I would just sit and daydream about all of the foods that I loved to eat. That's also when I started to see how much I was actually addicted to food. Eventually those cravings disappeared as well. 

I knew my fast was coming to an end and on my 7th day I decided to do a water fast to intensify the healing process. I didn't find it harder than the previous days and just went along with my day as usual, without having to do any of the slightly laborious juicing preparations. By morning of the 8th day I really felt the effects of the fast. I was so weak and nauseous, but I wanted to stick to my plan of easing back into eating again. I ate half an orange and I was full. Later on that day I ate another half an orange and I was full again. Throughout the rest of the afternoon I ate a whole English cucumber, peeled and it was actually hard to eat it all because my stomach was so small, but I didn't force it. After that day I introduced a little more food, mostly raw and some vegetable broth, day by day until I felt ready to eat a hearty meal again. 

I decided to become vegan after the fast because I barely had any cravings for dairy products like I used to (major cheese-aholic over here) and also my addiction to sugar was practically gone. Those are two battles I never felt that I could win. I still eat sweets here and there, but I had little control over my craving for sugar before, and would rummage through the house looking for anything with sugar in it when I was on a sugar binge. It was sick. Anyway, I will embark on this fasting journey again and I am looking forward to the experience because ever since that last fast I have felt great!!! Perhaps some of you would like to try this for yourself some day. If so, please feel free to ask me all the questions you want!

@LoveKaruna (Twitter)