Hooray For Purification!

Today marks the official end of the first week of purification. We are 1/3 of the way through. It is goin quickly, in my opinion. After such a positive experience last year, I looked forward to doing it again this year. It feels a lot easier for me this time too. I think knowing what to expect, knowing all the benefits I am going to reap, and having less going wrong physically this year has made me even more receptive to the program and it's advantages.

Last year, I found it incredibly difficult to give up both coffee and sweets. I remember practically salivating over the boys peanut butter and jelly sandwiches when I would make their lunches. Last year, I ate rice with agave nectar (which is no longer permissible, for reasons I can get into later), just to cure my need for dessert. This year, I honestly did not have a single craving until Thursday, 5 days into the program! Better yet is that the cravings I am having are easily subdued with a piece of gum! (OK, technically gum is not allowed on the program either. The artificial sweeteners are really, really bad for your digestion. I have been cheating by chewing 2-3 pieces of gum a day. I plan to ask the doctor exactly how bad that is at my next appointment. If it's terrible, I'll have to give that up too.) I have not felt hungry at any point during the last week, and when I look back on my day's log of eating, I have been thinking that I should probably eat a little more! No, my sleep has not improved. For many reasons, I believe that I will always struggle with sleep, but despite sleeping poorly, I already notice that I have tons more energy. I just love this program. I noticed the increase in energy right away, as I did last year. I didn't have this much energy in high school! It's an amazing thing!

I joked that I could be the company's spokesperson, I love it that much! I'm constantly trying to recruit people to join me, not because I want to burden them with my way of thinking, but because I truly believe that everyone, even those who are not experiencing poor health, can benefit from purification. The cleansing enables your body to heal itself, and the three week long strict eating regimen initiates a change in lifestyle that many people seriously need. I'm not just referring to weight either. Yes, many Americans are overweight, but this program is a focus on whole body health. It offers lessons on eating organic, eating meat that is not given hormones or antibiotics, and eating outside of our normal parameters. What I love about those lessons is that they automatically expand into ethics. For me, this is a program on "thoughtful eating." Thinking about what we are putting into our bodies, how it is effecting us, how it is effecting the environment, the economy, and the treatment of the animals who have been sacrificed for our nourishment. There's a lot of disrespect in the food industry - towards the animals, the farmers and all of the other "peons" who make it possible for us to purchase and eat the things we do. I feel strongly about changing that cavalier disregard of life and integrity.

Unlike me, however, Greg did not have a wonderful experience during his first week of purification. He couldn't sleep at all, had terrible headaches, was extremely irritable and felt run down all week. I felt very dismayed at his experience. First of all, it was me who recommended it to him, which carried a bit of guilt for his poor health. I was also hard to spend 10 days (his mood changes started when he gave up coffee 5 days prior to starting the program) with someone who was not my husband. He was so grumpy, I swear he was picking fights with me. Towards the end of the week, I simply stopped talking to him unless he asked me something specifically. Anyone who knows Greg, knows that the words grumpy and irritable are not typical descriptions of him. He felt bad, and I felt sad. On Friday, I was driving to a home visit at work, and I heard a song on the radio. I don't even remember what song it was, but I actually felt like I missed my husband, even though he had the entire week off and spent it with us! I missed joking with him. I missed cuddling with him. I missed just being able to talk to him. As much as I love the purification program, I wanted him to quit so I could have him back. He called the doctor, who told him that people who have the most toxins to shed, feel the worst for the longest period of time during the beginning of the program. It's your body's reaction to the cleanse. Greg didn't want to throw in the towel. Quitting has never been in his blood, so he toughed it out.

Last night, Greg worked night shift. When he got up from his afternoon nap, I could already see a change in him. He was more talkative and joking around like the Greg I know and love. Even so, I was seriously worried about how he would make it through the night feeling the way he had been. When he came home this morning, he greeted me with a smile. I asked how the night was and he said that even during a crazy busy night at the plant, he couldn't remember ever feeling better on night shift! VICTORY! I'm praying that this is the turn-around for him, that his body has released it's toxins and can start repairing now. This morning when he was getting ready for bed, he all but sang the praises of purification and eating right! So, now I'm thinking that I have a cohort for my campaign! It feels good to set things right!