Detox to Heal & Repair

I feel the need to defy time, so I'm plunging into the world of holistic rejuvenation with enthusiasm. It's taken a few years to be able to plan a proper detox. It used to be a regular annual or bi-annual event where I would garner all my willpower to stop addictive behaviour, which included a ritual of a coffee or two per day, chocolate at least once a day, and then extra things like the occasional cocktail, chips, popcorn and so on. These are not required nutritional foods to keep us healthy, positive, and well-balanced; they are food drugs that make us feel good instantaneously, loaded with unhealthy fats and sugars.

Over the past few years, I've moved homes from the US to Australia, I've changed career paths and experienced the death of a close family member. It was a challenging few years, but also at the back of my mind, I wanted to plan for a cleanse or detox, partly to regain some sense of control, and to feel my body and mind in its natural state without the uppers and downers: Coffee and alcohol being uppers and popcorn and chips being downers. I'm settled now in a new home, building new opportunities, making new friends, and ready to focus my will on eliminating non-essential foods and drinks from my diet.

Last week I stopped drinking a soy cappuccino every morning, stopped eating organic chocolate, and grains, which included bread and pasta. Instead, I'm buying fruit and vegetables for smoothies and juices, eating beans for added protein, with superfoods like Maca powder, Spirulina, and MSM. And after only a week of juicing, steaming and baking vegetables, eating nuts and seeds, I've regained energy, feel lighter on my feet, my stomach is less bloated, and I generally feel happier. Initially, some side effects included emotional sensitivity and moments of lethargy, but it allowed me to tune in with the way my body felt. As I age, I want to be more aware of the limitations of my physical body. I found that amping it up with caffeine or sugars produced only short-term results.

Heal & Repair

I don't know as yet how long my detox to heal and repair will continue, as I do think grains are essential, and also eating for fun, so I'll start to introduce grains slowly, and I might not be able to resist a soy cap forever, but breaks from addictions have a positive self-empowering effect on the psyche. When considering a detox to reboot your system, plan it as an event and let the people around you know. As I said, it's not forever, that wouldn't be sustainable, but it does allow your body to be in its natural healing mode, which, if practised twice or three times a year, will culminate in some great self-awareness and healthy dietary habits.