I had a great night sleep last night. The first one since I started the cleanse. I didn’t talk much about this, but starting the second day into the cleanse, I had several nights of insomnia between the hours of 1:30-4:30, usually lasting 2 hrs. It was very frustrating, and I figured it had to do with the cleanse, but I don’t remember having that symptom in the past. After speaking to my colleague, she confirmed that she too had experienced it in her practice. From a Chinese medical perspective, ‘liver time’ is between 1-3am. This is when the liver is most active going through it’s many functions and regenerating. It makes sense that during a cleanse, which is geared for our livers, you may be awake during the livers busy time! Isn’t the body incredible?? Well anyway, it finally passes a few days ago, but I was up with my sick son, so didn’t reap the benefits of a good nights sleep until last night. What a difference!
Breakfast: Mediclear smoothie (strawberry, mango, banana, water). Green tea. Millet-rice cereal with raisins and almond milk.
This morning I stopped at starbucks on my way to work and ordered a venti Zen tea – apparently they’ve switched their Tazo teas to a full leaf tea in a silk tea bag, which is supposed to be more flavorful (and also costs more, ha ha). Anyway, I enjoyed that during a busy morning in the clinic, had some blackberries, strawberries and peach slices for a snack and then for lunch I had leftover spaghetti squash and roasted veggies.
Mid afternoon snack – rice pudding
Dinner - Mediclear drink (I was at work so just mixed it with water – not delicious). Black Bean soup (see previous blog for recipe).
Tonight for a snack I think we’ll have some fresh papaya.
I have enjoyed almond milk so much during this cleanse that I’m definitely switching over. We’ve always used organic soy milk as a family, but recently I’ve become convinced that it’s just too controversial to use just soy, and I can’t be entirely certain that It’s not having a negative impact on my boys, so It’s peace of mind just to make the switch. I will continue to use soy milk for the occasional latte (because it’s creamier and froths well), and for baking. I’m not concerned about using it in small amounts.
Exercise – Yesterday Carlos did a swim and a run, and then another swim this morning, and he said he didn’t feel a negative impact from the detox on his training (although he still feels the symptoms of his cold, but they’re all above the neck, and everything below the neck he said feels great!).
Comment: Looking back at this cleanse, I probably would not do it at the peak of winter. Although technically it’s a great time to do a cleanse because the holidays are so indulgent, from a bigger perspective, in Canada it’s WAY too cold to be eating too many raw veggies and fruits at this time of year – I was cold the entire cleanse! It’s too bad, but the reality is, energetically it’s not great. I had to be creative, and as you’ll have noticed I didn’t eat many (if any) raw salads, but focused more on roasted veggies, soups, and adding veggies to my grains. If you were to pick one time of year to do a cleanse, it is said that end of March/early April is the best time energetically because it goes along with the earth’s changing energy and the shift into Spring, which is a time of cleansing. That being said, some people need it more often, so it’s just important to still adjust the diet according to the season!
My other insight is the following – I was reflecting on 2009 and realized how much stuff I ‘did’. I’ve always been a person that looks ahead, tackles new projects and fulfills my need for creativity and growth. I am thankful to have had a year that fulfilled those needs, but my hopes for 2010 are that I will not ‘do’ as much. I would like to enjoy my accomplishments by not moving on to the next ‘project’ or idea, but rather develop and nurture what already exists, both at home (my family) and professionally. It reminds me of something I once heard - that a person who is not truly thankful for what they already have, cannot be given more in life. This is the year I will count all my blessings, and enjoy them!
Dr. Anna Falkowski HBSc, ND
Naturopathic Doctor & Clinic Director
Vitality for Life Health Center
www.vitalityforlife.ca
Dr. Anna Falkowski HBSc, ND
Naturopathic Doctor, Clinic Director
info@vitalityforlife.ca
www.vitalityforlife.ca
Twitter: @NaturoDoctor
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