Detox Update and a Celebratory Recipe

I didn't even mention this in 'The view from here' but I really ought to say a bit about the ongoing cleansing process.

Finished Diflucan!

I finished diflucan yesterday (Tuesday - posting this Thursday)! Yay! It's pretty amazing to me that I underwent 30 days of such a strong drug. But it is the only thing that has been shown effective against both strains of yeast that have been taking me over, and I've been taking milk thistle and other liver-supporting herbs throughout, as well as homeopathy. If my mum hadn't suggested the homeopathy and share personal experience with patients having success with that kind of regimen, I don't think I'd have done it (thanks again, Mum!)

What Now?

So, what now? Well, I started on Zeolite yesterday (for heavy metal detox), and also started a rotation of anti-fungal herbs. My tests also gave the information as to which herbs are somewhat effective against one of the yeasts and hardly at all against the other, and the distribution helps me to plan the rotation. This week, it's garlic and cat's claw, so please excuse my breath!

What about adding foods back in? I've been doing Phase 1 for about 6 weeks now and really feel very comfortable with it. I did add maca back in about a week ago (which is Phase 1.5) to help with my thyroid issues and because I love it, and didn't notice any problems. My feeling is that I'll add in Phase 1.5 superfoods before anything else. 

So, my promise to myself was to make a maca/bee pollen fudge to celebrate the end of diflucan. Yesterday I blew that off and was getting ready to renege. But then today I noticed that I felt irritated and jealous when Phil casually ate a whole block of chocolate after lunch, and decided that I needed to keep that promise! So tonight, I put it together. I'll put the recipe at the end of this post, but first a few observations.

Changes in Symptoms - Getting Better!

The anxiety and crankiness that I was experiencing at the beginning of the process have been less and less. I'm so pleased about this, because it helps to show Phil that those two things really were 'die-off' and not just resulting from weight loss. I also recognize that I have to be really careful with how busy I allow myself to get at the moment, because the anxiety is not far from the surface. But I'm not jumping out of my skin at every little thing quite so much. 

Physically, I'm still not feeling strong and energetic, but my appetite is improving, which feels good. I know that there's going to be a 'rebuilding muscle' process when this is all done, and am thinking of taking some yoga to help. 

But my mental energy has been wonderful and clear, and I'm so grateful! I haven't been quite so easily fatigued either. And the 'cranky' tendency has been replaced with a feeling of sweet lovingness and tenderness that I really enjoy hosting!

A wonderful thing to me: when I got my period a couple weeks ago, it felt almost like it used to do, light and almost painless - the cramps and cravings and tension and almost unbearable pain of the last few (they occur less-than-monthly) over the past several months were all gone! And that was even during detox!

One funny thing: I started taking MSM in warm water with lemon and a little stevia a week or two ago, and have found myself absolutely _craving_ this concoction, bittersweet as it is! I'm wanting to take it twice and sometimes three times a day!

Since I know that there is a 'rebuild' process to be undergone but since I'm already in 'cleansing' mode, and additionally since I know that diflucan can be hard on the liver - as can yeasty beasties, for that matter, I am planning on doing a liver cleanse pretty soon. I'll do it according to the Jubb protocol - 14 days of blended foods with three liver/gallbladder flushes in the process. I just haven't quite decided when to start this.

The symptom that has caused me the most discomfort, inconvenience and intense emotional distress throughout has been irregularity/constipation. I've been taking enemas every few days and at the beginning of the cleanse I was taking Yerba Prima's Renew Cleanse for Women, which did absolutely nothing for me - I had to supplement with senna just to keep things moving. Now, though, I'm taking Colosan and together with the enemas have a pretty good purge going on. I am hopeful and intent-ful that the combination of the liver-flushing and seriously repopulating my gut with good bacteria will take care of that horrible problem.

Well, those are my most important observations.

And here's the recipe for my celebratory fudge:

1/2c cacao butter, 

1/2c coconut oil - melt both these together

add 1t stevia powder and a good pinch sea salt

And then I basically added enough dry ingredients so that it held together, including:

2T maca

2T bee pollen (the two stars of the show)

1T lecithin (ground in coffee grinder)

1T glutamine powder

approx. 1c coconut flour

approx. 1c pulp from making nut milk

good shake each of cinnamon and cayenne, vanilla powder

Really yummy! SO satisfying... Maybe just a little too much stevia: Phil thought it tasted sugary!! None whatsoever... If I had mesquite, I'd put a little of that too. This is the kind of dessert I want to specialize in: super-yummy and sometimes a bit decadent but packed with things that are genuinely good for your body.

In my no-sugar energy bar post this week, I'm going to share a recipe that I think is delicious enough to be dessert but is far less fatty and definitely appropriate for everyday use. So please stay tuned!