ch-ch-ch-ch-changes!

Ah, I love me some old school Bowie, from whom I borrowed my blog title for the day.

For years now I have been working on transitioning into a fruitarian or 100% raw vegan lifstyle, with varying levels of success but never feeling really sure footed in the new way of life.  I know it's still where I'm headed and I know it's what my soul wants, but right now I had to admit that my body wants and needs something else.

The other day I was advising a friend recently diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis on the healing power of a something called The Body Ecology Diet, which is really a lifestyle rather than a quick fix, but for me was nothing short of a miracle 11 years ago, the first time I made the commitment to that lifestyle.  It basically involves eliminating ALL dairy, soy, wheat, all forms of sugar and of course all artificial sweeteners, though Stevia was always ok since it has no bearing on blood sugar.  When I did this upon moving to LA it changed everything about me; I had 10 chronic ailments at the time (everything from REALLY bad asthma requiring e/r visits to vaginitis that never seemed to really go away to horrible acid reflux to getting sick at the drop of a hat) and was a generally snippy, unhappy person. I never knew I had it in me to be otherwise. 6 months after diving into BED land I emerged 40 pounds lighter, feeling like the kid I never was, healthier than anyone I knew and beyond what I even knew was possible. I was reborn. I lived on a modified version of that lifestyle for years quite happily. If I wanted an indulgence I could enjoy that with NO feelings of ill effect whatsoever, as long as I stuck with the basics, and I loved it. I even counseled people going through this very tough adjustment at my old job since it was a prescription for so many ills. Well, when I was talking about this lifestyle in terms of how healing it was and how I still believe it to be so beneficial for anyone not ready for raw bliss, my love said to me "why don't you do that for a while right now then to make the transition into raw easier for you?"  Well, I thought of that a few years ago but I'd feel like such a failure by returning to cooked foods and things like eggs and fish that I'd abandon it and try the fruitarian raw thing again and just swung back and forth, ignoring my body and instincts in favor of unproductive guilt.  This time, when he said that, I felt my entire body perk up when she's been miserable lately.  I've felt many of my old symptoms of imbalance creep up on me lately, and felt sick and tired of feeling sick and tired.

So we talked about it and Brian said he had a feeling that for me to do the BED lifestyle for a while to get back to where I was in terms of strength and balance would be a much better starting point for moving into lowfat raw vegan living.  I agree!  I know some folks have miracle healings when they go right into lowfat raw, including candiasis like mine, but I truly feel I need to return to this healing paradigm in order to make this major life change into 811rv, or close to that even.  Yes, it means eating things like fish and eggs, which I was moving away from, and lots of cooked veg but I have to say that yesterday confirmed our suspicions about my needing this.  My lunch of gently cooked egg yolks with lots of sauteed zucchini was tasty and SOOO satisfying.  I also felt detox symptoms immediately, no 24-48 lag for that as it happens when I'm just a little toxic. Nope, this girl needs to clean house! As with the first time I undertook this program, the worse you feel at first, you more you know it's working; die-off sucks, but then later you get that reborn feeling.  For dinner we shared baked salmon with asparagus. Very tasty and I woke up this morning feeling better than I have for a while.

When you have a major candida overgrowth and are this out of balance, even blended smoothies are too much to digest, but cooked veg and cooked lean protein are more manageable for my body. I also take digestive enzymes and some other supplements to aid the cleansing; triphala, and eventually Paragone (which my body loves) and will use a "zapper" like I did the first time. That's a neat little holistic healing device that works via a 9 volt battery in a little black box with leads and metal rods you hold in each hand for about 45 minutes per day to send a very mild electric current through the surface tissues of the body to literally "zap" buggers and beasties so the body can flush them away.  These little gems can help all sorts of issues, from skin conditions and rashes to feeling a cold coming on.

I'm also going to implement some forms of cardio for getting the blood flowing, sweating out more toxins and cleaning out the lungs.  This week we might hit a roller rink for some fun on wheels! I was a roller addict as a kid and got to be pretty good so that will come back to me with some practice, and what a great way to get cardio, leg and core work! Brian and I could take to the beach for some great outdoor rolling too. :)

Having the full support of my love, who is doing very well in his transition into fruitarianism makes all the difference.  He said not to look at it as going backwards or feeling guilty; this will put me in the perfect state of health and balance to make a nice easy transition to lowfat raw so it will be joyful and empowering. He's right!

It definitely feels strange to be cooking again, but just like last time I embarked on this healing journey I find 7-10 dishes I love that are easy to prepare and just work from there.  And it's hard to go wrong with fresh veg cooked in coconut oil with onions and garlic, or my homemade veggie stew. Once I'm nice and strong inside again, I can digest all the fruit and greens my body wants and get all of my aminos that way. For now, I'll get them via cooked eggs and some fish.  A small sacrifice for the greater good. I know this is the right choice because of how excited I am! Like a surge of electricity going through my body that tells me "yes! this is what we really need right now!"

Like spokes on a wheel, Brian and I are starting from different points but will eventually meet in the middle. ;)