Brittany The Doctor Is In

Found in notes. Dated 02.20.09. Patient: anonymous for their privacy. [pronounced "priv-acy"]

Symptoms

deep-rooted congestion

sore throat

red, itchy, burning eyes

post-nasal drip

slightly warm, maybe 1.2 degrees above average

dryness - mouth, esp.

discharge from eyes

slight mental confusion - as reported

impaired judgement

fatigued

achy

numbness in L arm - pinky/ring finger to elbow

17 hours - 11:00pm

Diagnosis

fever

pink eye

heart attack

Suggestions

bed rest and laughter with bouts of melancholy

I Jumped Off The Bandwagon

I made it to 8 o'clock yesterday night.

I actually wasn't even feeling that bad compared to earlier in the day. Then the part that's kind of hard to explain because it's kind of personal I suppose...

I got to thinking. Thinking about my life in general. Thinking and thinking. Then, as far as this goes, I realized that the way I was going with this cleanse right now wasn't doing myself any favors. Yes, it's not easy, but I was making it all the harder for myself because I'm not in a position to do it correctly. I can't go until 6 or 7pm everyday without eating a meal.

I went to McDonald's and got an ice cream cone. That was it for the night, no bingeing on carbs or anything. At this point, I've decided to work on eating 3 healthy meals a day. For those of you who got this "eating" thing down long ago - kudos. As for me, I'll revisit the cleanse once I've mastered that. :p

Feel free to stone me for quitting.

Also, as for all that other thinking that I did... It led to me running out the door with Jules and Mickelle to see 500 Days of Summer, finally. I loved it!

Day II

Hello, all. Honestly, I don't want to tell how hard this morning was. How horrible I felt. But alas, it looks like I just did. I have to admit I had several thoughts of quitting - just giving in and eating as much sugar as I could handle to make my body feel better. I felt ridiculous. One call later, I was still wavering as to what I wanted to do.

I just wanted a muffin.

But I was curious. How would I feel if I push through this? What will happen? Maybe if I don't pass out it'll be amazing.

Let me note at this point that I am guessing I felt horrible because I hadn't eaten anything from about 9 last night to noon today. This has been one of my biggest problems so far, remembering to eat. It may sound silly, but I'm just not used to this! On the cleanse you have to eat and keep eating. It's my biggest stumbling block.

Today's foods: Breakfast/Lunch: baby carrots & 2 hard-boiled eggs.

Snacks at work: pumpkin seeds & pistachios.

Dinner: chicken breast

Day I

Whew! Are you pumped - it's Day 1!

Actually, no. No, I'm not pumped! I broke a cardinal rule of this cleanse first thing. I skipped breakfast and lunch. I believe eating every 2 hours as outlined feels better than this going until dinner without food thing. (Even if you weren't on a cleanse.) Oops.

I made it through work with some snacks I brought - a lovely vegetable medley of cut carrots, cauliflower, and broccoli along with a can of walnuts. Before long I was dying for a hard boiled egg. dying I even sent out texts to two unnamed individuals jokingly asking them to drop eggs by my work.... I wasn't joking folks!

Immediately after work, I started cooking myself some eggs. I then made a call for help and had this wonderful gentleman come over and cook me some chicken in olive oil. Can I just say, it was delicious? Ate a the chicken, a huge salad and two and half hard boiled eggs until I was stuffed. It showed me that the key really is staying full. That felt so much better.

Phase I

So here's the rundown of what I can eat in Phase I which lasts for 2 weeks.

NO

No diary.

No legumes.

No breads, grains, and cereals.

No fruits (2 exceptions, see below).

No red meat.

No juices or drinks besides water or juiced veggies.

YES

Avocados, and tomatoes.

Fish - limit tuna to 1 can/week

Skinless poultry.

Vegetables

Nuts (but note, not peanuts which are actually in the legume family)

Some details: allowed condiments - vinegar, mustard and vegetable oils (safflower, sunflower, soy, olive, sesame). Herbs and seasonings without sugar or MSG. Balsamic vinegar and olive oil make a good salad dressing. Add garlic, lemon juice, tarragon leaves and pepper.

Phase I is about eating very few carbs. Since you are eating less carbs you can eat more meats and proteins than usual. Some sugar/carb withdrawl is expected as your body adjusts to burning fat for energy. Symptoms: cravings, fatigue, weakness, feeling shaky. That's awesome. I mean, that's just how I want to feel. Whoo! "This is temporary." Easy for you to say, paper!

Jumping in today! If anyone wants to join in, feel free. I know... it's tempting isn't it. ;)

Have I Gone Brain-Missing?

Oh hello little blog! I have come here today to tell you about a crazy venture I have just undertaken and it's called the hyperinsulinemenia and detoxification diet or as I like to call it, the cleanse.

I know, I know.

So let's get over the fact that I'm doing it and just talk about it.

This diet is based on the glycemic index - you eat foods that are lower on the glycemic index and your blood sugar and insulin levels stay more stable with helps maintain a healthy weight, stop sugar cravings and prevents diabetes. Or so it claims. We'll see who has diabetes in the end. jk..... Anyways, it's not about weight loss so much as nutrition. It's timeline - forever. We'll see how it goes though.

I've decided to keep track of how I'm feeling while I'm doing this. Who am I kidding, I'm going to complain about all the food I miss. Oh those cheeseburgers!