Struggling!!

[belleadonna]

I am really struggling here folks. I eat raw for maybe a day or two and then I am back to eating cooked. I eat when my mouth is hungry but not my stomach. I have the vegan thing down good but I can't get myself away from cooked. I need to lose at least 20 lbs too.

I am trying to do more green smoothies and I bought myself a couple of books to read but books won't help me get my fake appetite under control. Anyone else struggling!??

[lavendarJ]

Yes, I understand where you are... lately I've been having dreams about falafels and been "under the weather" emotionally with everything my twin is going through; I can really feel his energy-it's not good.

Be encouraged and be blessed. I think that everything that you are going through is a normal part of the transition into raw living. A lot of my friends do not agree with this concept, but I have found that these two things have helped me:

Concept #1-Sacrifice
I believe that I was led to raw looking back I can see the pattern, how I went from a really bad SAD to a modified SAD diet (cutting out processed foods) to an even better SAD diet (cutting out the white stuff - flour, sugar, soy, etc) to eating "vegetarian" style to drinking lots of juices to embracing Queen Afua's concepts for health and longevity to where I am now.... on a life long journey into raw living. So what's the sacrifice? The sacrifice for me was beginning eating with a different mindset. There were thing that I mentally struggled with because I thought "this can't really hurt you...it's not like eating a burger"...eventually I adopted the mindset that sacrifice was necessary if I was to be blessed and really grasp all that was meant for me during this raw journey...so basically I came to accept that even though I still had some reservations about certain foods, I was willing to sacrifice what I knew in order to be open to receiving something better from raw living..it has been a blessing...I'm getting close to the 1 year mark...very close and I can say that I have gained a lot through all of this sacrifice.

Concept 2 - Eat because it's good for you
This was another mental conditioning that really helped me. I was so used to eating to please my palate... I mean I wasn't 242 pounds for nothing... I loved being in the kitchen, combining different things, making sauces that required cooking all day... I did it all (for a long time, I'd harbored a secret wish of going to a cooking school and used to love to watch the Food Network channel)...During this raw journey I really had to come to the point of eating because food was good for me and not because the food tasted good. This was hard. But I had kinda started doing this when eating SAD and then embraced it fully when I embraced raw. There were time I had to choke down veggies but I just tried to stay open and continue to read (I love to read and research things) and eventually my mindset changed and I actually began to develop a love for foods I previously thought I hated and would never eat. This was really amazing with tomatoes and beets...I never thought I'd ever eat them and now I buy so many tomatoes and sometimes just eat them with a little olive oil and pepper.

I really hope something here helps because struggling can be difficult. Yet the difficult is only for a season. The one thing I have learned to remind myself is that I should expect to have cravings or longings .... sometimes we get to hard on ourselves for feeling this way..but I just have to remind myself because I'm like I ate a SAD for such a big part of my life, I cannot expect to not ever have a flashback or memory or craving. I know that in time, all things change. There are things that I can look back on now and say "man I used to loved those" and it just stays right there...right now, thinking about those falafels...its more like "man I used to love those and I'd like just one more right now":D I just have to be honest. That's reality. It's all a journey and we have to remember it's a life long journey.

It's the ultimate journey; the journey of a lifetime... you may find that you stumble along the way, but get up and just keep walking. Try to evaluate your current eating patterns...you may need to determine if:

1. Am I eating enough?
This is individual I know. For example, usually (haven't ate much this week due to stress and family issues) I eat what I want. I stopped measuring and calorie counting when I embraced raw. Your body will heal and regulate itself (in terms of weight) as you journey along raw. I simply ate what I wanted - tons of nuts- I lost 40 pounds within the first two months of raw... and then it was more like 3-5 pounds every week with some ocassional higher #'s. I ate plenty of fruits and veggies. Be patient, your body is busy working..

2. How often do I eat?
Some people are able to eat only one or two meals and it works. Again, this is another individual thing. For me, I currently eat every 3 hours and it usually ends up being 6 or 7 small meals a day. Sometimes I eat every 2 house when I eat something really simple (like grabbing a plum or a handful of blueberries for breakfast) It's also important to get in enough water... In the beginning I was drinking a gallon of water (I'd always drank a gallon though even with the SAD)..Now it seems that my body doesn't require as much and through the course of the day I may only drink 1/2 gallon though it can still be a gallon if I'm exercising outside in the heat or something.

The main thing is for you to celebrate you...even in this hour of uncertainty. You have become proactive in your life and are feeding your body with live and life-sustaining food.

Give yourself a big hug and keep on RAWKIN'

Be Blessed!

[belleadonna]

Thanks for the great reply. The encouragement does help. I am an all or nothing person so maybe I am trying to do this too fast. Part of the problem too is that I have alot of processed and cooked food around and it is tempting. My husband is HUGE into the SAD diet so I can't get rid of it all. I am going to use up the stuff that I normally eat and not buy anymore.

I know that I can do this but I am struggling right now.

I do eat enough. TOO MUCH sometimes!! I also eat 6 small meals a day instead of three huge ones.

I will keep trying. I am determined. The spirit is oh so willing :D but the flesh is oh so weak!! :(

[Dj 247]

I found that I did not have to get rid of all the SAD food in my house, but I had to get rid of all my trigger foods. (foods that I could not resist) I still have to fix Sad food for my husband and breakfast, lunch, and snacks for the children I care for. I am not 100% raw yet. I still have a cup of coffee every day.

[boxerfamily]

I am a grazer. I rarely have a "meal". I eat small amounts whenever I am hungry. I do this partly because of my diabetes which is better when I eat this way. The other reason is that it is the way I stay raw.

I carry food with me wherever I go. It may just be a small bag of nuts or pea pods, but I have something. I bring much more if I am going to be away from home for longer periods of time. The key is to not allow yourself to get so hungry that you will reach for the quick fix of processed food.

It does get hard sometimes and if I slip(doesn't happen often) I don't beat myself up over it. I remind myself of how much better I feel and look and then move on.

I hope this helps you. I am relatively new...going on a month raw, but I have been much more successful than anyone thought I would be (even myself) ;)

[belleadonna]

All comments help. I am trying to do more green smoothies to see if this helps my appetite. I have had one for breakfast and dinner. I still had some cooked at lunch but I am trying to use up all of the cooked food that I like and get it out of here and I will not replace it. I would just throw it out but then my husband would throw me out!! :eek: I don't eat most of what he likes anyway because he eats alot of meat, cheese, and eggs. UGH. Those don't tempt me at all. I still have one cup of coffee a day too.

I will get there. I have to.

[boxerfamily]

Maybe you could use the cooked food up on him or just leave it and stop eating it. I know it's kind of passive/aggressive, but he's the one not supporting you buy being angry if you thow out food that isn't good for you. Just a silly suggesstion but it might work.:rolleyes:

[belleadonna]

Well its stuff like Boca Burgers that he doesn't like. But I am going to give it to my friend who wants it and I will find homes for the rest of the stuff. I don't have much left. Some rice cheese and triscuits is about it. I don't like to waste food so I won't throw it away.

I am starting a clean slate today and have gone all raw so far. No more excuses. I will just do the best I can. The green smoothies are really helping alot. They really fill me up. I was suprised and I think that it is helping with the cravings.

Thanks to all for listening to my whining. :)

[Stina]

When I'm struggling, if I go and get a session of colon hydrotherapy, it does just wonders for my Raw appetite. My theory is that it rinses away a lot of the bad bacteria that produces the cravings for unhealthy food. Colonics really are giving my Raw lifestyle some momentum, you know, without having to suffer with that back and forth eating that is so detrimental to my health and sense of well-being.

[belleadonna]

Thanks, but that would be my last resort. Besides that, can't afford it and we live 1 1/2 away from any place that might have that service!! The smoothies are doing the job just fine. Just had a big glass full.

This morning I made a kiwi/banana/strawberry/kale smoothie. It was yummy.