raw_intuition
09-19-2007, 09:46 AM
Hi! My name is Cyra and I'm a stay-at-home mom, a wife of five years and mother of a beautiful three year old boy. Let me tell you how I got here...
Last year, I got really serious about losing weight. I read alot of stuff on bodybuilding sites and got everything imaginable from protein powder to BCAA and worked out 6 days a week, three of them with weights to try to get the body I wanted. I lost about 12 pounds. Then I got really tired and I just didn't feel like myself. That little voice inside my brain kept telling me that I needed to change the quality of the food I was eating. I listened and explored vegetarianism for about 6 months, but got sick of tofu and the fake meats and I just dropped it entirely. My weight loss stalled, of course.
Fast forward to earlier this year. In April 2007, my son got the diagnosis of PDD-NOS, a mild form of autism. My world was completely shaken and rocked to it's very foundation. I didn't care about dieting or eating right. I just wanted to do what I could for my son. In doing the research I came across the GFCF diet and wanted to try it because it made sense to me and my female intution told me this was right. Brought it up to my son's developmental pediatrician. He immediately poo-poohed it, saying there was no scientific evidence that this approach worked. My family, (well, hubby's side anyway) thought I was crazy for even considering it) gave me no support on it, so I dropped it, but the thought that it was the right way to go never left. I began slowly reducing his intake of dairy and wheat products despite what anyone else said and now he's making alot of progress. He's still got a ways to go, but he's doing so well now!
Then the other day, a combination of things happened: I read a report that artificial dyes and preservatives in packaged food adversely affects kids with autism and ADD and the studies that have shown that removing items with these things helped these kids tremendously. Then I saw a video report on ABC.com about a 72 year old former Mr. America who still lifts and has no ailments or anything common to his age group. His secret? Plenty 'o' exercise and a diet of fruits, veggies, and nuts. No dairy. No meat. Then a buddy of mine on Sparkpeople, a lady who has battled eating disorders all her life, started finally losing weight and telling us how her unusual cravings have disappeared, how her skin has dramatically improved and how she owed it all to going raw. I mean, how many more hints could the universe have thrown me!! I had to go raw for my own health and for the health of my son. I thoroughly believe that going raw will give my son's body the tools it needs to detox and heal itself and that he will see even more changes. For me, I need to lose weight and keep a healthy heart, as I have hypertension and heart disease in my family. My hubby needs to lose alot of weight too. I believe the raw way of life is the answer for all of us.
So I've ordered Alissa's book and DVD. In the meantime, I'm adding more veggies and fruits to my son's diet slowly. He's not big on veggies. He barely eats them and that's probably part of the problem. I'm going to get a juicer and a dehydrator. I'm just so excited to try all these new recipes out on them and to feel the satisfaction of giving them great food that's really and truly good for them, not just advertised as such. And I won't miss the perpetual slaving over a hot stove either! It's a win-win for all of us.
I'm looking forward to making this journey toward 100% raw foodism. I know it will take years to get there, if we ever get to 100% at all. Even if we only get to 80% raw, I know at that point we'll be healthier, happier people than we could ever be on the standard american fare.
So here's to going raw, one day at a time!
Last year, I got really serious about losing weight. I read alot of stuff on bodybuilding sites and got everything imaginable from protein powder to BCAA and worked out 6 days a week, three of them with weights to try to get the body I wanted. I lost about 12 pounds. Then I got really tired and I just didn't feel like myself. That little voice inside my brain kept telling me that I needed to change the quality of the food I was eating. I listened and explored vegetarianism for about 6 months, but got sick of tofu and the fake meats and I just dropped it entirely. My weight loss stalled, of course.
Fast forward to earlier this year. In April 2007, my son got the diagnosis of PDD-NOS, a mild form of autism. My world was completely shaken and rocked to it's very foundation. I didn't care about dieting or eating right. I just wanted to do what I could for my son. In doing the research I came across the GFCF diet and wanted to try it because it made sense to me and my female intution told me this was right. Brought it up to my son's developmental pediatrician. He immediately poo-poohed it, saying there was no scientific evidence that this approach worked. My family, (well, hubby's side anyway) thought I was crazy for even considering it) gave me no support on it, so I dropped it, but the thought that it was the right way to go never left. I began slowly reducing his intake of dairy and wheat products despite what anyone else said and now he's making alot of progress. He's still got a ways to go, but he's doing so well now!
Then the other day, a combination of things happened: I read a report that artificial dyes and preservatives in packaged food adversely affects kids with autism and ADD and the studies that have shown that removing items with these things helped these kids tremendously. Then I saw a video report on ABC.com about a 72 year old former Mr. America who still lifts and has no ailments or anything common to his age group. His secret? Plenty 'o' exercise and a diet of fruits, veggies, and nuts. No dairy. No meat. Then a buddy of mine on Sparkpeople, a lady who has battled eating disorders all her life, started finally losing weight and telling us how her unusual cravings have disappeared, how her skin has dramatically improved and how she owed it all to going raw. I mean, how many more hints could the universe have thrown me!! I had to go raw for my own health and for the health of my son. I thoroughly believe that going raw will give my son's body the tools it needs to detox and heal itself and that he will see even more changes. For me, I need to lose weight and keep a healthy heart, as I have hypertension and heart disease in my family. My hubby needs to lose alot of weight too. I believe the raw way of life is the answer for all of us.
So I've ordered Alissa's book and DVD. In the meantime, I'm adding more veggies and fruits to my son's diet slowly. He's not big on veggies. He barely eats them and that's probably part of the problem. I'm going to get a juicer and a dehydrator. I'm just so excited to try all these new recipes out on them and to feel the satisfaction of giving them great food that's really and truly good for them, not just advertised as such. And I won't miss the perpetual slaving over a hot stove either! It's a win-win for all of us.
I'm looking forward to making this journey toward 100% raw foodism. I know it will take years to get there, if we ever get to 100% at all. Even if we only get to 80% raw, I know at that point we'll be healthier, happier people than we could ever be on the standard american fare.
So here's to going raw, one day at a time!