Confusion Setting In...

[peabody]

I've been 100% raw since the 4th of July, quit smoking over a month ago(about a year of smoking with chew tobacco on and off for several years) am tobacco free now. Stopping smoking was hard but easy when I knew why I was doing it.
I'm super concerned about the amount of weight I am losing (am already a slender fellow). I'm always hungry for the most part, doesn't take long to get my appetite up and running. It doesn't seem like I have a choice when it comes to naps during the day, my body just says to sleep I have no choice, i.e. fatigue. Been doing green smoothies for just over three weeks now, feel good afterwards but not for any sustained amount of time.
I'm afraid that with my symptoms my body/mind will start convincing each other that I'm not getting what I need.
I'm 29 male. I happy that my skin seems to look somewhat better but noticed a paler complexion (already fair skinned). My eyes do appear to have more color and are whiter.
Does detoxing take this long? Is the "your going thru detox" a catch all for why people feel this way?
I just have so many questions without a lot of answers right now. Any help, opinions, suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Don't eat raw meat and do not eat soy or dairy of any kind.

John

[Veganforlife]

Hey John! Yes, detox CAN take that long and longer. You figure you were doing some pretty heavy duty awful stuff to your body and it's gonna take a while to heal and repair. But your body will. Try adding more (good) fat foods like avocados and nuts and coconut oil in your diet.
If you're hungry eat. If you're tired, rest. Listen and learn your body.

[EZ rider]

It took a long time to get toxic and it could take awhile to get detoxed depending on a couple of things.
1) How toxic you were when you went raw.
2) How many toxins you are taking in now that your raw. Going 100% raw can help reduce new toxins. Its kinda like taking two steps forward and one step back if your still eating cooked food. Good luck.

[peabody]

I like the idea of listening more to my body and feel okay if I need to take a nap or eat more. It's saying it for some reason. Curses detoxing... curses!

[revdrcyn]

Hi John,

Don't give up - you can do this! :)

If you have Alissa Cohen's book, LIVING ON LIVE FOOD, read Chapter 17 on detoxing.

I am learning to listen to my body and honor what it needs. Have been sleeping more than usual, and that just has to be okay.

Hang in there -- there is a lot of support on this site!

Blessings,

Cynthia

[Veganforlife]

Oh don't curse detox! Detox is a VERY good thing! It's the first step toward healing!

[SevenKindsOfCookie]

Are you sure that you are eating enough food?
Loosing too much weight, always hungry and sleepy.. sounds to me like you aren't getting enough calories.
It can take a while to get used to eating the large volumes of food that the raw diet usually requires.

[margoss]

congrats on stopping the smoking!! You're body is adjusting to not having all of that garbage in it so it can be tired. Eat when you need it & I agree about increasing the fats for you. It does seem odd to want to eat all of the time in the beginning bc we're told only 3 meals & limit snacks but this is different food. Enjoy the good tasting food. I'm sure it taste better without smoking:D. Maybe your body is saying, "wow, what is this, it's so good!!"
When I first started, I was eating like crazy for several weeks...I'm talking almost non-stop. It concerned me but I was hungry, I was still losing wt & going to the bathroom..looked & felt better. I started having a glass of water first then if I still wanted to eat, I would. sometimes I wouldn't. After a while it subsided. Now, I have about 2 days a week that I'm like this & one day that I don't eat much at all. I go with what my body says.

[MiahTay]

One of the things that helps my hubby is to put chia seeds in his smoothie, it just stays with you longer plus give you some added protein and healthy fats. And they're inexpensive to boot!

Blessings,
Heather