Advice on my 38th birthday

[rawpromises]

Sept the 7th is my 38th birthday. Having been on and off of Raw for 2 years now I have always seem to fall back into a sad diet do to mainly emotional reasons. Partly a loss of a parent to cancer and then some other stuff. Having done a lot of emotional work this past year coming to grips with my mothers death I am ready to take care of me again. I have a pattern of doing well on raw and then falling off then finding my self drawn back to raw and life again. I won't beat myself up as to why I have this pattern all I know is that this journey of my life knows that raw is my life. I have the best family support from my hubby and kids and they know I feel my best when I'm raw. Anyhow the advice I need is how to begin again. Since it is my Birthday this Tues I was thinking of giving a gift of a Juice cleanse for two weeks to clean out some of the toxins. It's geared toward a colon type of cleanse using lots of celery and lemons, ginger root and stuff. i got it from a book. I don't know if I can name it here but it has this colon cleanse and then you can cleanse the liver, gallbadder and kidneys as well after doing this cleanse for two weeks. . So do you think this is a good way to get a fresh start or would you go a green smoothie route or just begin to eat raw again. Any thoughts on my gift to myslef. I really need somthing to kick start my 38th year of life that I'm so blessed to be living. Thanks

[Tru]

Hi, I'm not a raw foodist per se' - but overall I eat very healthy in this life, and now I'm doing the 30 day raw challenge (with the main exception of my coffee and almond milk.) If you find that you bounce around but feel best raw, have you ever considered what I found quite easy -- which is -- raw until dinner -- dinner is still heatlhy; but your body has overnight to work out the ingredients and you begin fresh each day. Either that or raw m-f, then raw til dinner on weekends? Maybe something more balanced like that would work longer term. I think when my 30 days is up, I might go raw til dinner. All raw is a bit extreme, and I find - unnatural for me when it comes to dinnertime; I think some nice clean grilled fish or chicken would be a nice accent to a healthy veggie.
Anyway - hope you find something that works out for you that contains a nice healthy balanced diet for you.

[RawTorahKeeper]

Raw Promises,

Just stopping by to wish you a super fabulous birthday! :p;):D

My best advice to you is to begin anew tomorrow and don't look back on the past. We can't change it, but we can learn and grow from it.

If we happen to 'fall off the raw food wagon', don't beat yourself up and drive thru McDonalds, instead, dust yourself off and begin raw again the next meal.

I think sometimes we can be so darn hard on ourselves and set ourselves up with these high expectations that when we do fall, we just give in all the way, then feel guilty about it, and continue eating more unhealthy until the guilt goes away.

You can do this! I know you can. And you have us here on RFT to help and support you. :D

[klomasius]

:D I don't have any advice for you, but I too simply wanted to wish you a HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

[rawpromises]

Thank you so much my wonderful Raw Food Forum members for the advice and well wishes. I have to say when I'm more raw I'm much much clearer in my thoughts and what my journey means each time I do well and when I fail. I know for one thing that I do have a type A personality. I need structure
I need a plan. I haven't learned to just go into the day with raw foods and pick and choose. I know I need somthing like smoothie for breakfast, lunch a salad or so forth. Or for a cleanse to know I'm only going to drink. It's very strange but it is me. I don't know if the structure is a good or bad thing for me. But I do know if I don't have the right food in the house you can Give me a cookie and I'll eat a batch. Not all of the time just during certain times. Mostly that time of the month. I know this about me so this is good. What I don't know is why and how to stop that cycle which leads me to the cookies instead of the apple. What is it the convinces me to eat somthing I know will either start a sprial downward turn, or guilt. Why do I give up on all that is working and feeling well. . So my goal is not only to stay raw for myself and my gift but to learn more and more as to the emotional aspects of what can set me off and how to handle it. I love when I get jazzed on raw and life. Sad food can really suck that from you. I have no idea why I can't stay raw for life. So my gift this 38th b-day is to stay raw and become a much nicer person to myslef with great self talk.

[GlimR]

Wishing you a happy birthday~
Ask Revvell~

[revdrcyn]

Last year I went totally raw about a month before my 48th birthday. I gave myself the gift of Alissa's 30-day plan in LIVING ON LIVE FOOD. My 49th is coming up in a couple of weeks, and the gift keeps giving!

Happy Birthday!

[rawpromises]

Revdrcyn- I hope to be able to follow in your lead. I already have Alissa's first book and am waiting for her second to arrive when it ships. That was another present to myself. Man I'm getting a lot of good stuff this year.:)

[Aleesha Sattva]

Happy Birth Day!!!

[love4life]

happy birthday :d

[RawKnitster]

I lost my Mom to cancer a few years ago. It was impossible to stay raw through her illness. I struggled getting back on raw for a couple years until I finally made it happen. I thought that not wanting to share her fate would make it easier to maintain a healthy diet, but that wasn't how it went. The emotional work has to be done. Then we can move on.

Your 38th B-Day is the perfect place to start. I have no suggestions on what would be the best way to do it. However you choose to do it, make it easy for yourself. Whatever gets you there and keeps you there is the important thing.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!! :)

[rawpromises]

Thanks eveyone for the Birthday wishes. I decided to begin a cleanse of 14days but will see where that takes me. I am focusing on the colon with lots of juices of celery, parsley, ginger and so forth. I found out today that I might have candida. Who knew. Not that I went anywhere to find that out. I just am sure I have issues.I have never had any type of yeast issues at all until recently when I feel like some of what I feel is an issue of candida. After research last night I also learned that the intense itching in my ears could also be candida. Who knew again. So this gave me the start I need to go for the cleanse. Thanks for all the input. I'm taking photos to show my before and after of the cleanse and then again at 30 days. I'm planning on going full raw after the 14 days so I'm considering myself in the 30 day challenge.

RawKnitster- I could not have said that better myself. I thought for sure many times I would stay raw due to what happened to my mother. I was actually her care giver the final months of her life. I could not get over that I could not stay raw seeing what I saw which led to guilt for not being strong enough to do so.. So there were many issues deep down that led me to Sad for sure. I think this is a perfect place for me to begin. Thanks for the encouragement and words. I am also sorry for your loss. It is a hard loss to work though but one I feel led me in so many right directions with her hand and heart from afar.

[Cottonball McFluffy]

Happy belated birthday! :D
I hope you had a very awesome one.