please read: I need help badly!

[bittersweet]

I'm an 18 year old female, and I have been raw since June 2005.
I've had elimination trouble for pretty much as long as I can remember. My belly is almost constantly bloated except for about one day a month when I wake up feeling light and happy and beautiful, my tummy is flat and I have so much energy. That usually lasts only until I eat.
About a year ago (before I was raw or even vegan... I ate a TON of soy, a TON of fish, a TON of apples, and a TON natural peanut butter) I tried cascara sagrada capsules, and was very happy with how much better I felt. I have taken 6-20 (yes, TWENTY) cascara sagrada capsules every night, EVERY DAY since then... and still do. However, I still feel rotten. I want my tummy to be flat all the time, and I want the energy and vitality that I feel on that occasional day.
Currently, my diet is mainly fruit. I eat 4-6 pineapples about five days of the week, and nothing else. Other days IÂ’ll eat fruit in the morning, and then either a TON of soaked seaweed (laver, wakame, or alaria usually) with chickpea miso or Vegit, maybe some tomatoes, a pound or two of carrots, and some cayenne. I also eat spinach sometimes, I make wraps with romaine lettuce leaves, ume plum vinegar, ginger powder, carrots and sprouts sometimes. I eat ground flax or flax crackers once in a while, and rawlifeline pizza if I can afford it. I also get a bottle of flax oil when I can afford it.
I have tried triphala, massive amonts of digestive enzymes, colon cleanse tablets, senna tea, psylium, with no avail.
I think that I practice great food combining: never eating fruit with anything else. I also donÂ’t eat any grains except the buckwheat crust in the rawlifeline pizza. I donÂ’t really drink much water, but with all the fruit IÂ’m never thirsty. Plus, I used to drink tons of water, and that never helped.
What should I do? IÂ’m afraid to stop taking these laxatives, but I donÂ’t want to be plugged up any more than I am. Watermelon, pineapple, dried dates, dried figs, rawlifeline pizza, rawlifeline flax crackers, and seaweed with chickpea miso and ground flax or flax oil are my favorite foods.
Please, someone help!

[Rawkinlocs]

Bittersweet...the first thing I'd like to say is that, your digestive system needs to learn how to work on it's own. It sounds like you are taking waaaay too much Cascara Sagrada and all that other stuff and your body may be dependant on them and actually wanting you to stop so it can relearn how to function on its own!
Sometimes taking all that stuff that's supposed to make you "go" can have a reverse reaction on the body once the body begins to reject it and/or becomes immuned to it.

I also didn't see a lot of mention of greens...definitely want to up those!

I will allow others to come and give you more of advice regarding your eating intake...but I'd definitely consider allowing your body to rest from all those supplements.

I used to be SEVERELY backed up before going raw. Even for a short time after I went raw. I had started taking colon cleansing capsules, doing enemas, etc. and my body had become dependant on those things. I stopped and just focused on eating raw and things improved GREATLY! It may take some time and it may not be comfortable as your body goes through the adjustment period...but it'll be so worth it once your body regains its ability to function on its own!

[raeannasun]

So the capsules are laxatives? Are they natural or something you would buy at the drugstore???

I would recommend stopping the capsules and if they have toxins, let your body be rid of them!!!! If you want a flat tummy after you've detoxed whatever you've kept in your system through these capsules I would recommend exercise!!! If you want to feel regular get a home enema kit or see a colonist! The capsule laxatives just sound really scary to me!!! And health is much more important than vanity!!!! LOL!!! I've never had a flat tummy with my figure. Although I'm thin I would like to have nice abs which is why I frequent my gym now!

[Angelina]

I wish I had the answers, but I go through the same thing with belly bloat. I would lay off the laxatives, colon cleanse tablets, senna tea and pysillium (they can be very irritating to your system), but stick with the triphalla, I just started taking it and I have read so much about its benefits (even long term) and how it will help rebuild and tonify your digestive system.

Maybe cut down on the sugary fruit for awhile, you tend to include a lot of it..pineapples are very sugary and for me even one gets me a bit fuzzy..and then the dates and the figs..so high in sugar. Even natural sugars can bloat you up.

I'm in the same boat..but what I plan to do is just eat salads and cutting back on sugary fruits and including more avocados (great source of fiber) and apples and pears. Give it a try, maybe just changing up your diet to include these foods will help. Definitely keep me posted, I'll be interested to find out if you get any relief. I'll do the same for you. Good luck.

[michigan roman]

people have always said that prune juice or prunes is good . and to me drinking alot of cold pressed oil of some type you like taste of , maybe in warm water , would oil up your gi tract thusly making everything move through it more quickly . maybe a quarter cup oil in 12 oz water twice a day . but i have no medical education , just opinions gained from books so listen to others before me .

[choleblack]

I have a similar problem due to hypothyroid. Number one thing is to stop the laxatives. like others have said they back fire on you & make the problem worse not better. Up your greens a lot! Green smoothies are a great way to get greens in. I swear spinach disapears in a smoothie. You might also want to watch your intake of dried items. I know they are tastey and help with the sweetness craving but they are lacking the water, which means you have to drink more water to off set what was dehydrated out of the fruit.

Hope you feel better soon.

Chole

[aisah]

.... my write-up would be yet another suggestion but it is still up to one to find what works best. Having mentioning that, we sometimes forget how our body works in miraculous ways in healing itself. Yes the body is self-healing. On the simplest surface layer, our body is able to heal when there is a cut on it by producing new body cells so as to prevent major blood-loss and to renew cells. With that said, we can far from imagine how the intelligent body works on the deeper layer.

What I would suggest is :

1. Do a fast. There is more to it then simply abstaining from foods. If you have not done any before, please read up or go under supervision of a certified fast-instructor. Our bodies, in this case, the colon is screaming for attention that it needs rest. When given a rest, the colon will take on a healing process rather than focus on digesting, absorbing and eliminating. Even animals do it. Have you ever noticed that animals in the wild 'lost' their appetites should they not feel well. Even domesticated animals shun food when they do not feel good.

2. Some fasters do the fast with an enema but this is very much to individual. Again it is just a suggestion, you may read up more on it.

3. Postures. We compressed our internal organs, colon in this case, when our postures are bad and that adds on to its sluggishness. Stand tall, lengthen spine and feel the gentle stretch in abdomen to create space for your internal organs.

4. Exercise. Do some stretches, reaching your arms for the sky with a slight arching back. This creates space in your abdomen region and promotes better traffic movements. Do some twisting, it is like wringing a wet cloth to rid of excess water so is twisting your intestines is like wringing toxins out of it. Take up yoga, it does help and I have seen it improving others. In fact any other exercise is good enough. Exercises not only tones your external muscles but the inside organs and muscles too. It improves circulation, not just the blood but the drainage system to rid of toxins. Jumping on the trampoline or skip-rope is good for the intestines.

5. Abdomen massages.

6. After the fast, diet. Maybe it is best to stay away from nuts/oils/raw fatty/raw gourmet foods for the moment. Nuts are hard to digest especially so that your colon is in a depressed state. The last thing you want is to dump more hard-work on your colons. So clean light foods are the best. Fruits are very cleansing. Vegetables are builders for your body.

7. Not only diet is important, chewing of the food thoroughly. Many swallow food even before it is fully completely chewed into bolus form. The stomach and intestines can only digest food in liquid form, never solid. So maybe after the fast it would be good to have more of juices, smoothies, soups etc. This would not only be easy for your digestion but you can incorporate more greens, fruits, fibers into your diet. Also even if you opt to 'drink' your meals, again it should be 'chewed' or 'swishing' around the mouth delicately so as to coat it with your saliva which is the first start of digestion and prepares your stomach by releasing the gastric juices ready to break the liquid food further as it goes down your throat.

So many can be done and you have it. Do not be despair help is always there. We will all be always here to provide you any form of help/encouragement. I wish you nothing but the best.

[advancewithcourage]

Sounds like you might have Candida? You may need to cut out all fruits, carrot juices and other high sugar foods temporarily until your body heals a bit. Also, STRESS! I suffered from stress related digestive disturbances for years that caused me to have great problems with food allergies and candida. Getting rid of my bitterness, overworked lifestyle and household clutter worked wonders for my digestion. Exercise is also essential to keep things moving and to deal with stress.

[lavendarJ]

I want to basically ditto the message to stop cascara sagrada and to try abdominal massages. I know exactly where you are as I have problems with chronic constipation....when food gets "stuck" the bloating starts and doesn't stop... Although you are not thirsty, I would suggest trying to take in 64 ounces of water and observe if you find a difference. Cascara Sagrada is a wonderful herb, I love it because it is not harsh like Senna (in my opinion) and my bowel movements have always been nice and solid (senna gives me violent abdominal contractions and not to mention, the runs). 20 pills a day is toxic. I also encourage you to try your best to find a doctor as soon as possible-the colon is a sensitive organ, as you probably already know, life and death begin there. You must eliminate to rid your body of toxins. Once you have received the okay and your body lets you know that it is okay, try the abdominal massage, it really worked for me (my best friend is a massage therapist and he performed one and I used it a half hour later)...you can also learn to do it yourself because if you massages your stomach area (counterclockwise circular motion) enough you will recognize "lumps" and "rocks" which of course, is fecal matter that is stuck. I highly recommend colon irrigation, research it and talk it over with your health professional...I believe it a necessity for any of us who have consumed the standard american diet and/or have chronic constipation problems... let me know how you are doingno matter what you decide, do your research and make conscious choices

[newyearspromise]

The only way to find out if it's Candida, or something else is probably to go on a fast. When you start eating solids again, you could really pay attention to how each and every food makes you feel. Maybe it is just one of your favorite foods that is doing this to you!

Case in point-

When I first started nursing my daughter, she was this poor, pathetic infant all of the time. She was so underweight that she was not even on the growth charts. One doctor even suggested she might be autistic because she never responded to anyone. I knew that she was just sick.

This went on for 4 months, with me taking her to the ER at LEAST once a week because of excessive vomiting. Finally, we went to the family cabin up in the Sierra Nevada, near Truckee. Grocery stores are not easy to come by up there, so when we ran out of eggs, we ran out and were not able to get them for several days (I was about 50% raw at the time, and ate probably 3 or 4 eggs every morning at breakfast).

Suddenly, my daughter was no longer sick. Suddenly she was eating and gaining weight and sleeping and smiling.

I ate eggs once after that to make SURE that was the cause. With a couple of hours of nursing, she was a sick baby again. I have not eaten eggs since.

Only way to tell is to add one food back into your diet at a time.

I hope you start feeling better soon!!!

[honeybee joy]

I notice when I drink alot I mean ALOT of water, it is smooth sailing. I cannot remember if this started before or after I started adding 1/8 teaspoon of sea salt to a gallon of water or before. I have constipation issues due to my hypothyroidism. I understand what you are feeling. I started drinking coconut water and that seemed to help. I heard that it helps remove toxins from your body.

[monkeyboy]

Hi Everyone,

Yo Bittersweet.....I'm not a doctor, but it seems to me you need to simplify everything your are doing.Stop mix up all this stuff. Streamline.

Read Rawkinlocs post again.


Peace in the Middle East,

M.B.

[solchile76]

you can also learn to do it yourself because if you massages your stomach area (counterclockwise circular motion) enough you will recognize "lumps" and "rocks" which of course, is fecal matter that is stuck.

I agree abdominal massage is a great way to encourage "movement". I just need to correct you here though, the massage should be in a clockwise circular motion. :D

[Revvell]

First thing I notice here is, you exaggerate a LOT. A TON? I doubt it. If you did, you'd be weighing a ton.

Secondly, lighten up. In 6 months you've eaten more TONs then I have in 57 years. Slow down, take a breath, let your body relax. You are obsessing. There's a saying in my work ~ "The money mind's solution is often the problem". You're attempted solutions are the problem in and of itself.

Give your body a rest from the laxatives. Let it do it's job. Have a little patience. Get out walking. Focus on letting go and learn to play with your food. Life is about joy and pleasure. If it's not fun, it's not fundamental and it sounds to me as though you are not having fun. Can you find that somewhere w/in?

Revvell

[bittersweet]

Eating only fruit for five to seven days (IÂ’m on day four) then, IÂ’m going to drink a gallon of water before noon, wait until that passes through my system, and have a small piece of fruit, or a small glass of fresh juice. Then, after noon but before five, IÂ’ll have a vegetable/sea vegetable/miso/oil/nut/seed/avocado (some combination) meal.
How does that sound?

[maraw]

When you eat, try to eat only one food at a time. For example: breakfast - 2 bananas, lunch - 2 avocados, snack - 4 or 5 carrots, dinner - salad greens only, etc. If it is Candida, do you know of a good holistic nutritionist in your area?

Best wishes,
Anna

[Punky]

I notice when I drink alot I mean ALOT of water, it is smooth sailing. I cannot remember if this started before or after I started adding 1/8 teaspoon of sea salt to a gallon of water or before. I have constipation issues due to my hypothyroidism. I understand what you are feeling. I started drinking coconut water and that seemed to help. I heard that it helps remove toxins from your body.


I 2nd the drinking of young coconut water; it really helps clean you out.
It might be awhile before your body balances out so be patient.
I agree with cutting out the laxatives and eating more greens as well. Excercise too. I think green smoothies would be a good addition to your diet
and eat some flax too. Hope you start feeling better soon.

[Punky]

When you eat, try to eat only one food at a time. For example: breakfast - 2 bananas, lunch - 2 avocados, snack - 4 or 5 carrots, dinner - salad greens only, etc. If it is Candida, do you know of a good holistic nutritionist in your area?

Best wishes,
Anna

I agree to stick to a lot of mono meals and simple meals
till you clear up.

[prana]

I tend to agree with Aisah; fasting will help your body regulate itself.

You have said over and over that you eat a TON of the foods you mentioned. Mabye that's the problem. Eating a lot of raw food isn't any better than eating a little bite of the "forbidden" (cooked) foods. Overeating accomplishes nothing.

What about greens? You make no mention of green foods other than seaweed.

Keep it simple!