Taking it back.

Today marks the third day, or the 65.5th hour of my 72 hour juice fast and I feel incredible! It wasn't always a wonderful feeling, at times it was down right hell but I made it through the tough moments and feel better for it.

A few years ago Derrick and I attempted a week long juice fast, definitely not for the faint of heart. We lasted 4 and 5 days respectively and the results were fascinating. It had been a while and recently I have just let life take hold of my body. I realized I needed to take it back, I needed to regain control.

As I sit here sipping my cucumber juice (very refreshing btw) on this beautiful Friday morning I can tell you that Tuesday evening was the last meal I ate. A very yummy home grilled cheeseburger and mixed steamed veggies. I wasn't 100% that I was going to start my fast after that meal but looking back I'm so glad I did.

Wednesday morning I juiced a pineapple (huge mistake for me) and drank it all over the course of the morning and early afternoon. I LOVE pineapple but have a tendency to eat too much which causes my mouth to get numb and tingly. Magnify that times 10 and that was me by Wednesday afternoon. Aside from that I was really motivated, Mind you though, this was when Derrick was still at work and the kids were at school. I knew that after school snacks and dinner were soon to come and I was doing this fast solo. I made a trip to the commissary to get the fixins for Derrick's special spaghetti, which is not a favorite dish of mine. I thought it would ease my cravings for food.

No such luck! I took my tomato, celery, carrot, pear juice upstairs and sulked in my room with the beginnings of a killer headache. By the end of day one and through much of day two that's just something that's going to happen. Endurance though reaps the reward. The headache was caused by all of the toxins leaving my body.

Yesterday was even harder than Wednesday evening. I had a doctor appointment on one end of town and knew I was leaving there with at least one script, had to make a stop at a jeweler on the other side of town then had to run back to my pharmacy (inside Walmart) back across town before going home. Of course, the bulk of my running took place right around lunch time and I swear I passed EVERY stinking fast food restaurant in this town. Places that would never catch my attention did and oh how it sucked!

As we reviewed my lab results and vitals at the docs office I realized my fast was not going to be in vein. I thought I was doing well when I told my doc my blood pressure was down and I hadn't been taking my prescribed medication (because I didn't like the side effects). He then very tough lovingly told me that my 130/88 was still too high and that I was at a 2x greater risk of a heart attack or stroke than someone with a BP of 115/75. This being day two of my fast I can only imagine how high my blood pressure was on day one or even earlier.

The pharmacy was just around the corner so I wasn't bombarded with food distractions. I was in and out and just had to pop back in 45 minutes later to pick 'em up. Now off to the Jewelers to get Derrick's ring repaired. I had just finished a glass of mixed berry/orange juice I had made for the road and I was feeling good. Then I passed Taco Bell, Mc Donalds, Subway, Duncan Donuts, BK, Dairy Queen, Wendy's, quite possibly a Hardy's and maybe even a KFC in addition to all the Mexican restaurants that line just Hwy 17. On any other day I can tell you which places I would actually stop at: Subway and once in a while Taco Bell but yesterday EVERYTHING looked, and worse, smelled uh-may-zing! I made it down 17 without hitting a drive thru, though mind you I was fighting reason the whole time and now I am traveling down Western. I've past all the fast food and now I'm in land of the sit down joints. Ahh look it's Ruby Tues, Chili's Olive Garden, Cracker Barrel, O'Charlie's and then some. Will power where are you now?

In and out of the Jewelers quicker than expected so now I have time to kill as I make my way back to the pharmacy, back past each and every one of the torturous restaurants. I can't tell you where my will power came from because honestly I could probably list all the excuses I had in my head for why I just had to stop in at Wendy's to try their new Asiago Chicken Club- but I didn't. I kept on driving, hungry and now very grumpy. I made my way to the pharmacy with about 15 minutes to kill. I needed a few things for the house, one being butter so I have to walk past the amazing deli that I had never paid any attention to before and continue through the whole store just to grab some butter. Hunger pangs were killing me. I grabbed the other household stuff and made my way to the pharmacy. I watched as 4 techs walked around in what appeared to be circles all the while ignoring the fact that I was in line. What seems like an eternity passes and I'm hungry and now very grumpy too when a tech acknowledged my presence only long enough to tell me that it'll be another 15-20 minutes. I wonder if they saw the smoke coming out of my ears and the whole head spinning deal. I just left.

It was time for me to be home. I was in no mood to be out in public. One more mishap and I might have hurt a person. The feeling of hunger sucks. It makes me a very mean person and it took all I could to control myself. I came home and quickly learned the facebook has no room for me either. I had never noticed how much people talk about food on that darn site.

The rest of the day was full of struggles, the worst was dinner. Melanie has been my biggest cheerleader through this fast and to help out she cooked dinner last night. She threw together a great meal too: teriyaki chicken, steamed broccoli and mashed potatoes. My favorite- mashed potatoes :( This Irish girl loves her potatoes, not eating them, that was a huge test, and I passed. :)

I survived the first two days and woke up this morning feeling fantastic and ready to face day 3. The headache is long gone, I feel a sense of clarity and love the medical benefits of no sodium, processed foods or additional hormones/toxins from food have been washed from my body. I took a look at my blood pressure this morning and it looks even better today: 122/88. I still have a few more points to drop but it sure beats the 140s/90s it used to be. Another added bonus to my 3 day juice fast is the 7 pound weight loss. A few more hours and this fast will be a success!

*A side note for anyone thinking about doing a fast. Do your research. Know why you want to do it and make sure you have moral support. It is TOUGH but if you're doing it for the right reasons, have the dedication and support the reward is so worth the efforts.