The Wild Rose Cleanse Continues. But where have all the flours gone?

Its true, I threw in the dish rag and stopped soaking lentils on day ten of twelve of the cleanse due to illness, but this decision came from the realization I needed to listen to my own body (something I was trying to ignore. And it is hard to ignore this when you feel like vomiting everyday). Now I may be a Pitta, but even my stubbornness has its limits. I didn't want to admit it, but this cleanse just wasn't for me.

But I did discover a few things that you may want to consider if you are thinking about this cleanse, or any other cleanse for that matter. The following are the factors which I think made me react the way I did.

1. Dehydration: These herbs were very dehydrating. Dehydration taxes the kidneys, and this can cause nausea as the kidneys dump toxins into the G.I tract. Kat and I also both found that this dehydration actually impeded our elimination (!). I find this odd because according to Ayurveda, cleansing should begin with moistening and oiling the internal organs in a process referred to as "ripening the body for detoxification". This lubrication (through massage, sweating and ingesting butters) helps loosen build-up and toxins.

2. Bile Stimulation: The Biliherb pills made me feel the worst. And while others found it fine on their tummies, I think it is my high heat (Pitta) which caused this reaction. Pitta governs secretions and bile as well as digestion and assimilation, so this may have been overly-stimulation for my body type.

3. Eating Enough: I felt the sickest when I took my supplements with breakfast. And because bile breaks down fat and I was eating fruit for breakfast (no fat) this may have prompted how I felt. I still feel it is only part of the reason I felt sick -- but I definitely suggest anyone taking a bile stimulant take them with a hearty meal.

But it was not just an upset stomach that yielded discovery. It also shed light on my addictions.

Now I thought this no flour, no sugar, no dairy, no fermented and processed food diet would have me daydreaming about lemon gelato and ciabatta buns, but to my surprise I was quite content with my Sunday brunch sans eggs florantine. This restrictive diet actually ousted a much more powerful dependency than one to sugar or carbs... my addiction to eating out.

And I love to eat out. It dates back to the early days of Pure + Simple when my mother and I would eat out at least five days a week (Does this mean I can blame my upbringing?). But while I have tried to cut back now that Ben and I have moved in together, I have to admit we often shrug off making dinner after a long day at work, unenamoured with my plans for steamed veggies and tofu. The idea of peeling carrots and zucchinis is enough to make me lose my appetite on nights like this.

Perhaps its peer pressure. More often than not we get an enticing text to meet up with friends for food or drinks giving us a perfect reason to abandon the boredom of our kitchen. And while some people are social smokers, I'm a social eater. I hardly ever get together with our multi-tasking friends without eating or sipping something. I mean, what isn't more fun over Vietnamese cold rolls?

So during the Wild Rose my social life definitely took a beating as avoiding fermented and processed foods are difficult while dining out because you never know what they put in your sauces and side dishes. My mother dated a chef once who put spoonfuls of sugar in his meat sauces (We won't say which resto he owns). And even the healthiest restaurants which tout organic produce and local ingredients will never measure up to a good home cooked meal because you make it fresh (even high-end restaurants will pre-blanch their vegetables to prep for a night of high volume) and know exactly what is in it. It was definitely a good thing to help me re-examine my habits. But I won't lie and say I wasn't craving conversation and curry at Rangoli.

So if you are thinking of doing a detox, unlike myself - do not have preconceptions before doing it. Kat and I were pretty disappointed to find we, unlike many others did not feel significantly different. But as the Buddhists say: one should not be attached to the outcome. I will confirm though, you definitely find out more about yourself, your body and the changes you can make for the better long term.