Hi Steve,

Thank you for your compliments! I find them hard to receive, only because I'm not always the most gracious at receiving them. In terms of fasting, I mainly read a lot of e-books, or articles on the internet to get a lot of my information. I have also read bits of Shelton as well. What I find really helps is reading real-life accounts of those who have water fasted/are currently water fasting. I usually find commonalities in the detox signs their bodies go through (and ones I've also been through), and then I try to find reliable materials to explain such symptoms. A book that has really helped me on this fast to know what 'symptoms' to expect and what was normal was "Scientific Fasting: The Ancient and Modern Key to Health", by Linda Burrfield Hazzard. The other day, I also found a good article on the science of fasting...on Wikipedia. Who knew. In addition to all of that, my grandmother and great-grandmother were both nurses, and although I am not a nurse (or any medical professional, for that matter), I have a keen interest in how the body works passed down to me. I think that having a basic understanding of how the body works definitely helps. After that, everything that your body does during fasting seems so logical. Also, this may sound a wee bit morbid, but educating myself on diseases such as diabetes (all types), multiple sclerosis, and various cancers definitely helped me to understand how the body works, and how the body attempts to heal itself. I read a lot about this specific conditions because at some point or another in my life, doctors have feared that I suffered from these things. In trying to put the pieces together on my symptoms, I ended up learning a lot about what to do, what to look for, and what happens to in the body when faced with these conditions. When researching treatments for these conditions, it also led me to alternative, natural options as well. I think this has helped to shape my views on fasting.

Another important factor that helped me to understand fasting was nutrition and eating. Please don't point, laugh, or shake your head at me, but having a knowledge of eating "low carb" definitely initiated me into the world of ketosis, glucose/glycogen, and how/when your body uses each as fuel. Sometime ago, I was diagnosed as pre-diabetic, even though my blood tests were pretty good. With the threat of diabetes in my way, I found that eating low carb and low sugar foods dramatically helped me to not only lose weight, but to moderate my blood sugar levels with ease. I know that there can be a lot of processed food involved in the low carb world, especially with all the new low-carb substitutes for the carb-addicted low carbers. However, the part about eating low carb that really appealed and stuck with me was eating as many natural foods as possible to somehow mimic (as much as possible) the way people used to eat, back in the day. Instead of all the fake, high sodium, low carb foods, I was way more into the idea of eating  unprocessed meat, veggies, and fruit-- and some cheese, too. A lot of people think low-carbing is about all these fatty, greasy red meats, creams, cheeses, eggs, bacon, and sugar substitutes, but it doesn't have to be. They think low-carb means no fruit, and although it does the induction period of low-carb (to keep sugar low, so that the body can deplete levels of glycogen left in the body and transition to ketosis), people cannot look past that. You can eventually eat fruit on low-carb, and it is quite recommended, but anyway, I digress.

My point is, researching low-carbing was a stepping stone to me wanting to eat more natural foods, without all the breads, wheat, pasta, and empty carbs. I'm not the biggest bread/pasta fan anyway, and will only eat them drowned in sauce, condiments, or toppings... I'm sure with that statement you can see why a lot of the weight piled on. Hehe. Oddly enough, the idea of low-carbing brought me to the concept of raw food. I hated counting calories, hated counting carbs, wanted to lose weight, and was interested in the "naturalness" of raw fooding. I read several books and articles on that and began eating 80-95% raw for a few months. I felt great on it, and felt way more alive. However, having not yet conquered my emotional ties to processed food, I one day decided to try a slice of pizza. I felt like somehow I'd earned it. Don't ask, it doesn't make any sense. :-) Even though that pizza tasted good, it made me soooooo sick. But I pressed on. Instead of learning my lesson, and leaving cooked/processed foods in the dust,  I slowly increased the amount of processed foods I ate, and there you have it. To make matters worse,  I met the love of my life, and ate without any discrimination, because he made me feel so comfortable in my skin. He didn't seem to care or notice, and I gave up on dieting. That was my reason for losing weight, after all. Vanity. 

"I found that much of my learning process was actually undoing incorrect preconceptions that I have held all my life, but I also see this process as being truly liberating, because it means that I have broken from some of the chains of thought that once restrained me, so if I can do this, anyone can. Having said that, I still have a long way to go, but I am enjoying the journey."

I couldn't have said it better myself. Isn't it a great feeling to be free?! Also, for me, making mistakes was key to where I am today. That, and my voracious desire to research and analyse nearly anything I can think of (that interests me). I spend countless days and nights reading my guts out, and have learned how to weed out the misinformation from the good. I'm serious advocate of doing one's research. Knowledge empowers my spirit, and it builds my intuition. Plus, my analytical nature often ends up with my own thoughts, behaviours, and actions under the microscope. I am always asking why, always trying to rationalize, and always trying to understand myself and others. Analysing also forces me to remain as neutral as possible and examine all sides of the stories. 

Lastly, all of the aforementioned, helps me with my fast. It keeps me going strong, and it gets me so excited. I know that there is a reason for everything, but I especially now know there was a reason for all of my dieting mishaps, mistakes, and failures. It also helps me to come up realistic ideas on how I am going to eat after my fast. This entire process has been amazing to be apart of, and surprisingly very fun. I also think that fasting is a catalyst. Not only has this journey changed my entire outlook, but it has brought about positive change. After I am done my water fast, I'm be moving onto a juice fast. After my juice fast, I'll be moving to raw fruit and veggie smoothies and then eventually to raw fruits and vegetables. During this time, my partner and I are also going to be upping our exercise and taking up some more physical activities to pass our time, instead of walks to local restaurants. Forming good, healthy, long-lasting habits is where it's at. :-)  I do know that 100% raw is just not in my forecast though, so eventually after eating raw for 1-2 months, I will be slowly introducing some cooked veggies and meats (while maintaining a high raw food content). Lifestyle is the name of the game, and so I'd like to live one that doesn't make me feel sick. Funny thing is, this time, I know this isn't a faze. It's all for real.  :-)

Anyway, again, sorry for the length! I guess what I was trying to illustrate is that this whole knowledge about fasting process happened over a course of years, and is still happening. I'm sure you understand where I'm coming from :-)

Peace,

estugrrl