Day 2: Detoxification and Cleansing Reactions
Detoxification, Cleansing Reactions, Clay Healing, Bentonite Clay, Ginger, Peppermint Tea, Hot/Cool Treatments, Hering’s Law of Cure, Liver Detoxification Pathways
“Better out than in.”
Welcome to Day 2!
(hey… if you are having trouble with that Green Vegetable Juice, check out Frank Ferrente in the video on the right – it’s as hilarious as it is inspiring!)
At this fresh, new point in the Feast you are becoming familiar (or are about to become familiar) first hand, with cleansing reactions.
When you are healing, there are cleansing reactions and healing crises. A cleansing reaction is slightly uncomfortable, is a sign that you are not eliminating fast enough, but is not something to alarmed about. Examples of cleansing reactions are headaches, sluggish energy, minor aches and pains, etc.
A healing crisis is more serious, and we typically see these on water fasts, not Juice Feasts. Healing crises look more like very high fevers, delirium, extreme vomiting or diarrhea. Cleansing reactions require some action on your part to reduce, and are generally mild and few and far between on a Juice Feast.
Healing crises seldom happen on a Juice Feast, because the quantity of juices and our health practices that we employ keep the toxins moving out, reducing the chance of back-up and then a crisis. Dr. Richard Anderson does an excellent job in clarifying what cleansing reactions are, and what to do in the event of some discomfort during any cleanse.
Below is our approach, in order, if we are feeling tough during a cleansing reaction on a Juice Feast. But KEEP IN MIND, a cleansing reaction is the combination of two things: released toxins AND stagnation. A cleansing reaction is stuckness… something is stuck. We want things to FLOW. So here is the approach to get things flowing:
1. Drink extra water. Sometimes elimination slows down because a person is not drinking enough water. Without water the body has no medium to use for removing toxins.
2. Drink fresh ginger juice. Simply take ginger root and put it through the Samson juicer. Put a tablespoon of ginger in a glass of water with some lemon, and drink. Ginger will open the pyloric valve and create a “flushing” effect in the stomach–everything will flush out.
3. Peppermint Tea is great to make, sip slowly, and this will have a settling effect on the stomach. You can also rub peppermint oil on your belly.
4. Skin Brush. This will move lymphatic fluid, as we discussed in the Juice Feasting Prep Course.
5. Take an Enema. Get into the bathroom and move anything out that you may be re-assimilating through the wall of your colon because it has not moved out efficiently enough. Use some warm water, and do several times until the water comes out fairly clear. This can work miracles. Go to Day 4: The Human Digestive System for the download called “Enemas” and complete instructions!
6. Take a Hot/Cool Contrast Shower (description below, and file download today). After you have had that enema, get into the shower and stimulate the flow of lymphatic fluid to make sure that toxins being released are not building up in the lymph. Hot/cool treatments and hydrotherapy are reliable ways to help the body’s eliminative processes.
7. Make a Bentonite Shake. Using liquid bentonite and psyllium, make a shake using at least 1 tablespoon of hydrated bentonite and approximately 1 teaspoon of psyllium. The Bentonite works as an absorbent. This will arrest diarrhea in all cases, as well.
If you do all these things, in this order, there are few physical cleansing reactions that will not respond very, very positively.
The Hot/Cool Shower (Contrast Shower)
This is an excellent practice on any cleansing program, such as a Juice Fast or Juice Feast. It is critical that we support the organs and processes of elimination, and using hot/cold treatment is an excellent and accessible, no-cost way to move lymphatic fluid and blood.
To use hydrotherapy on a Juice Feast, take a hot shower, and at the point in your shower when it is feeling like it is time to get out, begin cranking the water back toward cool, and leave it there for about a minute. Then slowly crank it back toward warm/hot for a minute, then back toward cool for a minute, and so on:
HOT shower
COOL 30 seconds – 1 minute
HOT 30 seconds – 1 minute
COOL 30 seconds – 1 minute
HOT 30 seconds – 1 minute
COOL 30 seconds – 1 minute
HOT 30 seconds – 1 minute
COOL 1 minute and out
Then get out of the shower, ending on cool, which is stimulating. When I do a Juice Feast or other cleanse, I usually do this each time I take a shower as a matter of course, and I have noticed that it invigorates me and is a valuable part of my cleansing reaction/healing crisis minimization, making my life much more pleasant on a cleanse.
==> Important Note on Contrast Showers: Balance the season at the end of your shower. If it is freezing cold outside, then end on luke-warm water, and if the weather outside is blazing hot, definitely end on an energy-building cold rinse!
Juicy Tips: Psyllium-Bentonite Shakes
When making a bentonite shake to arrest loose bowel movements or ease a nauseaus stomach, mix the bentonite in 10 ounces of water first, then add your ground psyllium husks to it.
DO use ground psyllium instead of whole psyllium husks, or you will find it more difficult to swallow. By mixing the bentonite in the water first, then adding the psyllium, you give yourself some extra time to drink your shake before the psyllium makes the whole glass a solid thick mass of goo. Follow up with another 10 ounces of water right after the shake! This works wonders!
In the past few years of coaching, we have only advised Juice Feasters to use psyllium/bentonite shakes in the event of loose bowel movements or a nauseous stomach. For general cleansing and detoxification, you can use these shakes as a practice, but keep in mind that it is not required (as enemas are :) ) With as many Juice Feasting Practices as you are integrating, keep these shakes in perspective - we use them for challenges during a Juice Feast, not on a regular basis during or after the Feast!
Cold Sock Treatment
This is another excellent application of hot/cold therapy to help mitigate the discomfort with detoxification. Basically, this treatment involves a damp cotton sock placed in the freezer until very cold, and placed on the feet with another sock layer of wool socks, then directly into bed. What this does is draw the energy of the body’s attention towards the feet, just the same as if your head were cold during the winter, and your body sent more warm blood to your head to protect it. This treatment is useful if you have a sinus congestion or headache during (or after) the Juice Feast. Please consult the file in the Downloads section below for more detailed information. This is an invaluable skill to know about, and can be used by persons of any age.
Hering’s Law of Cure
Also, I have included below my file on Detoxification, adapted from David Wolfe’s explanation in The Sunfood Diet Success System. Note Hering’s Law of Cure in your own experience:
Hering’s Law of Cure states that all diseases retrace their history during the healing process. Specifically, the following pattern occurs:
1. Healing begins deep within and works its way out.
2. Healing occurs from the head down.
3. Symptoms occur in the reverse order from the way they developed.
Remember, any stomach issues and loose bowel movements you have experienced means that your body is releasing some old, nasty things. We are going to encourage it to do so, while minimizing discomfort. If you have any questions on how to use this valuable information for learning how to fast properly and effectively, please read the downloads, check in on The Green Room, and ask your health professional!
Have a beautiful day!
Theme Music: Bob Marley, “Redemption Song” (1980)
DR. Richard Schulze on Hot/Cool Treatment
Daily CounterThink Cartoon
On Gratitude: The Essential Practice for Happiness and Fulfillment, cultural anthropologist and educator Angeles Arrien shows you how to cultivate the power of deep appreciation so that it becomes a way of life—simply and naturally.
Integrating the newest social science research with stories, prayers, insights, and practices from cultures and traditions spanning the world, Arrien gives you the time-tested wisdom to help you master the art of giving thanks, every day.
Today’s Downloads
Detoxification
by David Rainoshek, M.A.
The major diseases and illnesses are diet related. Detoxification through a raw plant-food diet is the physical path back to perfect health. If diet is ignored, the maximum benefit of other therapies will not be achieved.
There is no magic pill, but there is a magic process. For you, detoxification can be the greatest event of your life. As you become more aware of your body’s true condition, you will intuitively be presented with intelligent plans, renewed strength, and energy with which to retrace the steps back to physical perfection. You will be healed naturally
Liver Detoxification Pathways
by David Rainoshek, M.A.
Inside the liver cells there are sophisticated mechanisms that have evolved over millions of years to break down toxic substances; they are called Liver Detox Pathways. Knowing how to support your Liver Detoxification Pathways is a key to health and longevity, and RIGHT NOW will give you a lot of insight into the role of your Liver in the detoxification aspect of Juice Feasting. This information will also clue you into the importance of a future topic: Glutathione and Detoxification.
Bentonite Clay
by David Rainoshek, M.A.
Bentonite is not necessary during a Juice Feast, but it is nice to have in your Juice Feasting supplies. I mainly advise clients to use psyllium/bentonite shakes when they have had loose stools for several days during a Juice Feast, or if there has been a chronic condition (such as Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) or chronic diarrhea).
I also advise bentonite in water in the event of a sore or sour stomach during a Juice Feast. 1 Tablespoon of hydrated bentonite in a glass of water can do just the trick to calm a sore or acid stomach during a Feast, which often occurs due to Bile Reflux, in which bile from the liver backs up into the stomach, creating a temporary feeling of acidity and soreness.
Finally, hydrated bentonite is good to have in your medicine cabinet in the event of a gastrointestinal illness, and I have often used it to “grab onto” opportunistic agents (such as viruses or bacteria) that are in my gastrointestinal system, to usher them out and get back into balance!
Clay Healing
by David Rainoshek, M.A.
Clay has been used by all mammals, especially humans, for tens of thousands of years. All mammals eat clay. This is an extensive file on the subject, which will lead you to more fascinating study and healthful practice.
The use of volcanic ashes internally is almost older than civilization itself. Primitive tribes of various continents have used various types of clay for conditions of toxicity. Dr. Weston A. Price in his book, “Nutrition and Physical Degeneration:, pages 266-267, stated that in studying diets of certain tribes he examined their knapsacks. Among those examined in the high Andes, among those in Central Africa and among the Aborigines of Australia he reported that some contained balls of clay, a little of which was dissolved in water. Into the clay were dipped morsels of food. The explanation was that this was to prevent “sick stomach”. These people were reported to use the clays for combating dysentery and food infections. In South America he found that the Quetchus Indians, believed to be descendants of the once powerful Incas, were largely vegetarians and he stated, “Immediately before eating, their potatoes are dipped into an aqueous suspension of clay, a procedure which is said to prevent ‘souring in the stomach’.” Yet, only comparatively recently has the white man apparently begun to use clays
Cleansing Reactions
by David Rainoshek, M.A.
“Since antiquity, the wisest and most successful doctors and healers, including Hippocrates himself, knew without doubt that the healing crisis marked an essential step upon the road to recovery of vibrant health. Passing through the healing crisis, and its less intense counterpart – the cleansing reaction – is an indicator that a significantly improved stage of health is being achieved.”
– Richard Anderson, N.D., N.M.D.
A cleansing reaction IS NOT the same as either a dis-ease crisis or a healing crisis. A cleansing reaction is merely a noticeable reaction triggered by too many toxins being released into the bloodstream. It could cause a temporary headache, dizziness, nausea, brain fog, weakness, lack of energy, discharges, sneezing, skin eruption, ringing in the ears, coughing or pain, flickering in the eyes, or a reappearance of other past symptoms.
Cold Sock Treatment
by David Rainoshek, M.A.
This simple safe treatment is utilized during times of detoxification, infection and inflammation to boost the immune system by increasing circulation and white blood cells as well as speeding up healing time. It’s best to start the wet sock treatment on first day of an illness, ideally repeating it for three nights in a row. . . This treatment acts to reflexively increase the circulation and decrease congestion in the upper respiratory passages, head, and throat. It has a sedating action and many patients report that they sleep much better during the treatment. This treatment is also effective for pain relief and increases the healing response during acute infections.
Hot/Cold Treatments
by David Rainoshek, M.A.
This file is included to teach you about the practice of Hot/Cool Contrast Showers as an aid in the elimination process during a Juice Feast (or any cleanse), and to give you some background information on hot/cold therapy.
Hot and cold water send different nerve impulses to the rest of the body. The effects of water on the skin are key to hydrotherapy.
Cold water is stimulating: it makes surface blood vessels constrict, restricting blood flow, and inhibiting the biochemical reactions that cause inflammation. Cold water also sends blood towards the internal organs, helping them to function better.
Hot water is relaxing: it dilates blood vessels, reducing blood pressure, and increasing blood flow to the skin and muscles, easing stiffness. Improved circulation boosts the immune system, helps remove toxic waste products from the body, and sends more oxygen and nutrients into the tissues to repair damage.
Bathing alternately in hot and cold water stimulates the hormonal system, reduces circulatory congestion caused by muscle spasm, relieves inflammation, and balances blood pressure by narrowing and dilating the blood vessels. It also increases our body’s electrical potential, and therefore its ability to receive vibrations or energy, and it stimulates the lymphatic system into activity which encourages efficient waste-clearance.
Great Books
By Raymond Dextreit
These days, more and more people in rapidly growing numbers are aware of the healing properties of food, herb, and water, but as yet, very few know that the earth itself, receiving its vital energies from the sun, air, and waters, is a most powerful healing agent of physical regeneration. Clays, muds, sands–these different forms of earth all participate in life-giving, health-restoring processes. Clay treatment alone is, of course, not enough; it is far more important to establish correct eating habits. However, since the miracle of clay is a healing phenomenon so relatively unknown, it seems necessary to begin this book with a few words on the properties of clay and its uses. May the reader soon come to understand how our earth is our cure.” “In cases of organic disorders, its intense activity eliminates and destroys unhealthy cells and activates the rebuilding of healthy ones”
By Ran Knishinsky
Complete information on this natural and gentle dietary supplement that is effective in treating a wide range of illnesses.
Contains complete, up-to-date information on choosing the appropriate clay and how to use it for specific ailments.
Discusses the science and history of clay ingestion and its nutritional value.
Resource section includes information on where to buy clay supplements and health products.
An exceptional source of minerals, clay has been ingested as a nutritional supplement and detoxifier throughout the world for thousands of years. This book reveals the benefits of that ancient wisdom and the use of clay powders, capsules, or liquid gels to address numerous problems.
Naturally absorbent and extremely gentle on the system, clay can treat ailments affecting digestion, circulation, menstruation, and the liver, skin, and prostate. Clay also remedies symptoms of arthritis, chronic fatigue syndrome, gum diseases, and migraines. The Clay Cure contains complete and up-to-date information on choosing the appropriate type and form of clay, how and when to take it for your specific complaint, the science and history of ingesting clay, and the value of minerals contained in the many varieties of clay.
By Cindy Engles, Ph.D.
This is the first book on a fascinating new field in biology — zoopharmacognosy, or animal self-medication — and its lessons for humans. When Rachel Carson published SILENT SPRING, few people knew the meaning of the word “ecology.” Even fewer people today probably know the meaning of “zoopharmacognosy.” But that is about to change. In WILD HEALTH, Cindy Engel explores the extraordinary range of ways animals keep themselves healthy, carefully separating scientifically verifiable fact from folklore, hard data from daydreams. As with holistic medicine for humans, there turns out to be more fact in folklore than was previously thought.
How do animals keep themselves healthy? They eat plants that have medicinal properties. They select the right foods for a nutritionally balanced diet, often doing a better job of it than humans do. Animals even seek out psychoactive substances — they get drunk on fermented fruit, hallucinate on mushrooms, become euphoric with opium poppies. They also manipulate their own reproduction with plant chemistry, using some plants as aphrodisiacs and others to enhance fertility. WILD HEALTH includes scores of remarkable examples of the ways animals medicate themselves.
+ Desert tortoises will travel miles to mine and eat the calcium needed to keep their shells strong.
+ Monkeys, bears, coatis, and other animals rub citrus oils and pungent resins into their coats as insecticides and antiseptics against insect bites.
+ Chimpanzees swallow hairy leaves folded in a certain way to purge their digestive tracts of parasites.
+ Birds line their nests with plants that protect their chicks from blood-draining mites and lice.
In other words, animals try to keep themselves healthy in many of the same ways humans do; in fact, much of early human medicine, including many practices being revived today as “alternative medicine,” arose through observations of animals. And, as WILD HEALTH, animals still have a lot to teach us. We could use a little more wild health ourselves.
By Michel Abehsera
A complete guide to clay and what it can do for health and beauty, The Healing Power of Clay tells what kind of clay to use, where to get it, and how to use it–simple, do-it-yourself techniques that can be employed at home. Clay is a healer that some use for headaches, allergies, arthritis, cuts, bruises, burns, acne, anemia, and as a deep cleansing mask, shampoo, toothpaste, and as soap.
By Bruce Fife, ND
All natural health treatments, whether they involve dietary changes, vitamin or herbal supplementation, detoxification therapies, or bodywork, focus on removing the disease-causing agents using the body’s own power of healing. This process often brings on a unpleasant reaction known as a “healing crisis.” Unlike a disease crisis (illness) the healing crisis is a sign of improving health. In this book you will learn how to distinguish between a healing crisis and a disease crisis. You will learn how healing works, what to do and what not to do to facilitate healing, and how to cope with unpleasant symptoms until the crisis is over. If you undergo any type of natural healing program, you must be well informed about the symptoms and processes of the healing crisis. This book will guide you through the natural healing process.
By Perry A
What if there was a natural substance to be found on our planet that really would fix what ails you and not harm what’s not broken? In this book, Mother Nature reveals her own secret miracles for healthy living. You’ll discover not only the history of healing clay, but also instructions on using clay for optimal health and beauty today. If you’re ready to place your trust in Mother Earth, instead of the pharmaceutical Industry, then this book, and the fountain of knowledge within its pages, is exactly what you are seeking. Discover why natural Calcium Bentonite Clay is the premier healing clay, and why you should settle for nothing less.
By Dian Buchman, PhD
Using Earth’s most essential resource to heal yourself
Presented in a beautiful package, this authoritative guide from a leading herbalist and health writer offers you practical and scientifically sound methods of healing with the planet’s most abundant and most affordable natural health product–water. The Complete Book of Water Healing includes practical illustrations and step-by-step information on treating everything from children’s ailments to sports injuries with therapeutic baths, steam treatments, hydrotherapy, and more.
By Bruce Fife
We live in a toxic world. Environmental pollution and disease-causing germs assault us continually day after day. Our food is nutrient deficient and our water supply dangerously contaminated. People today are exposed to chemicals in far greater concentrations than were previous generations. Diseases that were rare or unheard of a century ago are now raging upon us like a plague. Millions are dying from diseases that were virtually unknown in the past. Experts tell us that by the time we reach middle age, each one of us will have already been affected by either cancer, cardiovascular disease, or some other serious degenerative condition. Conventional medicine has no sure cure. Drugs, surgery, and radiation treatments can be as dangerous and debilitating as the diseases they attempt to cure. This book outlines the steps you need to take to thoroughly detoxify and cleanse your body from these disease-causing agents. You will also learn how to reduce your toxic exposure and how to strengthen your immune system.
Media, Films, & Documentaries
[Documentary] May i be frank
Ex-addict Frank Ferrante is a 54 year old, 290 pound Sicilian-American from Brooklyn with Hepatitis C and an unquenchable appetite for women, on the look-out for a quick fix. But Frank wants to fall in love one more time before he dies. MAY I BE FRANK documents Ferrante s transformation when he stumbles into the aptly-named vegan Café Gratitude, and over 42 days begins a life-changing journey during which he is coached physically, emotionally and spiritually by three twenty-something staff members on a path of enlightenment. Challenged by years of addiction, fatigue, and family dysfunction, Frank s quest for healthy living is tense and touching. Through Frank s transformation, we witness the powerful effect of change upon one person s life, and the potential we all have to find the most important love of all.
I Am Active
Yoga Camp - Day 2! 30 Days Of Yoga Camp continues. Create space with this full practice. The mantra today is I CREATE. Finish that sentence, get a work out, trim, tone, cultivate balance and stability. Breathe deep and connect to something meaningful. Yoga Camp! Way to show up for yourself.