My Detox Experience - Using Detox to Improve Your Life
Mascari, Brooke. July 23rd, 2024
Detoxification is the process of ingesting foods and incorporating practices that allow our bodies to release toxins from our tissues, kidneys, liver, skin, and gallbladder. Much research shows that regularly performing a detoxing period is important for overall health and health maintenance.
When we detox, we allow our bodies and minds to reset and move back into homeostasis. Detoxing helps remove toxins (Sanskrit for ama) that interfere with our natural healing ability. Providing our body and mind with what they need to heal is very important.
Our modern-day food, water, air, microplastics we ingest from packaged food and beverages, formaldehyde in household furniture, skincare products, hair products, and much more are all potential toxic exposures we come in contact with and our bodies often absorb.
Seasonal changes, work environment, and emotional stressors are also factors that can cause us to store physical and emotional ama.
Performing a detox gives our gut a chance to rest and reset while we nourish our bodies with soft, easy-to-digest foods. Our body and mind can relax, heal, and balance with supportive practices such as meditation and mindful movement.
A detox is incredible at helping us cultivate health and feel good overall. At the beginning of a detox, some challenges can occur. As the body begins to release toxins that have been stored in the body, we can feel lethargic, tired, get headaches, and sometimes feel sore.
In my experience with detoxing, after the first one or two days, those symptoms lessen or go away entirely, leaving you feeling refreshed and light and gradually becoming very energetic. I often begin to notice a brightness in my skin and countenance and with increased clarity of mind.
I have recently completed a two-week-long detoxification process. Here are the specific steps for the detoxification process that I took and how my experience went:
Pre-cleanse
The week before the actual cleanse/detox, I began an internal oil phase, or an “oleation” phase. Oil works well to loosen any toxins from the body and activate natural detox pathways in the body while also supporting healthy elimination. During this time, I also gradually moved into some dietary and lifestyle changes. This included eliminating heavy, dense, cold, sugary, processed foods from my diet, and replacing them with warm, fresh, light, and nourishing foods.
This was the time I gradually lessened my consumption of coffee and caffeine to minimize any potential headaches that are common for regular coffee drinkers. I also upped my consumption of vegetables, grains, broths and soups, cooked beans, and lentils. I also made sure to drink lots of warm lemon water and herbal teas (lots of peppermint tea, as this helped me to stay cool as it is currently the middle of summer) to nourish and hydrate.
Increasing breathing techniques, meditation, self-massage (known as an abhyanga to help loosen buildup or toxins in the muscles/tissues), mindful movement, yoga, journaling, and setting intentions were also a key part of the emotional/mental side of the detox. I wanted to make sure to allow my whole being to benefit from a detoxification period. I believe it is not enough to only detox the body, though it is still beneficial. However, it is profoundly beneficial to also incorporate emotional and mental detox practices. Detoxing the mind will also aid in detoxing the body.
Detoxification
During the detox week, which I began after the prep week, I continued to eat lightly cooked vegetables, grains, broths and soups, cooked beans, and lentils. I also drank warm lemon water every morning and herbal and ginger teas throughout the day. This provided my body with the support, nourishment, and easy digestion needed during the detox phase.
I continued to ingest oils twice daily, once in the morning and once in the evening (oils included a combination of mostly extra virgin olive oil, but also organic flaxseed oil, sesame oil, organic evening primrose oil, algae oil, organic oregano oil, and organic hempseed oil). And added the support of a morning supplement of dandelion root, burdock root, milk thistle seed, artichoke leaf extract, parsley leaf, and organic aloe vera leaf extract. I made sure to ingest every morning and evening, a scoop of healthy fiber that also included prebiotics and probiotics for gut health and support.
In the evening I took a supplement of organic fennel, rhubarb root, organic aloe vera leaf, organic slippery elm bark, and some magnesium.
These ingredients may seem overwhelming; however, many reputable detox kits can be purchased that have many of these ingredients included in them.
I continued these steps and ate/ingested all these foods, oils, and ingredients every morning before breakfast and every evening before dinner. While the fiber and supplements made me feel discomfort in my gut the first two days, after that I began to feel remarkably better. The bloating was gone and an immense lightness of being is the best description for what I began to feel. I felt very energetic and radiant. I tried to be conscious to not overwork my body during this time as I knew my body was still detoxing and didn’t need to be overly exerted, even though I felt an increase in energy.
Sipping ginger, CCF (coriander, cumin, and fennel), and herbal teas throughout the day and whenever my gut felt discomfort at the beginning of the detox phase helped me immensely and also provided quick relief.
Conclusion
As I began to get into the routine of the prep and detox phases, it became easier and was easy to sustain. Having food mostly prepared so all I had to do was warm it up also helped make the detox easier so I never got too hungry and hastily ate something that wouldn't be supportive to the detoxing of my body. I also removed any tempting food and snacks from my home or at least put them far back in the cupboard so they would be “out of sight out of mind.”
Taking several days to support my body, mind, and emotions felt so refreshing and healing to me. I wanted to take some time to document and share this experience with others so other people could also give detoxing a try. It has been wonderfully healing to me, and I know for sure that it could be beneficial for others as well.
If you find yourself in a season where you feel a bit stuck or in need of some change or refreshing, give detoxing a try! Allow yourself to slow down for a couple of weeks and deeply nourish your body and mind.
In this process, I have been surprised at some of the past experiences I had unknowingly suppressed or forgotten that needed to be released and forgiven. I believe the daily journaling and meditation helped me in this way. Fully processing and digesting these experiences in my mind and body has been so rewarding and I feel a tangible difference.
If you have never gone through the process of detox, perhaps take some time to see if it would be right for you, and if it seems right, give it a go! You will most certainly not regret it.
Love and peace on your journey to highest health and wholeness,
Havah Holistic Health
