What is Happening In Your Body During Week 1
Intelligent deep tissue cleansing per this 30 day cleanse, sets into motion a chain of events that will have effects on the body all the way down to the cellular level. Here is a little “Cleansing 101” to ensure we all understand the mechanics behind this program:
By abstaining from very acidic, dense foods and limiting the quantity of food that we intake, we create an environment whereby the system can catch up on the accumulated waste and remove it through the eliminative organs (primarily the colon, skin, liver, kidneys, lungs and lymph system). By flooding our body with alkaline juices and raw vegetable salads, we drench and magnetize the accumulated waste out of the cells. The organic hydration reconstitutes the dry waste and the alkalinity magnetizes it. It is only once this “awakening” of the waste has occurred that it can be released from the cells and tissues via the eliminative organs and channels. By abstaining from the intake of acidic foods we are putting a stop to the accumulation of waste. Therefore, we’re doing a BIG 3-tiered sweep this month – we’re 1) preventing the build-up of new waste matter, 2) magnetizing out old waste matter, and 3) we are giving the body a chance to actually do what it’s been dying to do since we started clogging it – remove the obstruction to it’s life force flow!
During this week you can expect lots of “motion” as you release waste into the body’s pathways. This process is not going to be quiet and uneventful! The intestine, the lymph, and the skin will all be reacting to this opportunity to begin ridding themselves of waste matter. Like forgotten engines, they will start to hum and come to life. This will be even more apparent if you are further stimulating them with activities like rebounding, body brushing, and lymph drainage. For more on the sequence of events and movement that is happening within the body, please read the blog “A Salad In Motion Stays in Motion.”
Possible Week 1 Symptoms
You can definitely expect a range of detox symptoms throughout the cleansing process and particularly in the first week. Remember that this is all part of the process. These symptoms can come up at different times depending on your health and diet history. Fortunately, they do not tend to stick around for long but rather come and go as deeper levels of waste are awakened for release. If you are applying the cleansing support tools (properly administered colonics and enemas), you should not find the symptoms interfere much or for very long.
If you are experiencing some discomfort during this first week it is not abnormal and actually a very natural, expected part of the process. These symptoms are simply the movement of poisonous matter out of the body, which is desirable! The poison that is leaving is what has been holding you back from your health, beauty and peace.
Symptoms arise and subside as the body cleanses itself. The more old waste and toxicity you are holding in your cells and tissues the more acute symptoms you can expect. Expect the early stages to be more rife with symptoms – know that it is essential as you move from one state of being to another; the symptoms come up when the waste is awakened and moving toward elimination. Once eliminated, they disappear.
Symptoms you may experience include:
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You may find that your mid-section expands momentarily. The expansion of your belly is simply the waste matter going from its dormant, dry, shriveled state where it is very small to being reconstituted. Like reconstituted dried fruit, the matter is going to expand. The matter cannot leave in its dried out state. It can only leave once it has been reconstituted so this is an essential expansion that you should not be disappointed by. It is telling you that you have done the essential first step – “teeing up” this waste for release! It usually takes about 3-4 days for the waste to be reconstituted to this degree. So if you’re seeing an expanded midsection around this time, everything is in order. This will typically be followed by a strong bowel elimination on your own, resulting in a distinctly flatter stomach by day seven or eight. If you do not have a few strong bowel movements, colonics and enemas can remove what you have drawn up, effortlessly.
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Your bowel movements may be a bit more unpredictable in form. Get an “A” for content and any grade for form because at this stage it’s the content that matters (no pun intended). Because of the new movement in the body as it is magnetizing out and reconstituting old waste, the body is going to release anything and everything. Don’t look at your loose or hard emissions as an indicator for whether or not you are on the right track. If it’s coming out, no matter how it looks, that is a good thing at this point. If, on the other hand, you are constipated, you may need the assistance of a good colon hydrotherapist (see recommended list) or the help of several home enemas (we like the Cara Brand Enema Kit) to get things moving out.
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You may experience flu-like symptoms, headaches, and skin eruptions. This is simply the movement of old waste matter through the system. When you utilize all of the detoxification aids at your disposal (bowel cleansing through enemas or colonics, sweating, dry brushing, rebounding, etc) you can greatly reduce these symptoms.
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The Nervous System runs right through the center of your intestine so you may also experience emotional symptoms as you cleanse. You may find emotions surfacing that you didn’t expect or old memories coming up. If you were feeling numb or depressed prior to the cleanse you might feel much more emotionally stirred. Just like suppressing physical symptoms, if you’ve been one to suppress your emotions or shove memories out of sight, you are more likely to have to come face-to-face with these emotions and memories. If you’re one who processes life experiences (good and bad) as they occur, this stage will probably be more smooth. If you have a more rocky experience, please keep in mind that this is perfectly normal and such an important part of the detox process. While it can be unsettling, we encourage you to take this opportunity to release these stored up emotions finally. Just like the accumulated waste, this emotional residue stands between you and your full sovereignty – your wholeness.
All of our experiences are stored in our body. When food is used to suppress feelings those feelings tend to come up along with the old residue of the food that was used to suppress them. Overeating can shove emotions deeper into the body making it appear that they are not there anymore. Although these emotions are no longer apparent on the surface, they are still there, buried in your subconscious and unconscious minds. -
You may sweat more than usual (especially at night) and your sweat may have a more offensive smell than normal. This is toxic waste leaving your body through your skin – another reason to celebrate! This is definitely NOT the time to suppress the lymphatic system with toxic deodorants or mask the odor with toxic perfumes! Do not use an “antiperspirant” at this time as it completely defeats the purpose of cleansing by blocking the release of toxins through your underarms! Make sure you use only the most natural deodorants to mask the smell if you need to. Making a paste of coconut oil and a little baking soda to put on your underarms is a highly effective and completely natural deodorant. If you can get away with washing under your arms with a natural soap and water only, this is the time to do it.
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Your breath might be more pungent. Again, this is just your body releasing the stored toxicity in your body through your mouth. Just make sure you are brushing your teeth with a natural toothpaste so you are not re-toxifying the body with the toothpaste you are using (we like Tate’s Miracle Natural Toothpaste and Tonya Zavasta’s Oral Balm).You can also use an herbal mouthwash like Original HPM or touch up mid-day with a chlorophyll or essential oil-based mouth spray if desired.
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Any weaknesses that you already have within the body (especially those that you have been suppressing) may flare. For example, if you have experienced many bronchial infections in the past, these may come up for you when you cleanse. Although this could potentially be disconcerting, because we understand how the process works, we can rest assured that we are supporting the body by allowing these issues to come to the surface and exit.
As different symptoms present themselves, remind yourself of all that you have taken into your body throughout the years and be thankful for the opportunity to release this poisonous matter. This toxicity is the root of almost all disease! Getting it out is merely a temporary discomfort in return for a fuller, more vibrant life! You will begin feeling better and better each day as the matter awakens and then is removed from your system.
Colon Cleansing During Week 1
If you are new to this lifestyle, you will want to wait until the third to fifth day of this initial week before you have your first colonic or administer your first enema. Waiting a few days is helpful because you want to make sure you give your body enough time to magnetize and reconstitute enough waste. Otherwise there will be nothing to release. People who eat “normally” do not tend to have effective colonics. It’s the awakening process that makes colonics and enemas powerful. This explains why one cannot get away with using colonics and enemas to “clean up” one’s bad diet.
Do not eat three hours prior to your colonic and consume only water and/or raw vegetable juice before your session. You may want to juice immediately after your colonic as well. For those of you who incorporate juicing daily and colonics regularly, the timing of your first colonic is not as important and can happen at any time during the first week.
While following the Extremely Green Detox, you can expect a well-administered colonic to release unbelievable amounts of waste from your system. If you do not have access to a professional colon hydrotherapist or you cannot see one for whatever reason, self-administered gravity enemas with the Cara enema kit (or a 2-quart “hanging bag” enema like it) are the next best option. However, you will need to do these more frequently because they generally do not release nearly as much as a well-administered gravity fed, closed-system colonics. In our experience, enemas 2-3 times a week or colonics once a week are appropriate throughout the Cleanse. We encourage you to tune into your system though and intuit the right cleanse-support protocol for you.
*Access our Extremely Green Detox Facebook group here.