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“Should I go one more day? I’m feeling much better now!”

Good question. Let’s say you’ve been on an extended fast for a few days and woke up one morning with a noticeable improvement. Your eyes might be clearer and sharper; your energy level is high; your nasal passages have felt clearer than they’ve been for years. Great! Be sure to CELEBRATE that win (or make plans to celebrate it after you’ve resumed normal eating). Now, it might be tempting to conclude that the fast has been successful and that you can now think about breaking it.

Not so fast! There are at least two reasons why you might want to give the fast at least one more day. The first reason is that you need to VERIFY that what you’re feeling is, indeed, a definite plateau or just a momentary peak in the continuous peak and valley journey of healing. It’s common wisdom that the healing process is often punctuated by days of feeling on top of the world followed by days feeling totally depleted. You don’t want to rush into breaking the fast too early.

Another good reason to take things a little slowly now is simply to give your body the gift of at least another night of healing. Healing happens most optimally at night. Give the body time to heal even more effectively in this new state of health!

“Is it time to break the fast?” Is this real hunger I’m feeling?” Even though I’ve done over a dozen extended water fasts over the years, and have published the books, Fast & Grow Young, and A Clean Cell Never Dies, these are questions for which I still don’t have personally satisfying answers. I know what the official answer is:

“The primary indication that the fast is to be
broken is the return of hunger. All other
indications are secondary. Often, one or more
of these secondary signs are absent when
hunger returns, but one should not refrain
from breaking the fast when there is an
unmistakable demand for food…”

Herbert Shelton, Fast & Grow Youmg

 

But, I’m still at a loss when it comes to recognizing the return of hunger in my own personal experience. I’ve experienced the desire for food; I’ve experienced the need to simply crunch on something (which I then spit out) during a fast. I’ve experienced day dreams about the meals I’ll cook once the fast is done; I’ve experienced an empty morning stomach, but these may be psychological cravings rather than true hunger.

Over the years, I’ve broken fasts for reasons other than it being “the right time.” I’ve broken a fast in order to have enough time to look “healthy” for an upcoming tour I was scheduled to do. I’ve broken a fast because I was simply looking too gaunt and didn’t want to scare the people in the neighborhood.

I’m currently on a 10 day fast started with the goal of reducing my parasite load and refreshing my liver. So, I did a little research to get some input from other fasters to add to my list of signs of when the body’s detoxifcation is complete and, therefore, when to break a fast.

▪ pink tongue

▪  sweet breath

▪  low body temperature, returns to normal.

▪  elevated blood pressure and pulse return to normal.

▪  elevated blood sugar returns to normal.

▪  skin reactions become normal

▪  bad taste in the mouth goes away

▪  excess saliva production becomes normal.

▪  eyes become bright and eye sight improves.

▪  stool loses its odor.

▪  urine becomes light, clear and almost white in color.

▪  circulation improves (warm hands and feet; pink nails)

▪  improved feelings of lightness, well-being, peace, clarity of thought, optimism, cheer and contentment (detoxification is emotional, too)

▪  increased conscious union with spirit and ones ancestors (detoxifcation is spiritual, too)

▪  dreams are more vivid and better remembered

▪  heightened sense of purpose and meaning

▪  thought processes are clear and faster. Ideas and inspiration are abundant.

Sources: Dr. Nana Kwaku Opare and Ama Opare (Patch.com); 

Next, how to recognize real hunger:

As I move into DAY 3 of my current extended, water-only fast, I’m chronicling some of the thoughts I use to keep myself on track. Here, therefore, are some of my self-talk motivation:

▪ “The colon lining can’t heal optimally until it’s clean. As long as there is still residue and gunk and impacted feces in the colon, it can’t really heal. Once the water from the colonic (or salt water wash) is clear, then I know the healing has begun!”

▪ “Don’t stop until you see the whites of the eyes! I’m working on cleansing the liver. Yellow eyes are often a symptom of liver toxicity. I’ve at least got to see this through long enough to allow the liver to purge and rejuvenate.”

▪ “The food will still be there tomorrow! (And it will taste even better!”)

▪ “Any novice can fast for 24 hours–even by accident! Sometimes, if you’re really into a project, or if you’re on a long trip, you can find that 24 hours can go by rather quickly. A day fast is for sissies! If you really want to stand out from the crowd, you’ve got to do at least 48 hours!”

▪ IN or OUT? You decide. Choose the one that most describes you:

“I know myself. If I stay inside, I’ll get bored and restless and start opening up cabinets and refrigerator doors looking for something eat. I’d better get out of the house! I can run a few miles, hang out in a park or on the beach, or drive around. It’ll help pass the time!” Therefore, GET OUT!!

OR

“I know myself. Once I go outside or get in the car, I’ll end up passing something that triggers my food craving, or stopping somewhere where there’s food for sale. I’d better stay at home where I can’t get into any trouble!” Therefore, STAY IN!!!

▪ “Now that I’ve noticed some progress after the liver flush, or a deep enema release, now is the precise time to sleep on it and let the body’s healing code work on it overnight–that’s when healing happens. I can do this, just a few more hours until bedtime!”

 

DAY 3
“Hold on for the healing!” It’s still too early for any real healing to happen. I’ve got to “wait for the wow,” or else it will all be for naught. That wow usually happens after a good night’s sleep when eyes open and I notice something significantly different about my bodily experience–either vital energy, eyesight clarity, feeling of wellbeing or something markedly different from the days before.

DAY 4

Not feeling hungry anymore. I need to do this until at least Phase II (p (per “Stages of Fasting“) er “Stages of Fasting“) is complete.

Hey, if I count NIGHTS slept instead of when each 24 hour period officially ends, I come with Wed,Thu,Fri,Sat,Sun–that’s FIVE days instead of four! Woo hoo! Mental gymnasics, for sure, but it helps! After all, it’s during the nights that the true healing takes place!

DAY 5

Having frequent but small watery bowel releases. Interesting. As researched, documented and predicted in  (“Stages of Fasting“) , this stage I’m in–Stage 2: 3-7 days–is when the colon starts to release impacted fecal matter. I speculate that’s exactly what’s happening, but in this case, the worms are being autolyzed and liquified (that accounts for the strong die-off smell). Have to push through and get beyond this! Can’t stop now! This is why I’m doing this!

Plus, there are people counting on me. I’ve got to show that it can be done. I’ve got to be the example. I can’t write the book, Worm War, if I don’t win the war!

I’ve been doing a flush–commonly known as the Hulda Clark liver flush–every few months. The purpose of the flush is to rid the gall bladder AND liver of gallstones (i.e. without surgery). I’ve had success over the years, and have seen the white, tan and green objects that the flush releases from the body.

This time, however, I had much greater liquid and solid releases on “morning two,” and a reduction in 4pound reduction in weight in this one flush! Why was this flush more successful than previous ones? I’ve been giving it some thought, and these are my ideas:

▪ I lay in the fetal position on my right side as opposed to my back.

▪ I fasted for a full 24 hours before the flush and did a coffee enema the morning of DAY 1

▪ I had been doing more frequent castor oil therapy in the week leading up to it.

▪ While I hadn’t specifically planned doing the liver flush until just the day prior, it turns out that I was doing a bit of juicing (with apples) in the few days leading up to the liver flush.

▪ It’s also possible that the months of Mimosa Pudica (parasite herb) have been successful in relieving the parasitic load on the liver (I have been noticing a gradual improvement in everything from eyesight to libido to fingernail growth) perhaps proving what Hulda Clark is reported to have said that “you can’t clean the liver if it has living parasites.”

▪ I also read (see recommended site below) that teeth and gum issues can adversely affect the liver’s effectiveness. So, the fact that I had been doing oral irrigation (H2O2, clove oil, DMSO) for weeks leading up to the flush, may also have contributed.

The power of having accurate information and following it precisely
While I’m sure all of these were contributing factors to the flush’s success, the thing that sticks in my mind is being in the fetal position on my right side. That’s the one thing I did differently physically, and could feel some gurgling within 5 minutes of laying on my side after drinking the olive oil/grapefruit mixture.

I’ll be adding a blog post on the entire process that emphasizes points I think are important. For now, however, rather than recreate the wheel, I’ll simply refer you to one of the best overviews of the Hulda Clark Liver flush  (what, why and how) I’ve come across: https://breathing.com/blogs/internal-cleansing/liver-cleanse!

Also, check out this great interview with Andreas Moritz, author of The Amazing Liver and Gallbladder Flush