At 24, I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. I felt like my body betrayed me.
It took years before I accepted that it was really me, betraying my own body.
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Dr. August Dunning's channel about Dry Fasting was recommended to me and when I first heard it, I thought…the benefits sound great- almost too good to be true, but that no one can live that long without ingesting water, so I put it on the back shelf of my mind because it sounded nuts.
I revisited it some months later, at which point my right hand was well and infuriatingly half-numb and I could not feel cold or hot, soft or rough textures.
I could still write, thankfully. But I was miserable.
I was watching the first & second earliest videos on the channel when he mentioned, you're not supposed to be able to heal neurological tissue, and yet after his trial run of testing a dry fast, on day 3, he got his sense of smell back (something that he'd gone years and years without, as a consequence of working with harsh components/solvents).
When he mentioned healing neurological damage, I was determined to try it.
I wanted my hand back. I was really depressed and desperate.
I watched more videos and took notes.
I loaded up on electrolytes the day before my first attempt.
I decided to try for two days. I thought that was reasonable.
Day One: Annoying. Still felt hunger pangs, body was telling me to feed it. Pushed through.
Day Two: Hunger pangs gone, really. Easier. Kept busy and didn't allow myself to think about food or drinks. Soaked in tub with Epsom salt for an hour.
Day Three rolls around and I'm super happy that I reached my goal but I thought, hey, I still feel fine? Think I'll keep going. Why not. Did another tub soak.
Day Four: My mom thinks I'm crazy. My husband is worried. I still feel fine and am absolutely amazed. This is day four of drinking no water and I'm still here, feeling fine. I said I think I can go even longer. Did another bath hour soak.
Day Five: (this is the day I end my first DFast attempt) I more than doubled my goal, I was starting to feel really bored with dry fasting. I missed flavors. The past five days, I slept better than I had in years; deep refreshing sleep like I hadn't experienced since I was a kid. I was soaking in the tub, in magnesium flakes, longer than I had the other days and I decided to end my fast.
Loaded back up on electrolytes, drank a vitamin/mineral drink (Tangy Tangerine supplement mixed with Topo Chico sparkling water) and ate some salmon and steamed broccoli.
Man, that first drink and bit of food after the fast is the best I ever tasted 😅 Such flavor, almost overpowering flavor.
My nose was like a super power during, and well after my fast. I could smell everything and I remember thinking, is this how dogs feel all the time? Haha. Strong nose was great…and also awful. The city air was gross, walking past bathrooms was gross, and taking my kid to a kids bouncy place nearly did me in (smell-wise).
About two days after I exited the fast, I picked up a drink and it felt COLD. My right hand was registering that something was cold.
I held ice cubes with it, smiling the biggest dumb smile and feeling absolutely ecstatic over it.
I could feel cozy blankets and my dog's soft ears again when I pet her.
I wanted to go to every MS page I belonged to and shout from the rooftops at what I'd done, and what it did for me and what it might do for others who were feeling as miserable with their symptoms as I did.
I was practically buzzing and just needed to tell people.
But it's hard to get someone to even think about this, because like me at the beginning, you hear the no water for 3 days and your brain balks because it's been told its whole life, and conditioned its whole life, to think that what I did is impossible.
Well, it's definitely not, seeing as I would've keeled over at least 20 times by now. 😉
Anyway, I know this was a long post but that is my true accounting of my first Dry Fast. I am now optimistic about the future like I haven't really been, since my diagnosis over a decade ago.
@SunWeatherMan I moved to Christian God Country out here in Idaho. My little farm, and the farms surrounding will be just fine. When we have to create No-Go zones, we will.
@JebraFaushay No regrets being a mom here. That being said, I'd rather people who don't want kids stay childless. Their potential child doesn't deserve the resentment.
@LibertyCappy My elderly neighbor was unable to garden last year. He offered my family access to the plot. He was so happy just to see a garden there, and I in turn appreciated how much work it is to grow food. There are challenges I think most people don't realize. It is NOT easy!