Fasting

 Fasting
              If you told me 2 years ago that I could keep from eating for 24 hours I would've laughed and then popped some M&Ms in my mouth to keep my blood sugar stable.  I have not only been able to do 24 hours but, up to 72 hours and some day even longer!
               I have been hypoglycemic since I had my first son so I subscribed heavily to the doctor's recommendation of eating small meals all day to keep my blood sugar stable.  If I missed a meal, I was a basket case and several times I actually passed out.  Now, 23 years later, I have not only been able to miss meals, but, go whole days without needing to eat. When I first heard that fasting could help type 2 diabetes, I couldn't help but be skeptical and I really didn't think it could help with hypoglycemia even though I knew it was just a few steps away from full blown diabetes.  
              I had heard about fasting in college and then several family members suggested some videos by a doctor named Jason Fung who was not only recommending fasting for diabetics but, claimed it was curing it!  My husband has been diabetic for about 7 years, so we were intrigued with an actual cure.  We had been able to maintain his blood glucose numbers on a very strict diet, but a person can only last so long without some tortilla chips every once in a while!  His A1c had been creeping up and we had to do something different.  After some debate, watching many of Dr. Fung's videos, and reading several of his books, we decided to give it a go. 
              Now, I know the mind is powerful, I just didn't realize how much until I decided to not eat between the hours of 7pm until the next morning at 10am. That doesn't sound like much, right?  I didn't think so and besides, I was hardly ever hungry before 10 in the morning.  Usually, I had to force down breakfast so this was going to be super easy.  I was beyond ravenous the first morning!  I barely made it until 10am before I inhaled something.  Unfortunately, I picked the week that I was helping at my church's vacation Bible school so there were a couple of days that I didn't have a chance to eat until noon.  Not my smartest plan.  Because I wasn't used to fasting, I was shaky, weak, irritable, and a little disoriented, which was not the best and honestly, could have been dangerous.  Although I did survive, I do not recommend jumping in so fast, especially if you are hypoglycemic or on medication for type 2 diabetes. 
              After 4 days the shaking and weakness stopped and by the 2nd week I found that fasting until noon was a breeze. I started going longer and was routinely doing 16, 20, and 24-hour fasts.  I did a few 36 hours, but getting past the dinner hour was pretty difficult.  I still had some hang ups about fasting being too stressful on the body, that you needed to take in nutrients every day, and to be honest, I just really like to eat so consequently, I was really just making excuses to be able to eat every day.  It was all mental. Eventually, I did a few 42- and 48-hour fasts and then did a 72 hour.  I was so proud of myself!  I really have found that eating more than one meal a day is a nuisance and I prefer to fast.  
              With the start of the blood sugar issues I was attached to food; however, I can now be spontaneous and I no longer have to worry about becoming diabetic. I used to feel like I was mounting an expedition whenever I’d leave the house with all the food I had to bring.  Even a short trip to town and I was loading food into my purse.  It feels wonderful to pack a bottle of water, my keys and leave without thinking about food.  I have also started losing weight and even though I have more to go it is coming off and that feels great!
              If you are interested in being able to lose weight and gain your freedom back, please let me know via email or phone.  I would be honored to be part of your journey getting back to health!