Slowly appearing conditions require slow, steady herbs.
Intuitive Fasting and Cleansing
An intuitive cleansing program or fast follows no specifi c rules. You
comply with your body when it says, “I’m not hungry; I don’t want to eat,
even though it’s mealtime.” An intuitive fast can be for a single meal or
for a day, and it’s up to you to fi nd some way of making it comfortable for
others around you. Do not make the mistake of letting them cook you a
meal and then turning it down! As meals are important social occasions,
only you can decide when skipping one is convenient. Never eat when
you are excessively tired, angry, or upset or when you are feeling
overworked or depressed. Always eat when you are feeling relaxed and
balanced. Some fruit or vegetable juice or light soup can be taken when
you are feeling not quite able to digest but are still in need of food.
One-Day or Three-Day Cleanses
A one-day cleanse can be a gentle introduction to general cleansing. One
day is not usually suffi cient to induce the effects of excessive toxin release;
if you do feel uncomfortable in any way on the night of the cleanse, there
is no need to worry, as you will feel fi ne after eating a meal the next day.
Eating naturally prevents detoxifi cation.
A short detoxifi cation gives the body time to rest, shut down, and do
some repair work. It is usually perfectly safe for anyone to try. Choose a
time when you have to do little or no work, either on the day of the
cleanse itself or the next. Weekends are usually ideal. Choose the same
day or days each month. The mind has a chance to rest and relax as well
as the body, and the detoxifi cation makes eating afterward all the more
pleasurable!
First, drink a glass of pure, organic prune juice or fresh plum juice
followed by a glass of purifi ed water with a little cayenne, apple cider
vinegar, or lemon juice in it and add a teaspoon or more of olive oil in
order to cleanse the toxins from the liver. It can all taste surprisingly
pleasant. You can also drink blood-cleansing teas. Include herbs like nettle
leaf, cleavers leaf, burdock root, and red clover fl ower. Drink lots of
springwater or distilled water to encourage the process. (Diabetics will
not be able to undertake these cleanses.)
The next day, make your fi rst foods fruit, then vegetables, building up
to grains and the heavier proteins toward the end of the day. If you felt
good on this one day, you may want to go on for a further two days,
making it a three-day cleanse.
86 The Complete Home Guide to Herbs, Natural Healing, and Nutrition