Admittedly, this first month has been eye opening and somewhat amazing. As I progress on my journey of wellness, I am learning so much and I'm feeling a great deal better. Oh, it's not all peaches and roses but I wouldn't trade this experience for the world because each day has been a gift.
The first week had it's ups and downs. I was doing well and feeling better, however, on the second day I was playing around with making potato chips for my husband's lunch and as usual I nibbled a few raw potato pieces. Now there's nothing wrong with that but they do tell you to stay away from night shade vegetables when you have RA. That evening I was feeling more pain and inflammation. Of course, my first thought is that this juicing isn't working. Now remember this is only the second day so how could I possibly judge this quickly? Then I remembered the potato and blamed it on that. Later on I blamed it on the weather. My mind was in the wrong place. I had a bad attitude. So I started my pity party practices and curled up on the couch. Well, I tried to curl up on the couch but my shoulder and back were giving me fits too. I was uncomfortable and I didn't sleep well that night.
The next morning I had a hard time getting out of bed and I was feeling some old aches and pains. They weren't as bad but it was painful and with the pain came the depression. I felt so bad that I didn't want to start up the juicer. I didn't want to clean and cut vegetables because of my discomfort and depression. Like I said, I was having a pity party. Just me, myself and I. So I spent the day moaning and groaning. That night I had a nice talk with myself. Well, someone had to and I probably wouldn't have listened to anyone else. I decided this day was a wasted day. I didn't do anything to help myself and I had to either buck up and carry on or languish in my depression. Well, I was exhausted and forced myself to lay down and try to get some sleep. One of my usual nights with a cat nap here and there.
By morning, I felt defeated and I was still in a state of depression but I decided I wasn't going to let this illness take me down any more. With some difficulty I moseyed to the kitchen and started making my green juice for the day followed by my ginger tea. As the day progressed I started to feel a little better again. That evening I slept better too.
So now I'm on a roll. I will juice no matter how bad I feel. I will keep doing this. I won't give up.
The second week was more promising. The inflammation was down a lot more. The pain was significantly better and my back was even feeling better. My should still had difficulty but it was on the mend too.
By the third week I was feeling confident that I had made the right decision to keep moving forward with this new plan. Almost daily I could see changes. I had more energy. I was moving more quickly. My attitude was getting better and let me tell you my husband was delighted.
This week I'm in awe with the progress. There has been some inflammation off and on during this month but mostly it's not bad at all. No ice packs. The pain is very manageable and my back and shoulder are improving. I felt well enough that I cleared the junk off my recumbent bicycle and a couple of days this week I started using it for a few minutes at a time. I haven't been able to do that for a very long time and I know my muscles are very weak from the lack of exercise. Just that little bit has been helping me strengthen my back. I'm also able to do arm movements without cringing in pain. I haven't needed any pain pills because the pain is manageable. Oh, it still hurts but since I'm not a big fan of taking pills...well, let's just say I have to be in some bad pain to take them. Last month I was taking them daily but this month I didn't have to. I think I've only had three days where I felt I need a Tylenol but I didn't touch the prescription at all. I feel like I'm on a road to recovery.
Another amazing thing that happened just this afternoon was the fact I could almost make a fist with my left hand. Most of the fingers curled tightly and I could feel strength. Now my right hand is a little worse than my left but those fingers are also working better. I can actually unscrew a jar without using something to assist me.
Now I haven't fully committed to a full juice fast. It's hard to make that leap when I have to cook supper. Well, I don't have to cook supper because my husband is more than willing to do that for himself. I just want to do that for him so I'm having a meal with him in the evening and I sometimes have something for lunch. Now that I've shared a little background I'd like to continue by telling you what I'm doing to improve my health and my illness. Hopefully, I will be able to do that on a daily basis. After all, I'm kinda new at this blogging thing. I'd like to also share some of things I'm learning about how this is working, the types of food I'm eating and juicing and just a lot of good information that might help you too. I've learned and am still learning so much more than I knew before. It's exciting and I can't wait to see what happens tomorrow.
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