Day Twelve

The final day has arrived!  Today didn't feel much different than day eleven. I feel as if my body has finally adjusted to these changes.

As I emptied that last pills into my hand tonight at dinner, I felt a strong sense of accomplishment.  I survived twelve days of cravings and temptation.

Admittedly, I technically ended my cleanse a meal early.  We picked up sushi for dinner, which had white rice... and I ate it with soy sauce and pickled ginger.  Oh lordy was it good.  Seeing as I didn't commit a serious cheat throughout the cleanse, I didn't feel at all guilty.

Yesterday I told myself that my cleanse was officially going to end tonight at midnight. When the clock struck 12 I was planning on indulging in a piece of chocolate.  It is currently eleven, and I am not at all tempted to reach for that oh-so-delicious dark chocolate waiting.

In other news, my skin is the clearest it's been.  I'm really happy with this aspect of the cleanse, as I've been breaking out on a consistent basis for several months now.   I also dared to step on the scale at work today. Since the beginning of the cleanse I am down a total of two kilo.  While in the grand scheme of things that may not sound like much, considering this occurred in twelve days, I'm impressed.  Again, I recognize much of this weight will be temporary.  Nonetheless, I'm still content, and it provides good motivation to continue eating "cleaner" if I wanted to shed more pounds.


Although it's hard to summarize the Wild Rose D-Tox program in a few words, I'll give it a try.  Despite all the negative things I've heard, the program was surprisingly easy and certainly do-able for those with a vegetarian or vegan diet.  The side effects, for me, we very mild and well worth it for the results I saw.  Admittedly, although the program proved challenging in fighting sugar cravings and organizing oneself to take all the supplements, I was expecting more of a battle, and more results aside from reduced sugar cravings, clearer skin and weight loss.  I didn't feel particularly energized or rejuvenated, although the last few days have been easier to get up in the morning.  Eating a plant based diet has helped to keep many toxins out of my systems, and I experienced less "withdrawal" than an omnivore and chronic coffee drinking might.

In conclusion, although I was not completely blown away by the changes brought about by the cleanse, I believe it was a valuable exercise that created a space for me to examine what I was putting into my body and how I was affected by the things I was consuming.  To anyone who is considering doing the Wild Rose D-Tox, I say go for it.   Whatever your reason is for wanting to try the program, you'll find value in completing this cleanse and discover ways to create the happiest, healthiest you.


If you have any questions about my experience with the Wild Rose D-Tox program or being Vegan feel free to contact me by commenting below.  Thank you for sharing in my journey.

Day Eleven

I swear yesterday was Day Six.

The second half of the D-tox program has gone by much quicker than the first half.  Not that it has been any easier than the first half, but getting into a groove has helped time pass.

Still side-effect free, plus my skin is beginning to clear now.  Due to this, I've been wearing less make-up, which I love.  The last thing I want to do every morning is play hide-a-blemish.  I also went to Bikram Yoga for the first time since the beginning of the cleanse.  Best. class. yet.  I made the mistake of scarfing down too much hummus before class, which came back to haunt me with stomach pains during the floor series, but I did not get light headed once.  While the class was a good solid workout, I wasn't pushing past a mental brick wall, making the physical aspect of the class less challenging.

I've started to think about how I will transition back and the foods that I've missed the most.  At the top of my list is:

1. Sugar (in all forms - chocolate, cookies, candy, ice cream)
2. Soy Sauce
3. Pickled Ginger
4. Ketchup
5. Bananas (this wasn't something I craved, but use almost everyday in smoothies or banana ice cream)

I was surprised to find that I didn't miss wheat all that much.  We don't eat bread too often in our house, but I was expecting to miss pasta. Mac and "cheese" (made with Nutritional Yeast) is a weekly staple in our household.   I only missed wheat in things like cookies, which I think was more of a sugar craving.

Being vegan I didn't miss dairy or other non-vegan foods.  I think this makes the things I've missed very basic.  Looking at the list above they are either condiments or items that are dietary staples.

Last day tomorrow!

Day Ten

News flash!  For the first time during the entire cleanse, I am nearly sugar-craving free!  I was sincerely beginning to think that the sugar cravings would hold on strong right until the bitter end.  Since they have faded, perhaps I'm not as addicted as I was beginning to believe. Yipee!

In the past week, I have noticed foods that once tasted rather boring, have became satisfyingly sweet to me.  Last night the hubby and I went to go see a movie.  We snuck in our own private stash of coconut water and popcorn.  I had previously found this particular sugar-free brand of coconut water "ho-hum," but was pleasantly surprised to find my taste buds dancing with joy.

Although I doubt I could ever completely quit sugar for good, I think this cleanse has helped me to see new ways in which I can cut back on sugar and enjoy sugar-free foods as much as I would have enjoyed their tooth rotting, diabetes inducing (okay, I'll stop there) comparatives.    Although I had posted earlier that I was going to try to not use stevia for the rest of the cleanse, I cracked last night and put some on our popcorn.  Stevia has a bad reputation for being bitter, but during this program, I've been delighted to discover new ways to use stevia (smoothies, popcorn, etc), and have not been confronted with the feared bitter-tinge.  Score!

Tomorrow I'm going to start thinking about my transition back to "normal" and what I've discovered on this journey.   The first thing that comes to mind, I WANT PEROGIS.

Day Nine

It's Monday again. This time however, my energy is better and my skin doesn't seem to be forming any new eruptions.  Also, as I took my pills and drops this morning, I realized I could see the bottom of my pill bottles- yippee!

If anyone reading this is considering doing the cleanse themselves, my biggest tip is to cook in large batches and package it up into individual meals that you can just grab and go.  It has made the entire experience so much easier.  I've found myself extra hungry during the last nine days.  When lunch roles around I know I have a hearty satisfying meal that will hold me until dinner.  That way I don't come home a ravenous, hummus-craving lunatic.


Case study:  Last night for dinner I made a big ol' pot of eggplant, chickpea, and tomato curry with brown rice.  Out of the batch I was able to get dinner + four lunches...which = no more worrying about lunches for the rest of the cleanse! Do you know how awesome that feels?!

Day Eight

As today was a bright, beautiful, warm day, I got outside to play basketball for a short while.  Before I started this cleanse I was curious to see if my energy would be affected to the point of not wanting to be active.  As I bike to work everyday (a short ride), I was worried this may become an issue.  Aside from those first few days where I was more tired than normal, it has not been.   Although we were mostly just goofing off shooting hoops, I didn't feel at all hindered by the Wild Rose D-tox.

In other news, sugar cravings were bad today.  The worst they've been on this journey.  Others living in my home are sugar fiends and it seems they went on a sugar binge at the same time the cravings have kicked in.  I've still been using cut up apple and almond butter as a go to, which still pretty well wipes out the craving.  A friend (who has done the cleanse many a time), also recommended that I up my protein intake.  As a vegan I am generally pretty aware of what I consume, but will try to eat some extra chickpeas and brown rice (legumes and grains make complete proteins) over the next couple of days.

Day Seven

Day seven...beginning to feel the end approaching.  I'm no longer seeing the light in this tunnel disappearing behind me, I'm heading right for it in front of me.

Seeing as I reached the halfway point yesterday, I decided to try on a couple of dresses to see if there had been any changes in my body.  I don't currently own a scale, so clothing is the next best form of measurement.  I started first with a dress I wore at the end of high school. A silky fabric, t-shirt dress that has recently clung in the wrong areas, and has been generally not fit to wear in public.  As I slid it on,  it slid right over my hips with ease, and didn't bunch and pull once in place.  SUCCESS! While not fitting exactly as it had in years long forgotten (I have pictures to compare), it was wearable- with a little confidence.

Dress #2 is something I've been pathetically hoping I could wear to a formal event I'm attending shortly after the cleanse is complete. I had tried it on about a month before I started the d-tox program, and was not impressed with the uncomfortable woman staring back at me in the mirror.  I have lots of other options, I've just barely worn the aforementioned dress and can be rather stubborn once I set my mind to something.  After the success of dress #1, I held my breathe and wiggled into the narrow, constricting, claustrophobic corset bodice and thigh squishing skirt (believe it or not, I actually love this dress).  Once I had it on, I realized I had managed to put the dress on all by myself. In my books, this was quite the feat, it's always taken at least one more set of hands to do the zipper up.   I didn't need to look in the mirror to know that it no longer looked like I was getting ready to go fly-fishing (aka carrying an inner tube of sequined turquoise fabric around my hips).  It lay flat, and aside from a few telling lines where the dress is a tad snug, it fit as well as the day I bought it over three years ago.

I'm really excited about these changes, and the fact that they've come with so few side effects.  While I realize any change in body that is occurring during the cleanse may revert once I assume some of my old food habits, I'm happy with what I'm seeing right now.  That is a great feeling.

Day Six

I've reached the halfway point! I'm excited that I'm through half of the cleanse, but not too excited that I have another six days until I'm done.  I celebrated this morning by making a big old batch of pumpkin pie oatmeal!

I learnt today that eating out when you're vegan, AND on the Wild Rose D-Tox, isn't the easiest.  After hemming and haaaing, and moaning about what I wanted to eat (okay, maybe I'm feeling a bit on the pathetic side today), I decided to go out to the Naam.  I'm so thankful to live in Vancouver where there are so many wonderful vegetarian and vegan-friendly restaurants.  I really enjoyed not having to plan and prepare lunch.  It was like a little vacation from my cleanse, without having to cheat!

Aside from the sugar cravings today, there have been many hours where I've actually "forgotten" that I'm doing a cleanse, as I am having very few effects.  Obviously I don't mind not having negative side-effects, but it would be nice to see some positive effects in the second half of the cleanse. Fingers crossed.