April 12, 2012, Day 12: My body is definitely going through a bit of a healing crisis, so to speak. The Candida are dying off and I am experiencing the typical symptoms you can find if you do a search for what to expect; fatigue, stomach discomfort, body itching and feeling super cold (in MIAMI). All morning, I felt like I was moving in slow motion and I did not know how I would make through the rest of the day. I especially didn’t know how I would have energy to teach my cooking class today. I read that water and vitamin C were recommended (among other things). I took 1,000 mg of vitamin C on my lunch break and it seemed to give me the boost of energy I needed to go be with children today. I was so glad! I also read that dry skin brushing helps rid the body of toxins, so I bought a pretty new brush. This should probably help a lot considering our skin is our largest organ and next to the colon, it is also an important waste management system. Dry skin brushing basically removes alayer of gunk so you can essentially sweat out more toxins. I’m excited to add this in as a bathroom ritual. A plus for dry skin brushing is that it also helps get rid of cellulite and what woman doesn’t like the sound of that?!?

I don’t know if I mentioned that I was (am) a big gum chewer. I know, I know. But I have just always liked gum and since I started this diet, gum was pretty much out unless I could find gum with xylitol (sans a bunch of artificial crap), and today I did! I found Spry! So, here are my new 2 favorite things I got today! Random, I know…but both make me really happy!

I also received my Renew Me, which is a “blend of nutritional plant-derived MSM (methyl sulfonyl methane), spirulina, E3AFA™, certified organic cayenne pepper, wild-crafted South American camu-camu, E3 AFAMend™, E3 Phenalmin™, tocotrienol & tocopherol (Vitamin E complex), and crystalloid electrolyte sea minerals. These exceptional foods have been shown to boost the immune system and help your body eliminate toxins.” It’s in powder form, so I will just add it to my smoothie along with the 500 other things I drink! Here is the E3 Live Renew Me and I cannot wait to start taking this tomorrow! It’s supposed to really help with Candida! I have very high hopes!

I had that raw buckwheat cereal for breakfast again today. I absolutely love it and it’s so filling! For snack, I had a smoothie: almond milk, blueberries, , chia seeds, diatomaceous earth and liquid stevia.

Lunch was this awesome kelp noodle salad with cucumber, red pepper, purple cabbage, green onion, avocado and raw sesame seeds with my favorite sesame dressing.

Dinner was AWESOME! I was actually kinda impressed with myself as it was getting late and I am a little less creative lately. I do admit, it takes a bit longer to get into my “groove” preparing meals. Let’s just say, never underestimate the power of SOUP. I threw together this super tasty black bean and quinoa soup with celery, onions, carrots (I haven’t been consuming many carrots), garlic, tomato, and it was seasoned with paprika, cumin, oregano, chili powder, sea salt and pepper and then topped with fresh cilantro. Man oh man, was it a winner! I will definitely be making that again. Sorry no pic.

So, with regards to the die-off, I think the symptoms are way worse in the morning. I have been taking my super high-grade probiotic right before bed (guarantees an empty stomach) and then again right when I wake up, so perhaps that is why. I have read though that the probiotics are not as intense as the antifungals, so I am not sure exactly what it is. All I know is, I think it’s working!

I can’t believe how quickly the time is going by as well. I am already 12 days into this thing and I can easily see myself not having much of a problem finding things to eat and lasting as long as I need to until I see changes and feel better. I just have to tell myself that it is okay to miss certain foods (like chocolate, honey and nutritional yeast) and that maybe one day I can enjoy them again. But right now, they are not serving me and I respect my body enough to do what serves it best; no matter how challenging that may seem!