Detox is a way to lighten up your load – mentally, emotionally and physically.

Many people choose to detox for the simple reason of eliminating toxins which have accumulated from improper digestion, toxic environments, pesticides, chemicals, alcohol and western medications.

When toxins sit in the body, it impairs the proper functioning of the cellular intelligence – leading us to more & more toxic choices in life. Once the body has cleansed, the natural living wisdom of our body will no longer be attracted to foods and substances which are non-beneficial.

Of course, one 10 day long detox can do wonders for you, however, don’t necessarily expect it to be able to remove two or three decades of abuse in one go. Detoxing can be a long and slow journey,  balancing strong concentrated efforts of a full detox program, with half-detox of careful diet and herbs and a lifetime of good eating habits and good digestion. How you choose to approach a detox is entirely up to you and i can attempt to guide you in a few ways here.

  There many different ways to detox and I hope to give you the basic outlines so you can choose the right detox for you.

This takes into consideration your circumstances in life- ie. working and at home or away from regular responsibilities; your dedication;  your constitution – Vata, Pitta or Kapha; the level of toxins in your system;  and your reason for wanting to detox.

How you know you need to detox

• The breath smells bad upon awakening and even throughout the day
• There is a dullness and heaviness in your mind and emotions and general energetic state
• Food becomes less interesting or tasty
• There is an accumulation of excess weight
• There is a thick coating on your tongue
• There is a bad smell after sweating
• Elimination is not regular- ie. At least first thing in the morning every day
• Skin is lacking vitality or heavy pore elimination especially on the nose

There are  many stages of a detox. And we need to start and then move from where we are. Assess which category you are in right now :

1. You are eating junk and processed food; fried and fatty foods; sugar, sweets and snacks and soda drinks
2. You are already eating healthy – with only occasional processed carbohydrates (such as pasta,  breads , white rice or processed cereals) , sugars  or fried foods etc. You eat meat on occasion and have plenty of vegetables or fruits
3. You are eating healthy vegetarian diet and eating at least 60% vegetables and fruit based diet.

Advise for the category

1. Changing to whole foods with majority of vegetables will be a sufficient detox for a period of time before any deeper detoxing is advised. Take at least 5-7 days eating as in category 1 along with detox herbs.
2. Change the diet to category 3 eating habits with herbs for a few days before starting a full detox
3. You are ready to start a full detox when you like

Preparing for a detox

Start by cleaning up your immediate environment. As you are about to do an internal house cleaning – prepare your outer space to make it easier for you whilst fasting.

• Get rid of all unhealthy foods in your cupboards a fridge and clear any clutter from your home. This could indeed be a big job for some, but you will feel so much better and make it so much easier to detox in a fresh environment.

• Detoxing is not just from food it is from all unhealthy environmental distractions that take us away from regenerating ourselves – put away music collections, books and movies that are not with a healing vibration and have positive music and books available to you – choose uplifting books from your friends shelves or the library – on a theme you are interested in – self help, healing, health and yoga for example.

• Prepare by tell your friends and family your intentions and ask their support that for this period of time you require more time alone ( not be called up for gossip or chit chat) or invites to go out ‘just for a little coffee’ .

• Find out what classes are going on at the local wellness center or get some home movies for yoga pilates or tai chi.

• Find the nearest steam room or infra red sauna to you and perhaps some references for good massage or healing therapists. If there is no steam room available – then hot- cold – hot – cold showers will do and self massage is explained here on the site under Abhyanga- Ayurvedic home therapies.

• Look for a colon therapist and make sure you have sessions pre-booked for the time you need. If this is out of the budget, then it is possible to rent a colonic board or  find a large enema bag and any equipment needed to use it in your own bathroom – possibly only a convenient hook !

• If you are with a work schedule-  reduce your hours as much as possible.

• Find your local organic food market and invest in a juicer.

Now you are really ready to start.

Affirming your intentions is a key to your success; this is not just a physical process.  Detoxing can remove baggage from our unconscious emotional past. Call the miracles in! And leave the past behind you to embrace the New You !