Cleansing The Good & The Bad
When it comes down to it, going on a cleanse is one of the very best decisions you can make for your overall health and wellness. It has innumerable benefits, both mental and physical, that will improve your life during the cleanse.
These benefits will even stick around long after the cleanse is over! While you are sure to feel absolutely incredible after your cleansing period has come to an end you may not feel that way during the actual cleanse itself.
It is important to understand why you may experience negative feelings during the cleansing process, and realize that it is totally normal! The bad feelings that come with cleansing are temporary, but the amazing effects you will experience after the cleanse is over are long-lasting.
Many people that practice cleanse-style dieting report a few negative side effects along the journey. Fatigue, headaches, and irritability are three of the most common ill effects that a cleanse can induce, and they are certainly no picnic to experience!
The good news is, cleanses typically only last from around 1-7 days- so if you are capable of pushing through the more difficult aspects of the cleanse, then you will certainly reap the benefits in the end! While these side effects are not fun to experience, there are many steps that you can take to lessen the impact. Before you know it, your cleanse will be over!
Common Negative Effects
Feeling tired is one of the most noticeable side effects of the cleansing process. If you had a particularly unhealthy diet before the cleanse, then you are more likely to experience disrupted sleep patterns and fatigue during the cleanse.
This is because you are fueling your body with a totally different set of nutrients than it is accustomed to-and the juices you are putting into your body during the cleanse are meant to encourage the body to purge its toxins.
This is quite a workload for your system to undertake, so your body will be working harder than normal!
Many people also experience headaches during a cleanse. This may be related to the withdrawal from caffeine or alcohol.
If your body is used to consuming these substances every day, or even less frequently, suddenly taking them out of your routine can surprise your body!
While withdrawal headaches can feel very uncomfortable and even painful at times, it is important to realize that your body will adjust to your new consumption habits.
These headaches won’t last forever- pushing through your cleanse program and continuing to abstain from caffeine and alcohol will improve your health for the better.
Detox diets require the elimination of sugar and refined carbohydrates. While this change is good for your health, it leads to irritability in many people. Withdrawing from sugar can have similar effects to withdrawing from a drug- sugar is actually an addictive substance in itself!
While replacing your unhealthy eating habits with more nutritious options will have overall long-term positive impacts on your physical and mental health, it may throw you off balance a little bit in the beginning. Shockingly, even changing your diet for the better can lead to some dramatic changes in your emotional state.
Overcoming the Hard Parts
It is very important to address problems like fatigue and lack of good sleep. Even though these are temporary side effects of a cleanse, they can still have large impacts on your daily life!
Set aside eight hours for yourself to get a good night’s sleep, and make sure that your phone is turned off or set into ‘do-not-disturb mode.
Taking this small step will remove one more impediment which is standing between you and quality resting time.
Reading or doing some light exercise like yoga for the hour before you hit the hay will also help you to go to bed feeling more relaxed. Instead of looking at a TV or phone screen before bed, try something more relaxing that won’t disrupt your circadian rhythm.
Drink Plenty of Water During Your Cleanse
To combat the headaches that are accompanying your cleanse, make sure that you are drinking plenty of water.
Carrying a water bottle with you throughout the day on all of your errands will help remind you to keep drinking!
When caffeine and alcohol are no longer a part of your daily diet, your body undergoes some changes.
For example, caffeine causes the blood vessels in your head to become constricted, which reduces the rate of blood flow to your brain.
When you no longer consume caffeine, these blood vessels open back up and the rate of blood flow to the brain increases once again.
This sudden change in your blood flow is one thing that may cause painful headaches- but drinking plenty of water and staying hydrated will definitely help to alleviate them and encourage you to push through the hard parts of the cleanse!
Irritability During a Cleanse is Common
Addressing the issue of irritability can be really difficult- especially because sometimes it is even hard to admit to being irritable in the first place!
Recognizing and admitting that you are feeling and acting in a certain way because of a major dietary change happening in your life is the first step to fixing the problem.
Irritability during a cleanse is so common, it even has its own name. “Emotional detox” refers to the unpredictable swing in your emotional state that goes along with the physical cleanse itself.
Luckily, the dramatic emotions that accompany a cleanse are only temporary. Your body and brain chemistry will adapt to your new dietary choices, and your emotions will settle down in response.
In the meantime, if you are experiencing irritability, be sure to be patient with yourself. Spend some time outside in the sunshine, or doing activities that bring you joy and peace.
Make sure you are getting enough sleep as well! Sleep will help curb both feelings of fatigue and feelings of irritability.
The Positive Effects of a Cleanse
Now that you understand that a cleanse may make you feel fatigued, give you headaches, or cause irritability at times, you can prepare yourself for the hardest parts!
While cleansing can be a difficult and trying process, it is a great way to test your capabilities and mental fortitude. Pushing through the difficulties is definitely not easy, but it is worth it!
Hopefully, learning of these potential negative side effects won’t scare you away from the cleanse journey completely!
Understanding that you are not alone and that many people experience these symptoms during a cleanse will hopefully help to put your mind at ease. Accepting that a cleanse might not be a completely positive experience will help to keep your expectations realistic.
This will also help you prepare for the experience, for both the good and the bad!
Taking steps to reduce these negative symptoms will work to create the smoothest cleanse possible, and help you make it through the process until the end. When you successfully complete your cleanse and get through the hard parts, then you have accomplished something incredible!
Your physical and mental health will be better off in the end, even though the process is not always rainbows and sunshine.
Life is Better After a Cleanse
Once your brain and body get used to the new, healthy way of fueling, these negative side effects will fade away and become a distant memory.
While it may be difficult for the time being, just think of the amazing end results that you have yet to experience! A cleanse will leave you feeling healthy, renewed, and energized in the end.
It will give your skin a healthy glow and allow you to look and feel like the best version of yourself, inside and out!
Once your body is used to your new lifestyle, the cortisol levels in your brain will become balanced once again and you will find yourself in a greater physical and emotional state than you were before the cleanse!
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