On the diet for TWO months & feel terrible!! Help!!
My hubby and I have been on the BE diet fairly strictly for almost two months and expected to feel die off symptoms, etc. for around two weeks or so like the book suggests if my memory serves. However, we did not expect to be feeling like crud fairly often for this long. Both of us (with different health backgrounds) feel like this. We are in our early 30's. We have had incredible health results with the diet and are very serious about doing it correctly. However, we feel WEAK. I have an inner stability physically that I didn't have before, and my brain doesn't feel starved like it did before, and I am not hungry like I was on the candida diet I tried in 2006 for 9 months or so, but I don't have strength or energy to live life or to even fix the food we need to eat! I know I have adrenal fatigue, but it seems worse on the diet than it did off of it. What are we doing wrong? Any suggestions would be appreciated!! Thanks in advance! Rebecca
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Cayce H Cronk on -
Rebecca,
Hi there! I did the strict version of the BED back last year around this time of year. I did the first phase for three to four months. Once I got past phase one and reintroduced fruit again....my strength returned as well. I think my body still needed the fruit sugar but im glad I stuck with the protocol. I think if you feel your candida, fungal issues are under control at this point you can move on to phase two. I still try to follow alot of the principles in the diet but do ok with certain foods now. I love fermented veggies like Kimchee, and coconut kefir, kombucha!
-
Permalink Reply by Rebecca on -
Thanks for the input, Cayce! I just talked with my hubby, and I think I am going to try to add more protein to my diet--specifically beef. My blood type is A-, and I know that it is not recommended for Type A, but when I eat beef, I tend to have more strength and energy. I have been largely avoiding it for the last two months. I think it is too soon for me to add fruit back in to my diet. I just feel like I need more fat and protein. I know it's not good to eat too much fat with protein, but I have not had much of a life since I started this diet, and I felt great much of the time on the candida diet I tried in 2006 while eating beef. I am on the BED because the candida diet did not heal my digestive tract, and I do not intend to do a lot of the things I did while on the candida diet (food-wise), etc. I have read that some people need more protein in the beginning of the BED and on the consultation page for Donna Gates (on the web site), it says that some people need more protein or something to that effect, so I will give it a try.
Also, I think I WAY overdid it with the cultured veggies, kefir, and probiotics. I LOVE the stuff, but I started having stomach pain/discomfort, etc. as soon as I took a bite or drink of it. I talked with Donna Gates' assistant and the general manager, and she advised me and my hubby (who has had similar symptoms) to cut back on the cultured stuff for a while. That stinks because we like it so much, but our symptoms disappeared after we cut it out. Anyone else ever experienced this?
According to the BED web site, it is possible to overdose on probiotics. I feel like I am not having the same experiences as most people on this diet, but I also feel like God led us clearly to try it after praying for a miracle for my hubby's health, so I am not planning to give up. If you or anyone else have any more thoughts on any of the issues I mentioned, please share.
-
Permalink Reply by Zilla on
-
I started the BED about two weeks ago, and I have become very WEAK too. I had been following another candida diet for years, but as proper food combining was not included, and I ate lots of yogurt and nuts and carrot juice, my digestive tract never healed.
I feel like my digestion is improving on the B.E.D.; however, I am so incredibly tired and weak, I can hardly do anything but lay around. My husband helps me prepare food, because I don't have the strength to do it all on my own. I already had chronic fatigue, but I have entered another dimension of fatigue and weakness on the B.E.D. I also have been wondering if anyone else is experiencing this.
-
Permalink Reply by Rebecca on
-
I ended up going off of the diet after 3 months, but I hope to go back on it via a modified plan. I avoided eating the grains as the book suggested because in my case, I would not lose weight at the same rate if I ate it, so I felt that I wasn't digesting it properly, and my husband, who is a diabetic, would have higher glucose in the morning after eating a carb meal. We assumed because of this that our bodies were just not yet able to digest grains yet. I feel that may have been one mistake we made, however, because the weakness we felt was not encouraging and I doubt it was endurable long-term.
Another mistake we made was getting too much of the fermented foods and drinks. The book doesn't say that it is possible to overdose, and it also doesn't say that those with gastritis can have serious symptoms or gastroparesis symptoms. We had to cut way back on the fermented foods. One of the consultants I spoke with (recommended on the BE site) said that some people have to start slow on it.
I was able to get my strength back somewhat by adding beef, but I am blood type A, and while I felt better initially, it caused inflammation problems for me, and my husband who is also type A, seemed to have blood sugar issues too. Sigh. However, I think it proved that there is definitely something to the blood type diet.
Anyway, I don't know exactly what to do the second time around, but I am just going to have to include carbs (the recommended ones) like I didn't the first time around I think, and I am probably going to have to be less strict about how often I eat and/or how much I eat on my plate or something along those lines, along with less fermented foods and drinks. I do remember reading in the BE book that the milk kefir supposedly gave strength. In my case, I would probably need goat milk to make it as my husband and I do not do well on dairy, but I also remember that Donna said some people can't start with the milk kefir right away. It might need to be after 6 weeks at least or during Stage Two.
I don't know if any of this is helpful or not, but I thought I would share a bit about what I want to try. I REALLY want my intestinal tract to heal once and for all, but I just don't know what to do about the weakness. Maybe we were cleansing and detoxing too quickly and needed to use enemas or colonics or other means for detoxing to help relieve symptoms. I have no idea. You might consider talking with a consultant about that. Hope this helps! I will pray for you!
Regards,
Rebecca
-
Permalink Reply by Zilla on
-
Rebecca,
Thank you for the thoughtful comments and your prayers. Yes, it is helpful for me to read this. First of all, I haven't talked with anyone on this diet since I started, so I was relieved to find someone talking about the experience I am having. Although the diet is incredibly hard, I know my illnesses are from yeast, and I feel I have to deal with it to get my life back.
I had not considered that I might be overdoing it with the fermented foods. But now that you mention it, I remember hearing that on another candida program I followed.
So, I was a little confused why you felt it was a mistake to avoid grains in Phase 1. I realize grains ARE a part of Phase 1, but do you think that avoiding them made you more tired and made it harder to stay on the diet? Do you consider it a mistake because not eating them might have contributed to your leaving the diet?
I have started to have more grains--only once per day, and not every day. I find that I digest them easily compared to meat. I'm blood type B, so a good balance of vegetarian and meat meals are good for me.
I crave meat and grains like crazy--anything except more non-starchy veggies. Of course I crave all the "bad" stuff too, but within the B.E.D., I crave food with more "substance." I am hungry all the time, and especially right after a meal, I want sweets. I am eating the heck out of stevia.
I'm also taking a long walk after brunch and sometimes after lunch too to help with digestion. Other times I cannot resist, and I lay down.
I have tremendous willpower, but I have decided to allow a few deviations for myself to get through this. I know it will take years to regain myself. So, I'm letting myself overeat a little, and sometimes I give myself more than 20% of a protein or starch. And some days I have green tea (or else I would never get out of bed, like today and yesterday--even typing on the computer with a laptop is very challenging).
I am clear that my long-term chronic illness is largely a result of candidiasis--a few episodes of staying off the diet (other candida diets) where I ate a lot of fruit and more gluten and sugar ended in disasters. Many years ago going on a yeast-free diet greatly helped my fibromyalgia and a long list of other problems. But I left the diet, and the yeastie beasties came back with a vengeance.
Thanks again, Rebecca. I hope we can keep a community here with discussions for support.
Zilla
-
Permalink Reply by Marie Vola-Stein on
-
Dear Rebecca,
Try food journaling and how you feel a couple of hours after you eat that food. I have not tried it as of yet, but have read the book almost twice. But I do follow the blood type diet for O people and have found it to be a great help. Not all food on blood type for your type may agree with you either.. I will be praying for you.
Marie
© 2009 Created by naturalcures
