My 3 Day Water Fast
I have never done a fast in my life. I didn't think I would be able to do one, nor would I ever want to...but when desperation hits, it's amazing what you are determined to do. My skin had been flaring up and there were a lot of open wounds on my neck that just would not heal. It had been a week and it was still oozing and hurting me, so enough was enough. Initially I was going to do a 1 day water fast, but my body surprised me by doing great, so I decided to extend it to 3 days. I also read a lot of research that said that 3 days is the minimum amount to feel some sort of change..you can read more about that HERE. Below are some BEFORE and AFTER pictures...I'm so so grateful for the healing that took place!
Here is a recap of what went down each day:
Day 1:
I started the day off all gung ho about the fast. For someone who loves to eat, I could not believe that was how I felt. I guess my skin was the driving force for me so that was all I could focus on...healing. To my surprise, I was actually not too hungry during the entire day. My husband had to do some work at his parents house, so I suggested that he just eat there for lunch and dinner. Not seeing him eat probably helped a little. Throughout the day, I felt alright. I took it easy and watched some TV, did some yoga, and took a short nap. There were times where I felt like i SHOULD be eating, but I didn't still didn't feel HUNGRY. My tummy did gurgle slightly, but nothing too major. However, I felt like every time I stopped to think about the fast, I got a little anxious (we think we need to eat)...but when I distracted myself, I found time passed normally. I did feel slightly lightheaded around 9pm, but after my shower, I felt fine. I went to bed and was looking forward to seeing how I felt tomorrow.
Day 2:
Surprisingly, I woke up feeling fine! My skin didn't weep as much overnight and although I scratched my hands/arms throughout the night, it wasn't the uncontrollable itch like before. I went about my morning routine and decided that since I had more time now (minus cooking and eating time), I chose to do a longer yoga session. I felt like I was taking my time doing everything and enjoyed the extra time I had. I read about others doing a 3 day water fast, watched some drama, and updated my blog/Instagram. Before I knew it, my husband had come home from work. I actually didn't feel that hungry throughout the day again and my stomach didn't gurgle too much. He brought home a hamburger as a snack (free at South Street for your bday!) and I found that I didn't crave to eat it. But, he had also reheated it and burnt it, so the burn smell was not appetizing - haha! In the evening, I did feel like my legs were a little weak and felt a bit wired. My husband fell asleep while we were watching Netflix and even though I was fasting, I made him dinner (I knew that if left to his own, he may end up eating a lot later). I did end up smelling his food LOL...it felt like I was eating it in a way and it made me feel better. He was a good sport and let me smell it to my heart's content! I continued to feel a bit wired/lightheaded and started to get slightly nauseous...not sure if it was from all the water I chugged (probably not a good idea to drink that fast). However, I felt a little better after my shower again. Time for bed and the home stretch was so close!
Day 3:
Last night did not give me the best sleep...it was hard for me fall asleep, maybe my mind was too awake. I woke up feeling kind of dehydrated and a little weak. However, some water and some time on the couch made me feel better. I was pumped that it was the last day! Hurray! There was a point in the day where I was actually *thinking* of extending it another day, but I felt that 3 days was a good start. My neck had healed a LOT and I was already really grateful for that. I wish my arms and hands healed up too...they were better, but not fully healed. The day was spent mainly on the couch and I took a short nap with my husband when he came home from work. By 8pm, it was a little over 72 hours since the last time I ate and I was so happy to go make some food! I started easy and made some carrot and chayote squash soup, with some pork bones. I only drank a bowl of it and just ate the carrots and the squash. I decided to take advantage of this fast and introduce foods slowly and see if my body reacts to it, similar to an elimination diet. I have to be cautious though because sometimes I get anxious when introducing foods and blame food for any skin reactions after , even if in actuality it may not be the food at all (has happened before during my elimination diets)! So hopefully this all goes well...I'm going to have that soup again tomorrow at lunch and eat the pork as well at dinner tomorrow. I am so glad that this fast was somewhat of a success - my goal was to heal my neck and I'm happy with the results. Let's hope I can control myself and not let it get to that bad a state again!
Observations from my fast:
- I wasn't as hungry as I thought I would be...which goes to show that a lot of the time, I eat because I can. Sometimes I would eat because it's ''time'' to eat, not that I'm necessary hungry.
- My energy levels were not too bad and I was surprised that I didn't have too many of the negative side effects of fasting (e.g., dizziness, nausea, seeing stars)
- Although I itched, the itch didn't last as long and wasn't as intense as before. I felt like I could control it a bit more
- My scalp usually gets itchy when I don't wash my hair, but I didn't wash my hair for 2 nights and it felt fine!
- TMI, but I didn't have a bowel movement throughout the whole fast...I was hoping it would reset my digestion as well, but guess not this time
Final Thoughts:
Would I do another water fast again? You know what? I actually would! This time proved to me that my body is strong and with willpower and perseverance, I can do anything! I am truly amazed at the healing power of our bodies and am so grateful for mine! ❤️
*EDIT: I had a massage booked the next day from a month ago and I decided to still go since my back was hurting. Although the skin on my neck was healed, it was still pretty sensitive. I’ve been going to her regularly before, so she knew about my eczema. I did let her do the sides of my neck because it was super stiff from the eczema flare. I also brought my own oil and when I went home I washed the sides of my neck and everything seemed fine. That night though, the sides of my neck were weeping really badly. It wasn’t itchy, but when I woke up around 2am, it was SUPER wet and the skin was a bit swollen! It felt like a bunch of hives stuck together! I got up in a panic and saw that it really red and it burned to the touch. I quickly got an ice pack and iced it for a bit. After it cooled down, I put on some zinc cream on it. Other than the weeping and the inflamed skin, it wasn’t itchy or even bothered me that much, so I dabbed at the wetness until I fell asleep. I woke up the next morning and luckily that flare subsided...there was no weeping and the swelling went away. It was definitely a WEIRD experience...maybe it was a delayed allergic reaction? I did introduce pork meat last night too at dinner. Not sure if it was related to that or if it was the stimulation of my skin and lymph nodes from the massage. Whatever it was, I hope I won’t have more of that tonight! 🙏🏻 Anyways, maybe don’t be like me and go get a massage so soon after healing! 😅
Here is a recap of what went down each day:
Day 1:
I started the day off all gung ho about the fast. For someone who loves to eat, I could not believe that was how I felt. I guess my skin was the driving force for me so that was all I could focus on...healing. To my surprise, I was actually not too hungry during the entire day. My husband had to do some work at his parents house, so I suggested that he just eat there for lunch and dinner. Not seeing him eat probably helped a little. Throughout the day, I felt alright. I took it easy and watched some TV, did some yoga, and took a short nap. There were times where I felt like i SHOULD be eating, but I didn't still didn't feel HUNGRY. My tummy did gurgle slightly, but nothing too major. However, I felt like every time I stopped to think about the fast, I got a little anxious (we think we need to eat)...but when I distracted myself, I found time passed normally. I did feel slightly lightheaded around 9pm, but after my shower, I felt fine. I went to bed and was looking forward to seeing how I felt tomorrow.
Day 2:
Surprisingly, I woke up feeling fine! My skin didn't weep as much overnight and although I scratched my hands/arms throughout the night, it wasn't the uncontrollable itch like before. I went about my morning routine and decided that since I had more time now (minus cooking and eating time), I chose to do a longer yoga session. I felt like I was taking my time doing everything and enjoyed the extra time I had. I read about others doing a 3 day water fast, watched some drama, and updated my blog/Instagram. Before I knew it, my husband had come home from work. I actually didn't feel that hungry throughout the day again and my stomach didn't gurgle too much. He brought home a hamburger as a snack (free at South Street for your bday!) and I found that I didn't crave to eat it. But, he had also reheated it and burnt it, so the burn smell was not appetizing - haha! In the evening, I did feel like my legs were a little weak and felt a bit wired. My husband fell asleep while we were watching Netflix and even though I was fasting, I made him dinner (I knew that if left to his own, he may end up eating a lot later). I did end up smelling his food LOL...it felt like I was eating it in a way and it made me feel better. He was a good sport and let me smell it to my heart's content! I continued to feel a bit wired/lightheaded and started to get slightly nauseous...not sure if it was from all the water I chugged (probably not a good idea to drink that fast). However, I felt a little better after my shower again. Time for bed and the home stretch was so close!
Day 3:
Last night did not give me the best sleep...it was hard for me fall asleep, maybe my mind was too awake. I woke up feeling kind of dehydrated and a little weak. However, some water and some time on the couch made me feel better. I was pumped that it was the last day! Hurray! There was a point in the day where I was actually *thinking* of extending it another day, but I felt that 3 days was a good start. My neck had healed a LOT and I was already really grateful for that. I wish my arms and hands healed up too...they were better, but not fully healed. The day was spent mainly on the couch and I took a short nap with my husband when he came home from work. By 8pm, it was a little over 72 hours since the last time I ate and I was so happy to go make some food! I started easy and made some carrot and chayote squash soup, with some pork bones. I only drank a bowl of it and just ate the carrots and the squash. I decided to take advantage of this fast and introduce foods slowly and see if my body reacts to it, similar to an elimination diet. I have to be cautious though because sometimes I get anxious when introducing foods and blame food for any skin reactions after , even if in actuality it may not be the food at all (has happened before during my elimination diets)! So hopefully this all goes well...I'm going to have that soup again tomorrow at lunch and eat the pork as well at dinner tomorrow. I am so glad that this fast was somewhat of a success - my goal was to heal my neck and I'm happy with the results. Let's hope I can control myself and not let it get to that bad a state again!
Observations from my fast:
- I wasn't as hungry as I thought I would be...which goes to show that a lot of the time, I eat because I can. Sometimes I would eat because it's ''time'' to eat, not that I'm necessary hungry.
- My energy levels were not too bad and I was surprised that I didn't have too many of the negative side effects of fasting (e.g., dizziness, nausea, seeing stars)
- Although I itched, the itch didn't last as long and wasn't as intense as before. I felt like I could control it a bit more
- My scalp usually gets itchy when I don't wash my hair, but I didn't wash my hair for 2 nights and it felt fine!
- TMI, but I didn't have a bowel movement throughout the whole fast...I was hoping it would reset my digestion as well, but guess not this time
Final Thoughts:
Would I do another water fast again? You know what? I actually would! This time proved to me that my body is strong and with willpower and perseverance, I can do anything! I am truly amazed at the healing power of our bodies and am so grateful for mine! ❤️
*EDIT: I had a massage booked the next day from a month ago and I decided to still go since my back was hurting. Although the skin on my neck was healed, it was still pretty sensitive. I’ve been going to her regularly before, so she knew about my eczema. I did let her do the sides of my neck because it was super stiff from the eczema flare. I also brought my own oil and when I went home I washed the sides of my neck and everything seemed fine. That night though, the sides of my neck were weeping really badly. It wasn’t itchy, but when I woke up around 2am, it was SUPER wet and the skin was a bit swollen! It felt like a bunch of hives stuck together! I got up in a panic and saw that it really red and it burned to the touch. I quickly got an ice pack and iced it for a bit. After it cooled down, I put on some zinc cream on it. Other than the weeping and the inflamed skin, it wasn’t itchy or even bothered me that much, so I dabbed at the wetness until I fell asleep. I woke up the next morning and luckily that flare subsided...there was no weeping and the swelling went away. It was definitely a WEIRD experience...maybe it was a delayed allergic reaction? I did introduce pork meat last night too at dinner. Not sure if it was related to that or if it was the stimulation of my skin and lymph nodes from the massage. Whatever it was, I hope I won’t have more of that tonight! 🙏🏻 Anyways, maybe don’t be like me and go get a massage so soon after healing! 😅
water restriction is hard but healing happens!
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