Hallucinations and then . . . clarity.

Elizabeth and I are on Day 27 of our sugarless experiment.  During these past weeks, we have repeatedly heard the same questions:

1. Has it been hard?

2. How do we feel?

3. What do we eat?

4. Are we going to keep it up after Lent?

5.  Have we lost our minds?

I think we have done an okay job of talking about #3.  We have tried to provide some examples of what we are eating and even a few how to's.  I would like to do more but I keep digging into my food before I remember to take pictures.  

I'm going to save #4 for another day, and the answer to #5 is easy:

We have never been in our right minds.

    

But, I can answer questions #1 and 2, right here and now.  The first few days were hard.   It was probably around Day 3 when:

I had a dream,

I had an awesome dream.

 

The tiny princess and I were walking through a hotel lobby. 

We went up an escalator and into a hall of cakes and cupcakes. 

There were tables and tables of sweet confections. It was a sight to behold.

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It really didn't look like that at all,

but I couldn't find a picture of a hotel lobby full of cupcakes. 

Pity.

 

I pointed out the most appealing selections to the Tiny Princess,

trying to sway her in the direction of what I would choose.

Such as: 

Vanilla with Butter Cream Frosting

Or:

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Or one of my very favorites:

Tres Leches

Are you getting hungry yet?  This is kind of a form of cruel and unusual punishment, isn't it?

Anyway, with all these beautiful cakes before us,

the Tiny Princess picked some skanky Walmart cupcake.

Ugly Walmart Cupcake

And, I woke up in a cold sweat . . . and incredibly sad . . .

because she had made such a terrible choice . . .

and I was also a little hungry.

But, aside from a few early-on hallucinations, I can sincerely say that it has not been as hard as I expected. There was one night probably around Day 4 when I really wanted dessert. And, my kids were going nuts and on my very last nerve.   I was in a wretched mood. I think I grew horns.  My family probably expected my head to do a 360 on my body.   But, I talked myself off the ledge, and it passed.

I also felt a little lethargic the first week.   I run between 15-25 miles per week, and when I run, I like to run hard and get dirty and stinky.

Check out the dirt on Allison and I after the Warrior Dash

There is also the workouts with Teamshortstack, and the combat (kick boxing) class 2-3x per week.  They are the same story. I'm there to kick ass and take names.    I leave combat kind of hoping that I will get mugged in the Walmart parking lot because I stupidly courageously feel like I could take them.  Well, maybe. 

It definitely takes a lot more of this:

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than it does cupcakes to fuel a hard run. So, when I made the switch, I kind of went through a slump those first few days. There were a couple of mornings when I just wanted to sit down on the curb and call someone to come get me. 

But then, around Day 6, the skies parted and the sun shone through. 

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And, all of the sudden, it was easier.


My body felt cleaner. I had lost that bloated feeling that made me feel like crap all the time. And, as an added perk, I wasn't having to fight with my jeans to get them zipped.

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My head was clearer. No more glycemic mood swings. I mean, Awesome Jeff would probably tell you that I'm still moody. But, it's not my fault that the people around me do stupid stuff and I react.  And, I really do feel better and more on my A-game. 

So, I'm in a real good place now.  I've stopped thinking about dessert after every meal.

I guess that's what it's like when you go through a detox.  Whether it's drugs, alcohol, or cupcakes that you are purging from your system, there are going to be some bad days at the beginning.  But then, every day it gets a little easier and you feel a little better. 

Actually, I'm just guessing that's what detox is like.  I base that on countless Lifetime movies and a Sandra Bullock movie: 

Have a great Monday,

Jenni