There aren’t many things worse than when you’re itching to go on an adventure or do something incredible but you can’t because your physical body is sick. I’m one of those people who tends to get sick more than other people… It’s the unfortunate combination of (1) a weak immune system mixed with (2) the inability to eat small amounts of sugar mixed with (3) having the capacity to spread myself thin like too little butter over too much bread mixed with (4) fate.
I’ve gotten better at avoiding being sick over the years but that inevitable cold Creeps in every few months or every so often. Today is February 8th and it’s been about 3 months since I was last sick with a small head cold. The last time I was sick for a solid week was at the end of September and the beginning of October when I moved from one apartment to the next, started a new job and started taking care of seven or eight little toddlers every week. Being around children that young is a sure-fire way of getting ill but the Lord has protected me ever since for the most part.
Unfortunately there are still other factors that I can control that helps me to stay well but I haven’t gotten smart enough to avoid them completely. One of my downfalls is eating too much sugar which is why I am doing a 21-day sugar detox currently. I am on day 11 right now and things have been going pretty well. For the first 7 days I only consumed 55 grams of sugar give or take a couple of grams and the last 4 days I have tried to be sugar-free. There was one instance the other night where a couple of chocolate caramels made their way onto my plate without me being able to do anything about it so I’m going to let that slide… But for the most part I have been sugar free and it is definitely not been fun. I have had a headache, fatigue and worst of all I think these cold symptoms have something to do with the detoxing effect.
You see, I have never taken a legitimate break from sugar in my entire life. I can remember being 4 years old and robbing the cookie jar as soon as my mother went outside and left me alone in the house. After that I have been known to consume large quantities of sugar every few days and also replace regular meals with a large portion of dessert justifying it because I didn’t really eat a meal so then I could obviously have a giant bowl of ice cream with a brownie on top with a side of three cookies and chocolate syrup and sprinkles and caramel and extra sugar on the side.
But for real, I am not used to not eating sugar and I am very thankful that I’m able to do this detox. I just hope it creates a rift between sugar and I that makes me not even crave the stuff. Whoever says that sugar is not on the same level as other drugs hasn’t suffered with a sugar addiction before. I see this seriously now but for a long time I have joked about it saying that I have sweet teeth and I love dessert and things to that effect. And all that stuff is true… But what is also true is that sugar has led to overeating and weight gain and keeping on weight that keeps me lethargic, makes me unhappy, and weakens my immune system all the same time. So I’m thinking if I can cut this tie with my good friend sugar once and for all I will be able to avoid some of these things for good. I’m not saying I believe that I’m never going to get another cold in my whole life once I stop eating a lot of sugar but I know that it is definitely a factor that I have some control over. Nor am I saying that I’m never going to eat sugar again… I believe that God gave me the gift of self control and it is my desire to exercise that self control over every area of my life including eating. I want to be able to enjoy sugar and dessert in small quantities every so often and I don’t want to give it up for good. But this detox is good for me in the way that my mind won’t automatically start thinking about sweets every time I am finished eating. It might take more than 21 days for this to happen, especially because the first seven I wasn’t completely sugar-free… But at least it’s a start!
Have you detoxed from sugar before? Are you a sugar addict? Post your comments below!
Love you all!
XoxoV