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If it was not me writing this post, I might come across the title and raise some of my personal red flags. If this is happening for you, please stay with me.
“Doesn’t she know?! Detoxing while breastfeeding is not a good idea!” I am smiling as I write this to you.
I want you to know that there are many ways to detoxify our bodies. Some are completely safe, and yes, some are less than ideal for a breastfeeding body.
Insight into Detoxification
Detoxification in general is already happening on a daily basis. Your lungs, lymphatic system, skin, liver, kidneys, and digestive system are all filtering internal and external toxins on a daily basis. Another way of looking at detoxification is cleansing.
Many of us when – we think of detoxing – think of extreme methods of detoxification: the Master cleanse, juicing, fasting, herbal detox protocols, and colon hydrotherapy. Ideally, these forms of detoxification are used for up to 3 days only, and as a way of jolting the system into a complete reboot – such as in the case of an urgent need for intense detoxification in the treatment of certain cancers.
I know that many readers may find this perspective against the grain. It is different than the common belief of our current health-culture – it may even contradict a personal experience you have already had. I completely respect your experiences, and by no means want to threaten, combat, or take away those experiences of radiant health.
Setbacks of Detoxification
One of the key concerns in using extreme protocols is that after 3 days of intense detoxification, the body begins compensating for lack of nutrients, and this creates imbalance. Seeds are deeply planted in a newly reset/ shocked body, that may include nutrient deficiencies, cravings, slowing metabolism, and heavy metal load increases. In other words, while we may feel amazing in the moment, behind the scenes so to speak our bodies are holding on to old , possibly taking on new toxins.
The organs of detoxification use energy to maintain their cleansing activities. After about 3 days, the process of detoxification begins to slowly deplete the body’s natural energy and resources, planting seeds for difficulty down the road.
If you are breastfeeding, it is important to be gentle with your body. A jolt or powerful reset to your own body can carry unwanted effects over to your nursing little one. Furthermore, your body needs the variety of nutrients and the calories to maintain your healthy body and your child’s.
During breastfeeding, a woman’s body is working double-time to detoxify all of the pollutants – internal and external – that she comes into contact with, so that these toxins are filtered as much as possible to create optimally pure and nutritious breast milk.
Good News!
One great thing to keep in mind is that childbirth itself is one of the most powerful forms of cleansing we can undergo as women, and it is completely natural. Our bodies are designed to eliminate toxins. After childbirth and during breastfeeding, we are naturally undergoing a powerful and rigorous cleanse. The KEY toxins we encounter during this time are the powerful emotions that accompany one of the biggest changes of our lives.
This is why, in addition to sleep, nutrition, and exercise, emotional support is the most important factor in detoxification while breastfeeding.
The safest method of detoxification is simple, slow, and gentle. I will discuss details of this more below. First, I want to further address the power of emotions.
The Energy of our Cellular Detoxification
While it may seem counter-intuitive, at a cellular and energetic level our children are resonating with the energies is us that ARE there, whether we express, acknowledge or even have awareness of them.
There are many ways of detoxification – most involve some form of fluid transport out of the body. Every time we sweat, cry, have a runny nose, urinate, have a bowel movement, and vomit, we are detoxifying. Wild, right? As you know, our bodies are made up of roughly 60% water, and fluids are the optimal medium of internally and externally washing our bodies clean.
A brief personal story: If you do not already know, my daughter was attacked by a dog and severely bitten on her cheek at 19 months old. She was still breastfeeding at the time. I went into months of post-traumatic stress disorder, and I continued to breastfeed my daughter. I drank more coffee, exercised less at first, got little sleep, and generally coped in the ways that got me through it at the time.
I also underwent therapy to heal the emotions that were occurring in lightning speed. I cried a lot. A lot. Every day for a while. I hired a life-coach as well to support me in focussing on the future and what I wanted to create moving forward – investing time, money and faith in my dreams. The stress, anxiety, grief, and panic were far more toxic to me, my body and to my daughter than the expression and release of these energies during therapy, exercise, talks with friends, and coaching sessions. And the payoff was huge – healing, rewarding, and empowering.
20 Powerful Ways to Safely Detoxify While Breastfeeding
- Create support to emotionally and energetically detoxify – therapy, counseling, life-coaching, a workshop, acupuncture, massage, or another therapeutic support.
- Create time for yourself to sleep, gently exercise, and relax on a regular basis.
- Eat Green Soup up to 1x daily. (New Recipe link coming soon! Until then, click HERE.)
- Drink 32-64 ounces of fresh pure water daily.
- Cut processed foods down to 20% of your entire food intake.
- Take a daily probiotic supplement, and add naturally probiotic foods to your
- Switch to organic ingredients as possible for you.
- Eliminate processed white sugar.
- Dance, laugh, play, cry and unload whatever is on your shoulders, heart, and mind daily.
- Increase your vegetable intake to cover 1/2 or more of your plate at least 2 meals per day.
- Cook with (or have others cook for you) and eat healthy fats – organic olive oil, coconut oil, ghee, and butter made from grass-fed cows.
- Breathe deeply.
- Focus your mind on thoughts that
- Avoid exposure to harsh chemicals and environmental pollutants as possible.
- Take sea salt baths.
- Use therapeutic-grade essential oils to enhance your healthy body.
- Eat plenty of fresh fruits.
- Eat a nutrient-dense diet, full of clean protein, healthy fats, fresh fruits and vegetable, and if you want, digestible grains. Our bodies hold on to toxins as placeholders when we are missing key nutrients.
- Experience authentic joy every day!
- Resolve any digestive concerns or other physical imbalances with the support of your doctor or alternative health care practitioner.
If you have questions or thoughts about any of the ideas in this article, please comment below! I want to hear from you, and I am here to support YOU in creating your optimal health.
