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Thread: Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

  1. #1

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    Default Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

    Over the 3.5 month summer, I slowly transitioned myself from cooked vegan into a raw vegan lifestyle. Somewhere about a month and a half ago I was eating pretty much all raw (80 10 10). There were benefits like my face clearing up and an initial boost of energy, but the disadvantages outweighed them. I lost a lot of weight and energy (I couldn't eat enough) and it made me feel incredibly disconnected from people. I have gone back to cooked vegan and added common allergies like soy/wheat and am gaining weight and happier, but at the same time cannot SLEEP lately. It's been two weeks nearly of off and on insomnia for me (I went a 38 hour stretch of absolutely no sleep, and slept a good 8 hours after that and then have been weaving between 2-4 hour nights and normal ones). I cannot seem to calm down about this because I want and need the energy to enjoy life every day but I don't have it because as exhausted as I am on these nights, I have too much anxiety to actually go back to sleep. Is this a common symptom of going back to normal cooked foods? How long will this affect me? I am exercising lightly (it's so draining even to do this) and working daily but I still cannot sleep and it's really taking a toll on my attitude and life. Any other experiences?

  2. #2
    Hemlock's Avatar
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    Default Re: Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

    I found raw great, I get much more energy and after an initial weight drop it eventually levels out. Most raw vegans I know are very slim but not dangerously so.
    I don't get any symptoms particularly going back to cooked food as long as it isn't junk.
    Are you sure it isn't something else like stress or anaemia? Might be worth getting an 'mot' down the doctors surgery.
    Silent but deadly :p

  3. #3
    vegan unicorn mmmorgans's Avatar
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    Default Re: Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

    I was 90% raw for about a year and then transitioned to cooked vegan. I still eat a lot of raw food and like the idea of a raw lifestyle however I found it impossible to keep up woth. I felt like everything revolved around food and it got to be too much for me. I couldn't eat out with friends, I always had to bring my own food everywhere I went and it was expensive!!! I never lost a signifcant amount of weight when I was raw because I ate a lot of high fat raw foods and definitely treated myself often (raw ice cream, other desserts)
    I had an awful bought with super low energy recently. My Vitamin D, Iron & B12 levels were so low my doctor was shocked. After getting that in order I gained my energy back, wasn't as restless. I found also that a bit of excercise every day helps me sleep through the night and I don't really like working out, I just do something I enjoy that is also active (bike ride, walk to the beach, play WiiFit, etc.) I sure hope you can figure out what is going on with your body Mariogirl, I know that feeling and it is not fun. Best of luck to you!

  4. #4
    Fervent vegan DiaShel's Avatar
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    Default Re: Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

    I had a bad experience with going complete raw and went back to cooked foods. I feel so much happier and healthier with cooked foods. There are just so many great things that I missed so much. Yeah, just wasn't for me. I didn't enjoy eating at all, had zero energy and was just miserable.
    "To reduce suffering means to reduce the amount of ignorance, the basic affliction with us." -Thich Nhat Hanh

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    cedartree cedarblue's Avatar
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    Default Re: Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

    Quote mmmorgans View Post
    I still eat a lot of raw food and like the idea of a raw lifestyle however I found it impossible to keep up woth. I felt like everything revolved around food and it got to be too much for me. I had an awful bought with super low energy recently. My Vitamin D, Iron & B12 levels were so low
    i hear you mmmorgans!
    i have to agree too. i have had issues with low vit d for which i take supplements now as i also have low energy issues.

    i no longer like to say 'raw or not'. personally i have no desire to put a percentage on how much raw food i eat. i simply try to eat as much raw as i can without stressing about it.

    i am still researching the benefits of being 100% raw and am not convinced so far - plus i do enjoy eating hot and cooked foods.

    but good luck to anyone going the whole way i say - if it's for you and you are managing it effectively, thats well done!

    i hope you are able to get back to feeling properly well again, mariogirl!

  6. #6
    Mew Mew Mew! Kitteh's Avatar
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    Default Re: Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

    I've been high Raw twice and both times went back to cooked. I do try and eat a lot of raw foods but I don't think I'll ever be 100% and like Cedar said, why label it and stress about what % you are or should be according to others.

    I know I don't sleep as well when I've eaten food that I'm sensitive to (gluten/soy) so maybe try removing something from your diet and see if that helps.
    cupcakekitteh.blogspot.com

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    Default Re: Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

    I follow 80/10/10 and have done for a couple of years although do eat cooked vegetables with potatoes on occasion because I am still, even after 2 years, working on trying to get an abundance of fruit and enough for my appetite when I need it.

    I eat lots of fruit and I can NOT go back to eating cooked grains etc.

    When I intitially started I lost a lot of weight to the point that I could feel the hollows in my hip bones because I have no fat on my bump - but despite being that low in weight I had huge amounts of energy. DESPITE people worrying about me I eventually started to put on the weight again. I have a bum now, I am still slender but have always been a slender type but am slender than I was before my pregnancy and have maintained my weight now. I feel more comfortable anyway and even if I wanted to go back to cooked I couldn't. I don't - I would miss fruit too much on the level I eat it.

    Anyway during the few years of eating this way I have digressed back to eating some cooked foods. One time I ate rice because we were poor, had no potatoes so it was either that or nothing. The rice made me feel terrible. For 3 days I felt totally drained - exhausted - I couldn't cope. So I never ate rice again. I find wheat products have a similar effect too.

    I am ok with cooked veggies and potatoes but nothign beats eating fruit in my opinion.


    I would think it normal if you were heavily raw and going back to eating minimal raw foods but it would also depend on what you are eating. How much raw do you eat now? Maybe you could wean yourself down to help?

  8. #8
    Mew Mew Mew! Kitteh's Avatar
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    Default Re: Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

    I agree with starting slowly and working more and more fresh, Raw fruit and veg into your diet. I think people find Raw difficult if they jump right in. Also try and start now if it's still warm where you are and don't be surprised if you crave warmer foods during autumn/winter.
    cupcakekitteh.blogspot.com

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    Default Re: Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

    Thanks for the replies everyone! I am now eating a large portion of cooked food again, and I am feeling better from finally getting good sleep three nights in a row. My stomach is all topsy turvy still maybe because I did add some wheat and soy back into my diet. I'm so done trying to be healthy, lately. It just made social situations impossible, and I care more about my relationships with people than I do about being perfect.

  10. #10
    Hemlock's Avatar
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    Default Re: Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

    I don't know why it has to be all or nothing. I'm certainly guilty of all or nothing syndrome, spending a fortune on organic food, nuts and special herbs, walking for hours up hills looking for spring water etc etc.
    Yeah, great if I didn't have to work full time and only had myself to worry about. You just have to do your best.
    My compromise is to eat mostly raw now with some cooked, like unprocessed rice or wild rice, and cooking veg that I hate raw like parsnips in winter and drinking tap water. I do make sure we have a big green smoothie in the mornings and if we stay with people we'll just eat cooked vegan.
    So what - there are no raw police here
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  11. #11
    cedartree cedarblue's Avatar
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    Default Re: Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

    Quote Hemlock View Post
    Yeah, great if I didn't have to work full time and only had myself to worry about. You just have to do your best.
    .........
    So what - there are no raw police here


    here here! rawk on!

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    Default Re: Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

    I was high raw for a while, and enjoyed it. The idea of following a raw lifestyle is one that appeals to me very much, however so many raw dishes feel like a deprivation, or that I must have done something really, REALLY bad

    I get irritated at some raw food writers who gush at the simplicity of it all, or tell you to "get your fresh raw juice from your nearest juice bar." Like we all lived in Southern California or something...

    It is such a huge shift in mindset; from sprouting to dehydrating to foods we can no longer eat with which we have subconscious ties, be they emotional, psychological or physiological.

  13. #13

    Default Re: Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

    I think Hemlock's approach is very well-balanced - it's all about striking the balance that works best for you. I'm about 70% raw and have never felt better, I eat cooked vegan food most weekdays for dinner because I live with others and we all eat together and when I'm left to my own devices I'm pretty much raw all the time, but don't feel too restricted. I eat whatever I want, and what I want is food that makes me feel good and for me, that's raw food, so that's my rationale.

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    Lara_Hastings's Avatar
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    Default Re: Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

    Why incorporate wheat and soy back into your diet? Wouldn't it be better to eat cooked foods that are more healthy, like quinoa and legumes?
    I don't really think 100% raw is for anyone for a longer period of time, if one lives in a tropical place where there is an abundance of fruits maybe it could be fully possible. 100% works wonder and kills cancer and diabetes and what not, but I don't think it works that well on long term. But then again there are of course people out there who are thriving on this diet and have done so for many years, but also many have failed.

    Oh, and I would also suggest you check yourself for deficiencies, your insomnia problem might just be a sign of deficiency of some vitamin like b12.

  15. #15
    Can't cook. Sarah_'s Avatar
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    Default Re: Anyone tried raw and gone back? Is this normal?

    When I read through this thread it sounds exactly like conversations between folks trying to go vegan or vegetarian from being omni.
    I know it's off-topic, but it's worth a thought.
    Either this wallpaper goes, or I do.

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