Reasons Why You May Feel Worse

Working to improve your health often requires detective skills. There will be times when you feel worse instead of better, and you'll have to use your skills to figure out why. 

So here are some thoughts that I hope will help you when you wonder why you're feeling worse instead of better. 

First of all, if you haven't been doing anything lately to improve your health, then you can assume that if you're feeling worse, it's not a good thing. New symptoms or old symptoms returning are a warning sign for you. Your body is trying to get your attention. It's telling you it needs help! So please listen to your body and take some positive actions for your health.

Now, if you have been doing things to improve your health (lymphatic massage, detox baths, supplements, etc.), and you start to feel worse, there are several options of what might be happening. 

- an undedected chemical exposure

- an allergic reaction (more about allergies here)

- combination allergy to something you're detoxing and something you're normally ok with

- detoxing symptoms (more info here)

- your body trying to find its new "normal"

etc.

Let's look at some possible examples:

You visit a friend's house every week, but this week for some reason you feel awful by the time you leave - aching, tired, headache, etc. Why?

You've been taking a new supplement that seems to be helping, then suddenly you break out in a rash. Why? 

You eat something you've eaten before many times, but this time have a problem with it. Why? 

Ok, in the first example, since you've been fine at your friend's house before, you guess that something must be different this time. You call your friend and discover her husband sprayed for weeds right before you came. So the reason you felt worse was because of a chemical exposure. You didn't know about it, but your body felt the effects of it.

Example number two could be that you're having a delayed allergic reaction to the new supplement. Or it could be that the supplement is boosting your immune system or causing your body to detox something that needs to come out through the skin, thus the rash. This is actually a good sign.

In the third example, it's possible that something you are detoxing is reacting with the food you're normally ok with. Or it could be that as you've detoxed/healed, your nutritional needs have changed and your body doesn't want that particular food right now. 

There are other possible variations as well. It's not always easy to figure out what the problem is, but hopefully considering these options will guide you in your detective work. It's important to remember that not all symptoms are a bad thing. Sometimes they're actually a good indication that your body is indeed healing.

As far as what to do in these kinds of situations, taking tri-salts is good for allergic reactions and chemical exposures, and it won't hurt even if that's not what is happening. 

For chemical exposures, try to get away from or remove the chemical source as soon as you figure it out. Drink lots of water, take a detox bath, hold some zinc tablets in your right hand for 10 minutes, etc.

If you're fairly certain the symptoms are from detoxing, then try to endure knowing that it's part of the healing process. Again, you can drink more water, take extra Vit. C, get a detox bath, do deep breathing, get extra rest, and/or slow down with the supplements/therapies that started the detoxing. 

As you heal, your body will be changing. Pay attention to healthy cravings, such as for certain fruits or vegetables, or wanting more or less meat, raw foods or cooked foods, etc. Your body will try to communicate its needs. 

(Some examples: at times I crave tangerines, or I can't even think about eating zucinni, or an apple sounds like the best thing in the world, etc. Of course, unhealthy cravings for sugary or junk foods doesn't mean you should eat them, but does indicate a need in your body.) 

Sometimes you may feel worse because of doing too many detoxing/healing therapies at once. Your body may be overwhelmed. In that case, back off and start more slowly. Detoxing/healing doesn't always feel good. A little discomfort is expected, but you don't want to push your body to heal faster than it can handle. 

Well those are some thoughts. I hope they're helpful. If you have any questions, let me know. And I hope you have more days of feeling better and fewer days of feeling worse. =)