I am both excited and a little scared to start my water fast next week. As I've been having issues managing my candida symptoms and sluggish digestion, I have decided to try fasting to help give my system a break and hopefully put things back in balance. I am planning to take things easy, doing gentle yoga and resting as much as it feels necessary. I am also going to schedule a massage, which I don't think is so superficial right now.

I am planning to follow my water fast with a mono-diet cleanse -- I'm not sure exactly which fruit to eat during this time. Despite indulging in a massage next week, I don't really have a lot of money right now, so it is down to oranges, grapefruit, or bananas. Bananas would be the cheapest and most filling, and also gives me the option of blending some greens with my dinner (so some websites say). I don't know if this is true, or necessary.

I plan to go back on 80/10/10 after the cleanse, as I hope to tolerate fruit again, as I did very well before I began eating some cooked starch. Both my symptoms and digestion improved dramatically when I stuck to the program - neither have been the same since.

I know many of you here have fasted in one way or another - I would love to hear any of your advice or to listen to your experiences. Emotions have been intense lately and this is the factor I am most concerned about - how to get through my emotions without calming them with food. I am also wondering if it is okay to take a laxative - either a capsule or tea - while I am fasting?

This week I am giving myself a vacation from all my dietary restrictions and eating what I like, as long as it is raw and not blatantly bad for me (no grains, etc). I know it will help me to get through the cravings if I'm not feeling so deprived, and it's going to be some time before I can indulge in things like avocado again. I'm even going to have some cacao this week - it's been nine months since I've touched caffeine, so a little isn't going to kill me

Personally, my favorite to mono diet on is clementines.
They're sweeter than oranges, almost like candy, and very hydrating.

Anne Osborne did a several month long mono fast on oranges.

Bananas are delicious. However, if you added in greens with the bananas,
then it would no longer be a mono diet.

Greens typically take more energy to digest as well.