I wasn't sure if I should create a new post for this or add to another related post but here it is. It appeared as though almost as soon as I went raw I started having problems with my ears blocking up. This is the kind of blocking you feel like when the pressure changes on an airplane. It comes and goes and doesn't seem to have any real pattern except that it is more common in the morning or when I am exercising. But, this does not always hold consistently. I don't have any wax buildup and no infections in my ears. It appeared to get better the more alkaline I kept myself so I do think there might be a relationship to my acidity/alkalinity.

Has anyone ever heard of this? Does anyone have any suggestions? I am still hesitant to head off to my traditional, medical doc because I am certain she might want to put me on meds.

Also, the topic of detox has come up a few times. How does one know when they are detoxed???

Thanks for any input.

Patty

Hi Sewraw,

I had this, but just ignored it because it wasn't painful. Are your ears hurting you?

When you say "detoxed", do you mean completely finished detoxing? If so, you don't really find out when. Detox comes and goes. If, say, one has been raw for years and then does their first long water fast, they can still detox. I have great deal of exposure to toxins as I live in the incredibly polluted city of Santo Domingo, DR. I detox a lot of junk every time I go into a sauna. (If I stay in long enough, I get a mongo headache.)

If, however, you mean, when are you finished transitioning to raw, I've heard a couple of estimates: Victoria Bouchenco has said it's an average of two years, and David Wolfe has said the same, but he's also said to take the number of years you've been eating cooked, and that's the number of months you can expect your transition to last.

Hope that helps, or that someone posts something that does help,

Betty

"Don't believe everything you think,"

Have you ruled out an allergy or food sensitivity? Are you eating a raw food product that wasn't part of your normal consumption before?

Seabucktho,

You made a very good point that I had never really considered. Coincidentally, I just received a biweekly e-mailing from Dr. Mercola (E-Healthy News You Can Use) and one of the topics was food allergies/sensitivities. Now this has got me thinking. I really am not sure that I added something completely foreign but I can think of a couple of things that I am eating differently and in much larger quantities than before - tahini, sunflower pates are a couple. As laborious as this sounds, I guess I am going to have to start a food diary and track it.

Thanks again for the thump on the head.

Patty

I have food allergies and there are certain foods I could "tolerate" when processed. But when I am eating them raw, they have a much stronger effect and I have to stay away from them. Food allergies usually kick in within 30 minutes or so of eating something. So if you just eat one food at a time, you should be able to isolate a reaction. So maybe for a few days, don't combine any fruits or veggies...just eat them one at a time. That's really the only way to tell IMO.

islandgirl said, "Food allergies usually kick in within 30 minutes or so of eating something." but that's not always true. There are food allergies, food sensitivities, and food intolerances, and they all can take varying amounts of time to manifest -- as long as a week in some cases I've heard of. So take careful notes and when you have a suspect, challenge yourself with it and watch closely.

Jeff

I have started to pay attention to the ear blocking up thing and here is what I noticed...it happens every single time after I eat. It starts anywhere from 30 to 60 min after eating and the duration and intensity varies. So this seems to be after I eat anything but I am wondering if I can eat single foods only without problem. Like I mentioned in the initial message, this never happened like this until I went raw. Little bits that I read here and there point to a build up of "toxins" and the fact that this is happening is that I am detoxing too much too fast and should ease up.

Patty

I had a "healing crisis" where I went deaf in one ear. From lack of strong belief, I run to a conventional doctor who prescribed antibiotics (ugh) I dare say I took one night of them but I felt so sick by them that I immediately drop them. The only thing that really helped me was wheatgrass juice. I was "cured" instantly. The thought of going deaf scared me a lot... I am fine now but all the accumulated toxins went to the chest and ear.