has anyone tried a long term fast?

i have been reading about the positive effects fasting can have on a variety of issues including ibd....i am really intrigued.  the prospect of fasting for 3 weeks or more is a little scary....but i don't like the idea of being on meds for the rest of my life either which cannot and do not cure this disease.  for centuries it has been believed that the body had the ability to heal itself, but you cannot feed sickness and disease.  i know doctors do not believe fasting benefits patients, but do pred and other drugs the liver has to deal with.  I can see no improvement from the time i have been started on meds for uc.  i actually had longer remission before beginning drugs.  Maybe all the poisons i have put in my mouth for 35 yrs has something to do with this awful disease, i don't know....I am contemplating this very seriously....i know many are sceptical, but Fasting for me would certainly not kill me at 200 pounds and 6 ft tall.  i read the story of jack goldstein, a dr. who overcame uc 40 years ago after being told to have his colon removed or he would die...it was certainly compelling....he fasted all food and drank only water for 40 days and overcame uc....something to think about.

 

i am not in terrible shape at this time.  I have been in a flare for about 2 months, though i only go 3 or 4 times a day with some blood, but one day i may  be in too poor condition to even make it an option....the key is you want to totally free the body from using any energy at all digesting and to completely remove toxins from the body.  i don't know how long i would do water only, but i would eventually add juice and veg broth.  I read a news story about another woman who did the same thing and was cured.  Dr's are trained to give meds.  that is what they do....let's face it, they can't cure this stupid disease.

I read an interesting article about it recently...and was tempted, too.

But not eating enough would make me bleed worse, so I'm not sure it would really work. You might get better, or way worse.

but the key is that the body does not have to use any energy at all to digest foods.  we have tons of stored energy in our body....i know i do for sure...lol.  apparently it takes a lot of energy to digest.  I have been reading lots of stories on the subject.  Why do we only believe what our docs tell us.  They only know what they have been taught, and most have been taught that it is useless.  But they will give us meds that can cause all kinds of problems.  I am not anti doctor, just know that they are human and only know what they have learned.  There is a lot of info out there on fasting.  When i begin, i will give a daily blog on here so others can see what happens.  I know my next step in 6 mp and i don't want to take any drug that alters my body if i don't have to.  I think it is worth a shot. 

yeah, i don't know how long i can go, but if i had to suffer without food for a period, but could find relief from uc, it would be worth it.

I've heard of people on a raw milk fast, but not just water. Personally, I would be leery of not having some nutritional input for a prolonged period of time. I think the argument for something like raw milk (or other food replacement) is that it gives your bowels a rest while still providing nutrition (thus accelerating healing).

But whatever works for you is the best choice.

I tried a long term fast about 3 years ago during a flare, thinking it would heal me quickly.  Instead I lost so much weight and got so weak that all I could do was lay in bed.  My flare got worse, my hair started falling out and I looked anorexic.  I didn't tell my family that I was on a strict fast because they would of thought I was nuts.  My husband finally had to bring me to the emergency one evening for severe dehydration and then he started making me eat food again.  It was so difficult because after fasting for so many weeks I started gagging when I finally tried to eat something.  It was weeks before I started to gain my strength back.

So make sure you know what your doing when you start your fast and drink enough electrolytes to prevent dehydration.