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5 Day Water Fast

pros and cons of minimum length fasts for therapeutic transformation

· insight

by Rob Hanna

The Pros:

  • you save money on food; 
  • your body can now internally rest, rejuvenate and start healing whatever ails you (if you permit it to do so by also physically resting and convalescing during this time);
  • you discover something you never believed was possible before – you can live without eating all the time;
  • you gain abundant willpower to overcome your delusions and petty impulses;
  • you gain easy mental clarity about what truly is and a greater calm that results from that... and more along these lines.

Cons:

  • some people will give you a hard time, criticize you and interpret your fasting as a personal affront to their beliefs and identity;
  • you might experience internal symptoms of discomfort (headaches, intestinal distress, anxiety, etc.) and/or social pressure to break your fast early, before 5 days;
  • you will no longer be who you previously were and you'll experience fundamental changes that will continue to evolve even after you stop fasting, see below* (this can also be considered a Pro)
  • you might break your fast incorrectly and suffer for it, which might include medical complications (fasting for long periods of time is easy, but breaking fasts correctly on a disciplined recovery diet is not).  Breaking fasts correctly (or not) are where you actually secure the health and wellness gains achieved, lose them entirely or do harm to yourself.

NOTE: I'm very biased to extoll the Pros and virtues of fasting. My personal experiences have been overwhelmingly positive and so have the experiences of those I've guided and advised in their fasting. So much so that I believe everyone should make fasting a routine part of how they live – consider it basic, fundamental holistic hygiene.some people should not fast for very specific medical reasons;

  • some people should not fast because it can be experienced as a severe intervention into who they are and what they believe about their world; and,
  • some people are simply not ready for rapid changes.

Fasting of five days or more is a profoundly powerful and transformational intervention – do not enter into it lightly...

... and on the other hand – nothing ventured, nothing gained – learn how to break your fasts correctly and then go baby, go!