Hubby and I started 'flirting' as flexitarians nearly 2 weeks ago, removing meat, but still eating some dairy (but reduced) and used chicken broth in some brown rice.
I know that I must be doing something wrong because I do believe I should start to feel better not so much worse. Yes I do understand that my body is purging itself of so many toxins, but can't believe that I should feel THIS bad. For nearly a week or so, off-and-on I've had an upset stomach (kinda nauseous), also off/on sinus/nasal congestion (not phlegmy, just like stuff is swollen in there, making it more difficult to breathe), and an off/on headache, which has been constant over the last 2 days. Headache is through the temples and down the back of neck. Read about and bought a Migrastick (locally sold as Mygrastick?) and it helped a little with the headache.
Then here's the weird one- bruising. I've always bruised easily and had it checked out by a doctor many years ago who after tests just told me, 'Some women just bruise easily.' Yeah, that's helpful. I got a doozy of a bruise on my calf from the corner of the dishwasher door (ouch!) that looks horrid. I have others from carrying/moving some equipment at work. It's not uncommon for me to find bruises on myself and not remember when/where/how I got them but things are to a ridiculous level now!
I read in Alicia's book that burdock root is supposed to be good for the blood so bought it and am planning on trying one of the recipes with it in it, in hopes it will help (bruising is pooled blood, right? -could be a blood issue?).
My suspicion on the bruising is that I'm missing some sort of nutrient and I posted something asking folks about that, but no responses yet (http://www.thekindlife.com/discussion_posts/list/2/5376/1).
I figure the headache and possibly the stomach thing could be linked to neck alignment issue, but what of bruising?

Sounds to me like you need more iron. If you cant get it from natural sources such as nuts, dark green veggies, etc... please take a supplement. Its extremely important to your overall well being. I'm a mother of  who was anemic prior to motherhood and also had 4 c-sections, I'm pretty knowledgeable on the topic. The headaches, bruising, overall cruddy feeling can all be associated to a lack of iron.

Thank you Christina. I've missed taking my vitamins for about the same amount of time, although not sure Iron is in them. I'll be sure to start taking some in addition to my regular vitamins (assuming not in them) PRONTO.
Thank you!

No problem! Just an added note, do combine iron w/ vit c contain foods or orange juice, it will absorb better and if your still drinking milk or anything else dairy, don't do so at the same time as the iron because it will not be absorbed. Calcium and iron don't go well together.

I used to work for United Blood Services and had to remind donors all the time ;)

hi there....i would try to eat as superhero as possible while detoxing from your meat. and if you are still eating dairy i would try really hard to move away from that...and sugar. and add as much f the kind foods in as possible...greens, miso, the cure all tea for sure. make sure you have beans r tempeh or seitan or some solid porien every day....and give it a few weeks...the more you move toward superhero the more your body will get happy...and these symptoms of detox should go away...but dairy is a real killer in terms of feeling crappy...so try and let go and heal with superhero foods....if you are eating greens and beans every day i wouldnt add the supplements yet...but if you are not then yes for sure take....good luck and keep us posted

I was anemic for a number of months due to menstrual bleeding way before I went vegan. My obgyn put me on iron, but had me take it every other day and definately with C like Christina mentioned to help with absorption.  Taking the supplements can cause backups in the "plumbing" department, so be sure to take them with plenty of water, if you are going to do the supplements.

Thanks for the additional info Christina, as well as suggestions from Alicia and Naomi!
Since 'Aunt Flo' will be here next week, I think I will definitely do some iron supplements but be careful not to take too much (know that can be a problem w/some supplements) as I also incorporate some of the other suggestions in the natural food sources.
Alicia, I've never been a milk drinker but love my cheese. I have already cut back on it and will try to further wean myself now, especially now with how crummy I feel. Bleah!
I'll ramp up the water drinking (haven't been so good lately on that either!) for the time being and definitely keep you all posted.
Thanks again!

Hey Trishkie,
I totally empathize with you - I am a die hard cheese lover and it was terribly hard for me to give it up. I made a committment to quitting it, though, so I quit it completely. I went through my pantry reading labels, and I kid you not, at least ONE HALF of the items in my pantry contain dairy in some form. Dang! Spaghetti sauce, croutons, soup, dangit! I did not throw things away (waste not!) but put them on the highest shelf in my cupboard. Outta sight, and hopefully out of mind! Cutting out dairy has been without a doubt the single most powerful thing I have done to improve my health.

Although not completely free of chemical junk, the So Delicious brand has a non-dairy, non-soy (i'm allergic to both dairy and soy) line of products made from coconut milk. I have tried the coffee creamer and "minis" (like ice cream sandwiches) and they are pretty good.

I hope you feel better soon!

Jennifer

I agree 1000% with Alicia....go for the greens and beans before the supplements! Your body will gain more from a food source than from a pill but some people aren't fond of certain foods or are still lacking, so thenyou'll probably need to supplement. I had to every time I was pregnant unfortunately but I thankfully never had the plumbing problem!

Wow, thanks for all of the suggestions and personal experiences!

I gave in and took some Excedrin which has dulled the headache. But on the positive side, made some of Alicia's Magical Healing Soup and it was pretty tasty! My version included some thinly sliced lotus root and burdock root, small amount of wakame and miso. I was trying to make a small batch and was getting crazy with all of the veggies added so didn't get the leek cut & cleaned in time, so was just as well since it was thick with veggies. Also didn't include the ginger juice,
Surprises: Burdock root has a very strong flavor (this was 1st time trying), so will maybe grate it into soup next time instead of small pieces, slightly smaller than the carrot pieces. As I went to eat my 1st button mushroom slice I was thinking how much better I like them sauteed in butter (bad!), I was pleasantly surprised with how tasty the subtle flavor was - similar to the natural flavor that comes out with sauteeing. Nice! Lotus root was a new one for me and I bought in a package, pre-sliced in some sort of liquid. I tasted it as preparing the soup and apparently it was lightly pickled (didn't know because package writing all in Japanese!). Very tasty as a snack just like that! Not a lot of flavor but a bit of crunch. I dig it!
In all, I really liked how I started to appreciate the flavors of the different veggies. Guess I'm starting to appreciate the subtleties of different foods. Thanks Alicia, and all of you so supportive on the site!
BTW, planning a black bean soup tonight, so that should help w/the iron issue. :)

Hey Trishkie: Sorry you aren't feeling well. The symptoms you describe are mostly the kind I have experienced and identify as "detox," symptoms. You can expect them to lessen, but you may have them off and on as you continue to put natural, high quality, non or less-toxic food into your system.

As far as the blood thing. Platelet function is different for different people. I tend to have thinner blood than other people, and bruise more easily. When I eat a lot of spinach and ginger, or cayenne or other peppers, in particular, I notice that I bruise much more easily. Also, at those times, when my blood is thinner, if I get a nose bleed, or am bleeding for any other reason ;), I notice the blood is thin rather than thick.

You can research Vedic info about diet, and look for vegan foods that are more blood thickening, or strengthening, rather than thinning. Remember, however, your body is unique. You may have to really pay attention to determine what vegan and natural foods might not be ideal for you, and avoid them and replace them with vegan and natural foods that are.

Hope this helps.

Smiles,
H

Hey Everyone,

I can empathsize with all of you and your detox symptoms. I have been doing vegetarian 60% and vegan the other 40% for 5wks now and yesterday I caved and ate an icecream and today I feel horrid...flat out awful..dizzy, headache, nauseaous, tired....and that's from just eliminating the "gunk" 40% of the time. ew.....over the 5wks my skin has just errupted like a pimplely faced teenager , I am sure this a detox sign just a little harder to stay motivated through the zit attacks. I'm going full on superhero as much as I can in the following weeks in hopes that I see the huge results Alicia describes.

Good luck everyone....lets keep on going!

I'm sorry I have failed to provide a follow-up until now. I was feeling bad about what I had to tell...
Good news, bad news, good news:

The 1st good news is that I started feeling better. The headache subsided and the general achiness disapated.
Bad news- I ate meat. (I'm still 'flirting,' and my primary focus is to remove all meat from my diet. I'm trying to reduce dairy, but not pulling that totally just yet.) I was feeling horrible and hubby wanted to get me out of the house and said some friends invited us out to eat, and it was a local Japanese restaurant that has the primary focus on sushi. I love me some sushi so gave in and indulged. I'm not positive that was what made me feel better (physically), but I definitely started feeling better later that evening.
The 2nd good news is that I've been back on the no-meat wagon for a good couple of weeks now and feeling good. Yay! Occasionally not feeling so great, but not like that first time. :)

Readygurl- Funny you should mention the zit attack because I've been having that problem off/on for a couple of weeks - and not necessarily related to any 'monthly' stuff. I hope that doesn't go on for much longer. Ugh!

Thank you all for your suggestions and support. I'll try to keep you posted - and please keep the suggestions and ideas coming! :)

Hi, I was wondering if you can experience these detox symptoms by just cutting out meat? I'm not vegan yet, still eat dairy and have been feeling really tired and low on energy. Is dairy a lot heavier than meat? I also noticed that I have intense cravings for sweets, especially chocolate. Anyone feeling the same way?

For me sweets are like drugs in the way that the more I eat, the more I crave.  If I do not engage in sweet foods the cravings go away and I feel so much better, but as soon as I give in I have to almost go through a withdrawel again. 

I went vegetarian about 3 weeks ago and found I had some mild side effects for about one week.  I was a very heavy meat eater.  I feel extremely hungry all the time, lightheaded and dizzy and just kind of weird-but now I feel the best I ever have and I know that when I start to go vegan (almost there) that I will feel even better.  Hang in there and good luck!  :)