My Early Recovery Tips

"I Think this is a great plan for getting through the first week or so.” - Dr. Vera Tarman, author of Food Junkies.

Sugar detox is no joke. The first 7-14 days can be brutal. Here are some things I did in EARLY that I want to share with you!

In my deepest addiction I gained actual pounds after every binge (and then restricted to try to undo what I had done.) I was insulin resistant, I used steroid creams for my sugar-related skin issues, I had high fasting glucose, elevated CRP, (C-reactive protein indicates inflammation in the body.) I had memory issues, depression, anxiety, fatigue, body aches, ringing in my ears from high insulin, etc. I had no confidence in myself because I couldn’t stop eating sugar for even one day. I was desperate and hopeless. 

Now I am free. By the Grace of God today I am not actively in my addiction. I am not craving something that will never satisfy me. I am not a slave to sugar and processed food.

I am FREE.

Christ set me free.

He set me free so I could live!

He set me free so I could have peace.

He set me free so I could have joy!

He set me free so I could thrive.

He set me free so I could be present!

He set me free so I could be powerful.

He set me free so I could be free!

I will not be burdened again by that heavy yoke of sugar.

My favorite Bible verse is Galatians 5:1.

"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery."

That is my favorite verse because it reminds me what God wants for me. He doesn’t want me to be hiding in shame, crippled by the effects of my addiction, he wants me to be living boldly and joyfully, standing in the freedom he has already bought for me!  

If you are struggling with sugar addiction, do not fear. You can overcome sugar and processed food addiction and live in the freedom God desires and has for you. Do not give up. You are not alone.

So where do you start? How do you get from being totally in bondage to being totally free?
I sat down this morning and wrote the most important things I did in early recovery. Everyone is different, so you might not need or want all that I have laid out, just take what you need and leave the rest! 

I got Connected. When I first realized I was addicted to sugar I felt very alone. To my knowledge I was the only 30-something woman who would eat candy out of her purse at her kid’s baseball practice! No one in my immediate friend group seemed to be in my situation, so I went online and found out very quickly that I was not alone. There are so many smart and competent people all over the world who struggle with sugar and processed food addiction.

I created a Facebook group to connect with Christians who struggle with sugar and food addiction. This is a dedicated Christian Support Group but anyone is welcome! The tools and motivational tips we discuss are not exclusive to the Christian faith and can be helpful for everyone.

I lit a fire under myself by becoming informed. I got educated around the topic of processed food and what it was doing to me. Knowledge is power! It creates change and results!

I channeled all my desperation into researching what I was experiencing. I read about what was happening in my body to make me insulin resistant (eeek!) and how damaging sugar and processed foods were to my delicate hormonal system and brain. I also read about how the food giants are exploiting our health for their profit. It turns out we are addicted on purpose! The food industry has hooked us! If you read these books you will start to see sugar and processed food for what it is, and it will give you the impetus to make some hard changes. 

Fat Chance: Beating The Odds Against Sugar, Processed-Foods, Obesity and Disease by Robert Lustig
Salt Sugar Fat: How The Food Giants Hooked Us - Michael Moss
Grain Brain: The Surprising Truth about Wheat, Carbs, and Sugar - Your Brain's Silent Killers by David Perlmutter
Food Junkies: The Truth About Food Addiction - by Dr. Vera Tarman
Bright Line Eating: The Science of Living Happy, Thin and Free - by Susan Peirce Thompson

If I had to pick one book for you to read it would be Bright Line Eating (BLE for short.) It is a comprehensive view of what is happening in your body and brain when you are addicted to sugar, and why it isn’t your fault! I went on her plan laid out in her book (weighed and measured amounts, no sugar and flour) and it provided instant freedom from food chatter. I don’t use her plan currently as I find that if I avoid flour and sugar and processed food I have no problem moderating whole foods. But this program is lifesaving for many people, and they stay on it for life! Check it out!

I also spent a ton of time listening to podcasts about sugar addiction. Podcasts like Food Addicts in Recovery Anonymous and Overeaters Anonymous are both incredible resources. Though I am not a member of these programs, the people on these podcasts have amazing stories of resilience and overcoming. The episodes are recordings of meetings they have. When I was at the beginning of my recovery I listened to a few of these a day. Go to your purple podcast app on your iPhone (or whatever podcast app you have) and search. I listen to these podcasts when I need to remember that sugar and food addiction is real - that people are still struggling with it, and I could be one of them if I let my guard down. When I listen to these inspirational stories and how these people found freedom it reminds me how powerful addiction is, and how I never want to be actively addicted again. It also reminds me that I am not alone. There are THOUSANDS of addicts around the country and world just like me. 

I was on the Food Junkies podcast recently sharing my story. Listen to it as well as the above podcasts to get inspired and encouraged! You are not alone and if I can do it, you can too!

I started to write. I wrote every day. True, real and honest writing. Whether I was bingeing or whether I was eating well, I wrote about my food. I have years of such journal entries in my notes app on my phone, and let me tell you, I would not be here today, free, if I did not have these entries. If you are in the thick of addiction right now, please write about it. Write every gory detail. When you start to climb out of the pit of addiction your past journal entries can help you remember how far you've come and where you never want to go again!

Every morning I journaled about where I was, how I felt, and what I was thankful for, etc. And then I spent a few minutes reading over old journal entries from when I was totally addicted to sugar. I got up off my couch like WHEW I am soooo glad I am not addicted to sugar anymore! Those journal entries took me right back to when I was hopeless, and shined a light on the contrast of where I am now, hopeful and THRIVING! 

I got on my knees every morning, (and multiple times throughout the day.) In my recovery I learned that unless I pray constantly, asking God to come into my life minute by minute, I will revert back to using food as a crutch. God is powerful, and he can help us overcome our addiction. Let’s ask Him! I needed a crutch to deal with the reality of life. I am a highly sensitive person and I don’t like to experience pain of any kind, physical or emotional, even painful thoughts and feelings. I stopped using alcohol in 2019 (I haven’t had a drink since!) and since that time sugar was always there for me to take the edge off. Until it started to make me sick and fat and stole my freedom. Now I have a choice to make every day. Do I choose to medicate myself with something that will steal my peace and make me a slave to it, or will I choose to rely on something powerful and loving and calm, like God? Today I choose God. Thank you, Lord. ❤️

Practical things I did: I cleaned out my kitchen. If it’s in my house it’s only a matter of time before I eat it. Period. I cannot keep certain things in my house. Last night my kids had brownies and ice cream and after they were done with it I disposed of it all. We don’t need leftover brownies in our house! It was a nice Saturday night treat, not a multi-day treat! This keeps me decision-fatigue-free.

Speaking of decision-fatigue, I avoided grocery stores for the first month. I ordered all our groceries online so I didn’t have to be face to face with the foods I had just detoxed from. 

What I ate: I ate ENOUGH. Now is not the time to restrict calories. We have to tell our bodies that we are not starving ourselves. If we restrict calories while we are trying to detox from sugar our best attempts will fail. I ate tons of healthy food. I cut out all bread/pasta/flour type items as well because they would make the sugar cravings linger. Eliminating these foods all at once made my detox much easier. 

I eliminated:

All flour and resulting products (including nut/rice flour, etc.)

All highly processed food

All added/refined sugar

I ate tons of:

Vegetables

Fruit 

Healthy gluten-free grains like rice, millet, GF oatmeal (To understand the difference between whole grains like these and flours please consider reading Bright Line Eating.)

Good fats like avocados, olives, olive oil, butter, etc

Meats of all kind 

Nuts and nut butters 

If you are feeling overwhelmed by figuring out what to eat, just keep it simple. Maybe plan on eating the same thing every meal until you get through your first week. For example, this is a day of meals when I was detoxing:

Breakfast: 

3 eggs 

2 oz. mixed greens 

4 oz. Millet (you can have potatoes or oatmeal instead) 

2 oz. Avocado mash 

1 apple 

1 oz. nut butter 

Every single morning! That sounds like a lot of food, doesn’t it? It is! Our bodies need a lot of food if we are active and alive in our world! Now I am full and I don’t eat anything until lunch. No snacking. Just LOTS of water and a sprinkle of Himalayan sea salt in one of my 8 oz. glasses of water.

Lunch: 

9 oz. veggies (I love the frozen organic bag of chopped vegetables.)

4 oz. of some kind of protein, usually chicken or fish leftover from dinner the night before, but a can of tuna or any other protein would work, even beans or tofu if you are vegetarian. 

4 oz. of grain: either potato, millet, rice, oats. Nothing processed, so no crackers, etc.

6 oz of fruit. Banana or apple or some berries.

.5 oz of olive oil on my veggies

Dinner:
Some version of my lunch, except I don’t have fruit at dinner. 

That is IT. So simple! And I do basically this today, with little variation. Obviously you don’t have to measure out these items! I found it very helpful to put my food on the scale when I was first detoxing. It eliminated the food chatter and made eating automatic. The important thing is, no snacking and just three meals a day. Eat enough at each meal that you aren’t famished an hour after your meal. Following the plan I laid out above I lost ten pounds in 30 days. And more than the weight loss, I felt amazing and FREE!

What I drank: Water water and more water! And believe it or not, when we cut out processed food we need to add more salt because suddenly our simply prepared food will provide less minerals. I added a pinch of quality Himalayan sea salt to my first glass of water every morning. It seems counter-intuitive, but having enough salt in our body is necessary, and actually helps us stay hydrated! I also drank two cups of black coffee as well as my favorite seltzers as a treat.

How I treated myself: I was so kind to myself. I napped. I rested. I sat on the couch and read chapter after chapter aloud to my kids and connected. I hugged my pets and family. (Connection truly is the opposite of addiction!) I cut things out of my schedule that caused me stress and put them off until later. My number one goal was breaking my addiction to sugar. Putting myself first for an entire week may seem selfish but really it was selfless. I was making myself better so I could be better for everyone else. We have to prioritize our health so we can be everything we need to be for those who count on us! 

Check off the days! Get excited about your progress. Make an old-school star chart and be proud of every day you are closer to your goal of being free. Share your progress with others on this group so they feel encouraged and that they may be able to make positive changes too! Your hard work and grit can be an inspiration to others! 

You can do this. I believe in you, and you should believe in you too. There is so much ahead of you, a life being free from sugar and processed food!

I would love to talk to you. I am offering 1:1 coaching to eliminate sugar and processed food addiction and I would love to set up a free call with you! Here is the course information.

You can also watch a quick video on my Early Recovery tips here.

I wrote this poem when I was struggling with problem drinking and coming to terms with the fact I needed to quit it for good. I still read it every now and then and it reminds me powerfully to let the sad things be true, and to not cheat myself by numbing the pain away with sugar, alcohol, or anything else. 

I dedicate this to you. You can do it. Do it for yourself. 

Do It For Yourself

Do it for yourself.

For the kid that you once were

The deep down satisfaction

Do it for the pure

Joy inside your head

Laughter in your soul

Hope inside your bones

Peace that you will feel.

Do it for yourself.

Cry for yourself too

Feel the hurt and hardness

Ache and heartache too.

Do it for yourself.

Let the sad things be true

Aging parents, dying youth

Drive the straight way through. 

Do it for yourself.

Let the hurt around you sting

breathe it in and feel it

It’s not all that there will be.

Do it for yourself.

Help yourself to see

After hell has been walked through 

There’s so much more to be.

Do it for yourself.

Wake up with the sun

Covered in a blanket 

Of all that hasn’t been.

Hurt you haven’t caused

Pain you haven’t felt

Lies you haven’t told

Death you haven’t held.

Do it for yourself.

For the wrinkled older you

With her clarity of eyes

And moments she can’t undo.

Do it for yourself.

For the freedom that it brings

The absence of “what ifs”

The knowledge that you’re free.

I stopped using sugar as a crutch. If I can do it, you can too. Do it for yourself.

I’m rooting for you!

In Freedom,

Sarah Grace