If you’ve tried cutting down on simple carbs, sugar, or even caffeine, etc. you may have experienced withdrawal symptoms. These symptoms can be anything from a craving, thinking too much about the food, fatigue, insomnia, or flu like symptoms. They can be mild for some and they can be quite severe for others. This is no joke, these symptoms are real, and they can be really uncomfortable. Even worse, for some people, these symptoms never completely go away and they endure them in some degree for years. I know this, because these folks come to me for help.

It Doesn’t Have to Be this Way!

I’m here to tell you that it doesn’t have to be this way! Withdrawal symptoms are just an indication of the addictive pattern and the addictive pattern can be changed, and changed for good. The way I know when someone has cleared an addictive pattern related to food, is what changes for them afterwards. When they’ve done an Acupressure session specific to the craving for that food and they spontaneously cut down in quantity or frequency of eating that food, they experience NO withdrawal symptoms. That’s what I said, No withdrawal symptoms. This can happen with caffeine, sugar, simple carbs, chocolate, whatever food you’ve felt addicted to, even if it’s been decades you’ve struggled with the habit. If you say it can’t be done, it’s just because you haven’t tried it yet.

After a session, if my patients have any symptoms whatsoever, it’s because they’re not completely done with clearing the old pattern. But when it is cleared, it should just feel like:

“Hmm, I don’t really care either way about that food, I could have it or not, either way I’m fine.”

That’s true freedom and that’s your natural state of being, feeling neutral about food, not compelled towards it or repelled against it. And the great thing is, that freedom goes right along with the lack of withdrawals. One comes with the other. So, the good news is that if you’re ready to cut something out or down in your diet without success, you at least know that you don’t have to endure withdrawals to reach your goal. It’s just not necessary and I don’t recommend it. Why suffer?

Experts May Not Even Know

I went to a talk by Dr Mark Hyman, MD, back in the Fall of 2012 and while I thoroughly enjoyed it, I wanted to raise my hand in the middle of the talk. I didn’t as it was being taped for TV, but I wished he knew about my work with Acupressure. He talked about withdrawal symptoms that can arise when cutting out junk food. But he suggested that his patients or someone getting over a food addiction suffer through the withdrawal phase when changing their diet, as it only lasts a couple of days. While one can certainly do this, why would you want to suffer? We do enough suffering as human beings that we have no control over, why suffer something you do have control over?

Plus, it’s not just about suffering through the withdrawals to reach your goals after a couple of days, sometimes the symptoms don’t completely fade and the desire for that food can endure for years.  I know this because I have patients come to me with that complaint. Plus, if that pattern of addiction doesn’t change, that food can be quite tempting in times of severe stress.

But, what if you cleared that addictive pattern and you were simply free of it? That way, weeks or years from now, you know that your cravings and addictions are in the past and some stress won’t bring it out of you and send you back to the baked goods or the junk food, etc.

So, my hope is that more people will take the NO WITHDRAWAL approach to changing their eating patterns and becoming free of compulsive food addictions or behaviors. How you do that is to work at the level of your brain habits. Letting your brain find a new way to relieve stress, that don’t revolve around outdated modes from decades past. This happens with Acupressure, but you can also do it with focusing on what makes you happy and doing more of that. You can use other healing modalities. The point is, I want you to know that it’s possible.

I’m partial to Acupressure as it’s quick and get’s to the root of the pattern and helps it shift, but there are other ways as well.

My questions for you are:

• What would your life be like if you knew you never had to withdraw from carbs or sugar again?

• How would you spend the time you now have when you’re not dealing with this?

If you’d like ideas and tips for helping you end the obsession with food and your weight, sign up to receive bimonthly tips, it’s free!

Yours in Health,