Fasting for ME/CFS + other chronic illnesses

My health has declined a lot in the past few years, ME/CFS, POTS, Psoriasis, Diverticulitis I notice the days i eat the least i have the most energy, doesn’t matter what I eat. Food in general just makes me depressed and fatigued. I’ve done long fasts in the past and they seemed to help but I’m unable to do those because of an eating disorder I suffered from in my teenage years. (I’m recovered now but don’t want to go to the extremes again) I want to try fasting again, to help me gain more energy and decrease my inflammation + debilitating brain fog .. Doctors say my conditions are permanent and incurable and there’s not much I can do.. I refuse to accept that as the truth, so i’m looking for a more holistic approach. I’m 20 years old and have my whole life in front of me so i’m willing to do anything to improve my quality of life (as long as it doesn’t take much energy..) But I don’t know where to start, any tips, personal stories, suggestions, anything! Would be greatly appreciated :)

Answer

I suggest watching the videos from Dr Berg, there’s a lot of good recommendations for healing and IF best practices on his channel.

https://youtube.com/c/DrEricBergDC

Usually the videos are short and on point.

Answer

Gerson Therapy. It takes effort but works.

Eating disorder in the past as well but do 7 day fasts eat a week of vegan and do another 7 day fast followed by 4 days of clean eating with a few days of real life eating.

I get the not wanting to go too far but listen to your body! Get mental help to harness that monkey mind.

Answer

I have CFS and POTS also. I find that I respond to eating less much like you do. I’m currently doing 16+ hr fasts; I feel best at 18-20 hrs. I also find that lower carb is better for me. I recently tried erythritol and that seems to curb my sweets cravings. I also feel oddly better when I eat it.

I started out just adding a couple of hours between last/first meal until I hit 16. After that adjustment, getting to more has been fairly easy for me. Feeling better makes it easier to follow also.

I mainly eat whole fresh foods. I don’t mind repetition so I tend to eat some variation of the same thing.

For me, just keeping on trying it is what works. I’ll try some other things now and again and it may throw me off. I just work at getting back to what I know works and avoid what has not worked for me.

I wish you the best. You are your own best help with these conditions, in my opinion. You have to do what works for you.