Psychology of Cleansing
A cleanse is about so much more than just taking a couple of supplements, juices or a coffee enema – at least if you want it to be as effective as possible.
Whatever you experience on a physical level, you also experience it on a mental and spiritual level. As a consequence, cleansing the body will always have its cleansing effects also on the mind and the spirit. If you know that, you can consciously support these processes with certain exercises, just as you use certain products to help your physical body cleansing.
Physical level
The idea behind a colon cleanse is that due to poor nutrition, insufficient water intake, lack of exercise or ignoring the need to have a bowel movement, fecal matters can build up on the walls or in “pockets” of the gut and stay there for weeks, months or even years. This can interfere with nutrient absorption, cause inflammation and/or release unwanted toxins that can potentially auto-intoxicate healthy organs and tissues.
The cleanse is meant to get rid of (some of) those old, encrusted fecal matters. Ideally gut health is then further fostered and maintained by proper, Metabolic Type specific nutrition, sufficient water intake, regular exercise and following the need to go to the toilet whenever or whereever that may be.
On the physical level we can support the cleanse by not only cleaning the body on the inside, but also on the outside (e.g. dry brushing, exfoliating the skin, apple cider vinegar bath). Thoroughly cleaning our house and/or sorting out clothes or other material items that do not serve us anymore is also very useful.
Mental level
Just like we can eat harmful food, we can also consume harmful or even toxic thoughts or ideas and let them pollute our mind. Everything we perceive will then be filtered through this layer of dirt and create a barrier that makes it hard to absorb those nourishing thoughts and concepts that we so much need to be happy and healthy.
Just as we might not drink enough water to help our body eliminate physical waste, we might not drink enough from the source of self-esteem and self-respect to help our mind wash away the mental waste. We might also suppress our emotions and feelings, so they cannot clean our mind.
Just like we might not move our bodies enough, we might not exercise our minds sufficiently, so it becomes sluggish and less effective in sorting out “good” from “bad”.
Just like we might ignore our physical need for a bowel movement because we are too busy with something else, we might ignore the need of our mind for reflection or meditation.
Cleansing the physical level of old, encrusted, toxic garbage and getting rid of material stuff that does not serve us anymore, will help the mind to also let go of old, encrusted, toxic thoughts, beliefs, concepts and patterns more easily. You can support this process by slowing down and tuning in with yourself, observing your thoughts and your feelings and rigorously sweeping out anything that you cannot use or that does not do you good anymore.
Spiritual level
Our body can be inflamed and toxic and might have difficulties to absorb all the good nutrients due to layers of old, encrusted fecal matters.
Our mind can be hurt and toxic and have difficulties to let positivity enter due to layers of negative, destructive thought patterns.
Our spirit, which is essentially our being, can be hateful and toxic and not able to let love lighten up its soul due to layers of fears.
Cleansing the body and the mind from old, encrusted, toxic garbage, will make it easier for our spirit to feel love and connection to all that is. It will be able to trust in life again, and to clearly see and feel its purpose. It will want to live aligned with this purpose and make it happen. You can support this process by focusing on all the good things in your life and being grateful for them. You can sit in meditation and allow your inner space and your inner silence to connect with the space and silence around you.
After the cleanse
Once we have completed the cleanse on all levels, we are not done yet. Most likely we will find that under the first layers of dirt there is more and we will have to repeat the process at some point. There is also constant maintenance work to be done, to prevent as much new dirt as possible from coming in. At the same time, we’d want to clean out new superficial dirt as quickly as possible.
Despite our best intentions and efforts, we will not get it “right” from the beginning. We have been polluting for many years, so it is only normal that it will also take us some time to clean up the mess again. However, with practice, perseverance and patience the dirt will clear a little more every time and we will also get better at maintaining it that way.