There was a time when black was the only color I would wear. I was recently separated from my husband at the time and found myself single in the wild New York City landscape for the first time in my life. To top it off, I was just starting my own business….I was, to say the least, super stressed!

During this time I had just begun experimenting with healthy food concepts, dieting, and just about any trend having to do with making a 20-something, single NYC female look and feel good.

Soon enough, I discovered a new diet prescribed to me by a nutritionist (that I still admire and value to this day). But there was a problem. This particular formula limited my choices to only 3 different menus per week. It wasn’t long before the same routine week after week caused me to cave into utter boredom. I strongly desired to taste new ingredients! I missed that part of my lifestyle.

The formula was based on a calorie counting system. The perfectionist in me took full control until I became dangerously obsessed with counting calories in everything I ate. I would even document the calorie count of all my meals into a journal. Then, at the end of each day I would make sure that my intake was not any higher than 1600-1800 calories – which was the amount I was allowed at that time.

Most days I would finish at around 2000-2500. My fast metabolism and my exercising helped to hide my slightly above average weight. But I still felt bloated, heavy, tired during the day, and always hungry.

I realized then why Cortisol was the diet drug of choice. Even though I never condoned its use, I could certainly understand why people would pop a pill every now and then, if only for the temporary relief from that awful bloated feeling.

My maniacal obsession to count calories finally came to a halt after 1 year, when I had my first romantic fling since my separation. There’s nothing like a good old, Manhattan romance to turn your life upside down, inside out, and in every other direction – you get the picture. I let myself completely go – “just eat dammit” was my new beloved mantra. I felt alive again! Yes!

Then one fine summer day my romantic hero moved to another country and that bloated feeling came rushing back again. But then I discovered the miracle of juicing! Wow, it was like I’d discovered the fountain of youth, a virtual life-saver; that is of course, until I found myslef spiraling back into a diet-driven lifestyle…(continue)