Admittedly, I indulged some of my colleagues and tried the keto diet. I will not go into detail about the keto diet, also because I haven't studied everything thoroughly and it's quite scientific. Suffice it to say that once you limit your carbs intake, your body will run out of glucose and start burning fat and produce ketones from the liver. When the level of ketones in your blood reaches a certain threshold, you enter ketosis - a state in which your body is using ketones as fuel. This is then supposed to lead to a rapid and consistent weight loss, until your body weight stabilizes at some point. So much about the process.
Why did I decide to try it despite my better judgment? For one very simple reason - the keto diet is supposedly effective in fighting brain disease and neurological disorders. Hm, quite a bold statement claiming that a diet can cure schizophrenia, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, bipolar disorder, multiple sclerosis and many more disorders or diseases, including some of the more common ones like depression, anxiety, and insomnia. I've purchased a book and followed a plan by one of the gurus (I hate that word) after I had read another book on ketogenic diet by one of the leading professors from Harvard, whom I trust much more than the doctor of natural medicine. And the Harvard guy at least wasn't promising miracles and highlighted that the study of ketogenic diet on mental health is still in its early days. Not that I have anything against alternative treatments, quite the contrary. Honestly, significantly limiting carbs, sugar and dairy wasn't pleasant. But given that I was doing the 40-day alcohol free routine as well, I thought limiting certain food wouldn't be such a sacrifice. Also, if you were eating unhealthily all your life, then significantly limiting food and changing your diet completely must have some kind of an impact, at least short term.
As a therapist, I was most interested in the impact on mental health. But I can't be the judge of it because I don't have any mental health issues, or other health issues, for that matter. So, I thought well, let's see if the diet manages to accomplish some minor cosmetic changes - such as wrinkles, squeaky joints, dull hair, thigh and belly fat. Believe it or not, there is even a collagen boost diet plan available so I should see some changes in skin and joints at the very least.
Sadly, the diet had zero positive impact on me. Not a single thing improved. Quite the contrary. I felt heavy, lethargic and without energy. My metabolism slowed down.  My skin broke out. I also felt incredibly hungry all the time, and I didn't starve myself. Calorie wise, I ate twice my normal caloric intake. Because I was hungry, I was often irritable. I didn't notice any impact on my brain - my mind wasn't any clearer, and my concentration didn't improve. Mind you, I'm a healthy person so I wasn't expecting miracles. But to not see a single positive sign of keto was disappointing to me. Especially since everyone on keto was singing praise to it. Truth be told, when I spoke to people about what happened when they got off keto, everyone said that they gained more weight back than they had lost.
The conclusion I came to is that a balanced Mediterranean diet combined with ayurvedic principles is the best one. No diet of mine can be strict as I love chocolate and wine, and I'm not willing to give up on the little delicacies of life. Therefore, listen to your body. It knows best what you need. Stay away from drastic diets and avoid processed food as much as possible. Do sports regularly, meditate or do yoga for inner balance, find joy in food and sharing delicious meals with your friends and family.