Does fasting make you more creative?

If you're like me, when you think of the word, "fasting," images of monks who beat themselves with whips come to mind. I'm no Mother Theresa. I'm no longer even Catholic. But it was something that the RCIA teacher said when my husband went through the program that stuck with me. When she was going through a tough time, such as when her son was in the hospital, she fasted. As a cradle Catholic, of course I'd heard of Lenten fasting - especially the no-meat and no frills foods on Ash Wednesday and Fridays of Lent. I was even fine with giving up chocolate for 40 days, but fasting sounded too scary, and, honestly, weird. Does God (or the Universe) listen more intently because I'm not eating fast food?
Fast forward to 2010, and a local mega-church said they were going to do the Daniel Fast, a 21-day spiritual modified fast where you only drink water and eat fruits, veggies, whole grains and legumes. No bread. No taters. No dressing. And, worse, no coffee or wine. I decided to go for it. First, I was intrigued by why people would do it. Did they really gain insight and a speeding arrow to enlightenment simply by eating plainly for three weeks?
I'm Type A and my creative drink crutches are caffeine and wine, so I can't believe I made the commitment. I've always been a deep thinker, but too often I let ego and my "surface self" make decisions for me. What did I lose besides a few pounds? Several a-ha moments, including the big whammy that we should sell our house and downsize, which I've written about before. Believe me, I argued with my inner pilot light, but it convinced me, and so we did - ever so slowly. I shed more than pounds during that fast. That a-ha moment helped me shed a lot of stuff and a big mortgage payment. I'm honestly not sure that realization would have come to me had I not been intently listening for guidance. I can be stubborn.
FF to 2011 and the damn house is not sold yet. I know it's still the right thing to do. I again start the fast, but the stress of putting the house back on the market causes me to cave and the fast only lasted seven days. Seven days isn't chump change in the realm of fasting. And my big a-ha moment? I needed to start an indie publishing company and not only publish some of husband and my projects, but others', too. Now a couple of the brainstorming ideas I had after that failed - two essay projects I'd hoped to do by state - but one came to fruition, Sleigh Ride, which includes 7 stories by 7 authors, pubbed in November of 2011. Life's a Beach, my first novella, about the law of attraction and karma between two unlikely friends, was also a success. By year's end, Buzz Books was ready for a bigger hive, accepting submissions in multiple categories and could have nearly a dozen releases in 2012. Couldn't I have come to the idea of Buzz Books without a fast? Possibly. But I didn't.
FF to 2012 - we're in our downsized house, the law of attraction is working in my favor, I feel more authentic, positive and creative than ever, and I'm again doing the Daniel Fast - only modifying it to still let me have coffee in the mornings. I did get a migraine on the second day from the lower caffeine in my system, but it's day 3 and my migraine is a bit better today. In terms of flow, I've already had three ideas arise that could be very beneficial this year. One is a big tie-in to my next novella, The Last Resort, which will be the most interactive project and promotion I've done to date. Good people are coming on board with me. Good clients are filling my roster. I'm sticking to my productivity calendar, and as long as I can also keep up with my children's active schedules, the outlook is sunny.
I'm now a big believer in meditation and fasting. The song lyrics go, "I can see clearly now, the rain is gone." It clears the fog from my brain and helps me focus. It makes room for better ideas and clarity. It's the windshield wiper on a rainy day. The binoculars to the far-away dreams. It's close. It's in full view. And it was inside of me the whole time.
I love what Orna Ross has to say on how meditation helps writers. You might find her Go Creative! method is just what you're looking for.