Dairy of a Coke Addict

Well, hopefully THAT got your attention!  Yes, I am a coke addict...but perhaps not the way you are thinking.

My love/hate relationship with coca cola began when I was about 8 months old.  My mother would put it in my baby bottle for me because I seemed to like it.  Now why you would give a fidgety ADD child coke at this age, I have no idea.  I'm guessing I may have had some gin tonics or martinis to help me sleep at night as well...who knows.

As a child I was a fussy eater so pretty much anything my Grandmother could get into my scrawny body was acceptable.  She made sure I got healthy food first, but there were always desserts and candy to try to put some pounds on me.  I recall being afraid of high winds as she claimed I needed to put a brick into my pocket so I wouldn't blow away.  No such danger now!  I could probably stay grounded during a hurricane with this weight.

Drinking soda, or pop as we call it in the Midwest, has always been part of my life.  As I've aged I realized I could no longer handle having it later in the day as it upset my sleep patterns.  Of course, menopause may have been somewhat to blame for that as well.

It has many side effects that I don't care for.  It makes me agitated and I feel like I'm on speed.  I'm not actually sure what that actually feels like, but this would be my best guess.

The worst side effect (or at least I hope it's one) has been the shakiness of my hands.  I can barely read my own handwriting, especially later in the day.  I used to love to sketch and draw, but can no longer do this due to the wobbliness.

Another side effect (I hope) is how rattled my brain feels sometimes.  I can't concentrate or remember things well. Did I mention that before....I can't recall.

So, I decided to go off this lifelong product and see what happens.  The first reaction were the headaches, but I was expecting this.  I knew there would be some discomfort involved.

Then I tried having some of this product while out, but not keeping it in  my RV anymore.  I thought it would be a real "treat" and would be immediately hooked again.  To my utter surprise I find I don't really care much for the taste of it any more and now that I don't have it coursing through my veins on a regular basis it seems to have a much faster reaction to my system.

I haven't eliminated it completely from my diet,but have cut back drastically.  Now I will have some of those little tiny bottles of Classic Coke in the fridge when I feel I need a little stimulation.  I have mixed feelings about the additional calories in the Coke, but I keep reading all the horrible things about the effects of diet soda.

And so I continue my love/hate relationship with Coca Cola by alternately not having it and then enjoying it once in a while.  It's at least a step forward in cutting back and I find I'm drinking much more water as a result.

Long Live the Queen of (almost) Coke Free  Living