Kicking the Caffeine Habit

I almost can’t believe I am able to say this: I have kicked my caffeine habit. Hopefully once and for all.

It’s been two weeks and 5 days since I’ve had a “regular” caffeinated beverage. For years I was proud of the fact I’d never grown to enjoy coffee or tea. I drink the occasional latte or Frappuccino, but it’s usually once a month or less. I don’t have a morning coffee/tea – neither does Justin. I always laugh because I am convinced I found the one man in the world who doesn’t want to drink coffee in the morning. We don’t even have a coffee maker in our home. So sorry, anyone who comes to visit us…

My one vice: a soda at lunch time. I admit, I became addicted to it over the years. Although I never needed caffeine to wake myself up in the morning, I would hit the midday slump and required a Diet Coke or another beverage to give me that boost for the second half of the day. I knew it was a bad habit, but I justified it daily because it was the ONLY caffeine I was having regularly. Everyone else has morning coffee: why can’t I have my daily Diet Coke? It has been the one beverage other than water I’ve enjoyed over the years. I’ve never been a fan of sports drinks, energy drinks, smoothies, fruit punch, or other beverages.

Ay yi yi. Since I’ve been working from home I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to break myself of this addiction. I knew it wouldn’t come easy; I’d attempted in the past with poor results. But I was determined this time, and I think it just might stick this go-round.

I’m not going to lie: the first week with no caffeine was brutal. Like any addiction, I was going through withdrawal. I started my first day on a Saturday so I wouldn’t notice quite so much. We were busy and running around – I didn’t even notice. Sunday was much the same. Then, on Monday when I went back to my work routine it hit me like a freight train. I would make it through the lunch hour, but at around 3pm Monday through Wednesday I would hit a wall. A wall so hard it rendered me unable to do work and I had to lay down for a 20 minute power nap.  Afterward, I’d feel much better. The rest of the week was a bit better, and the weekend went as usual. The second week that wall never did come around to smacking me in the face. Relief! I’m now almost all the way through week three and I don’t have any hints of an afternoon slump occurring. I’m back to regular functionality.

I will admit though: I am still craving a Diet Coke. A lot. We still have cans in our refrigerator (talk about a lesson in self control. Do I win an award for this?), and I look at them longingly at lunch time. But I know I have to go cold turkey for a few weeks to get myself into good habits before starting the “occasional” Diet Coke routine. I’m going to be honest: I’m not giving it up completely. I know I’ll still want to enjoy a soda every once in a while, and I’m totally fine with that happening. Once a week, perhaps? Everything in moderation, right? I am just happy to say I am not reliant on a daily dose of caffeine to to get me through, and that I’m not ingesting whatever chemicals are involved in the soda on a regular basis. I am calling that a huge success!

Have you tried to give up caffeinated drinks? How did you do?