Saturday, September 15, 2007

A tale of two addictions

A few weeks back I posted about carbohydrate addiction, and how I was sure that I had it. I've also got caffeine addiction, something that many people have and don't need to do anything about, unfortunately I do. My health problem means that when I have caffeine the next day I am really tired, I have trouble dragging myself out of bed in the morning although after a while I feel like I can manage to some degree.

At the moment I'm having way too much Coke, that liquid that has two addicitive substances in it, sugar and caffeine. Yes, there is diet Coke but the sugar substitute in it has the same effect on my whole appetite system as sugar.

I've struggled with caffeine addiction in the past, but I did manage to go a whole two years without one bit (Coke or coffee) which is something I'm quite proud of. I'll try to do that again. I tried today but gave in, tomorrow I'll try again.

The problem with Coke is that when I have it, it stimulates my appetite and I've got no control over what I eat after that. Today I just ate and ate after having the drink, it was shameful really.

That said, tomorrow is another day. I've found the best way to get off caffeine is when I say to myself "Just one drink won't matter" it's time to buy a small bar of chocolate, there is enough caffeine in that to reduce my cravings. After a while the cravings stop, although they can continue for about 6 months, totally random too. Chocolate has sugar in it, which is a problem of course but I don't buy heaps of it so it won't be a too difficult for my whole keeping carbohydrates in check.

One thing I will miss about caffeine (apart from the increased energy feeling) is that I'm sure that it increases my intelligence, usually for about 30 minutes. Oh I really must start work on that data analysis project I've been thinking about for so long I'll think to myself as I'm walking around with a bottle of Coke in my hand or maybe I should do my degree in mathematics rather than engineering, it's not that bad. I'll miss that. I won't miss the crappy feeling in the morning or the circulation problems.

1 comment:

Lily T said...

I know what you mean about how caffeine can enhance mental sharpness. I use to take caffeine pills in undergrad and I felt like a genius during all-nighters. I also had to resist the urge to run a marathon when I should be talking a test. Then the inevitable crash happens when I’m listless.