I'm trying to stop drinking coffee. Not alltogether, but every morning and every afternoon, which has been my habit for the last few years. Especially with babies and early morning school schedules and the likes, I always needed that morning caffeine boost to keep me going. Eventually I also added an afternoon caffeine "chaser" to help me get through those last few hours until the kids bedtimes.
A few months ago, though, we were in a hurry one morning and I didn't get my morning coffee. By the time we got to church my head was pounding and, wouldn't you know it, I had no Tylenol with me. I tried to wait until lunchtime but halfway through the service I begged Chikara to go to the vending machine and buy me a coffee. Within 10 minutes my headache was gone. Somehow, I was a little embaressed by the whole experience.
Then when we were in Canada, I was never sure if mom was making real coffee or decaf coffee so I got a few headaches then, too. The headaches made me stop and think about if the whole morning and afternoon coffee routine is really necessary anymore. Generally the kids sleep through the night. My mornings are way less rushed than they used to be. My energy levels have returned to normal since giving birth to Natsuki. Hmmm, maybe it's not necessary after all.
So, here I am, two weeks into my break from my coffee routine. I had headaches on and off the first week but now I don't feel any difference. I also don't feel tired or sluggish like I was afraid I would. Actually my biggest problem is that I don't know what *to* drink in the mornings. Tea seems like a poor substitute (sorry to all tea lovers) and water seems boring. Juice seems childish and milk is just weird tasting. A few days in a row I would get to 10am and my throat would be totally dry and I couldn't figure it out. I've been drinking water but just in the mornings it's not very appealing. This is a weird problem I didn't anticipate.
I did have coffee on Sunday afternoon with my friends and another day when a friend came to visit so now I guess I'm a social coffee drinker instead of a serial coffee drinker!
8 comments:
Iced or hot chai?
I`ve never had coffee in the mornings but I do like to have it in the afternoon. Recently, in a bid to be more healthy, I have replaced my afternoon coffee with tea. I felt the same way as you do at first (tea is NOT as good as coffee) but it`s totally grown on me. The key is to find a flavour you really like. For me, it`s green tea with orange blossoms or chai. I still love the occasional coffee though! :) Good luck!
Ohhh I second Karli with the chai idea!! Or cocoa in the winter!
Good on you though!!! I'm pretty addicted to caffine myself but would really like to cleanse myself before trying to get pregnant (thankfully theres still quite a while before that becomes an option :) )
there is a Swiss drink called Ovaltine which is basically a cereal drink in a chocolate flavour. It's not supersweet like hot chocolate and has less calories. I still think sticking to decaf is the best, but I don't know how you would do that in Japan - it was so hard to find when I was there. As far as your vacation coffee drinking was concerned: if I made it, it was decaf. If Hannah made it, it was real, baby!!!!love MomLove Mom
Giving up coffee??! I'm like you and get headaches too if I skip my morning coffee but I wouldn't want to skip the pleasure of having a cappuccino in the morning... I get crancky even at the idea. Since I don't smoke or drink I think I'm entitled to an addiction LOL
But I realised a while ago that I could, if I wanted, to substitute it with something else hot. And that it would have the same waking-up effect.
I live in an old cold house in Nagano and last winter I realised I was drinking way too much coffee as everytime I wanted a hot drink I'd have a coffee.
I changed to warm apple juice (must be the kid in me!) but we were running out of juice so I started diluting it with water. I now LOVE about a finger of apple juice and then add hot water. 100% is too strong. I drink them pretty much nonstop in winter and it works for me.
I treasure my 10:00 am morning chores are over reward coffee though. :)
I like the chai idea. It has a little caffeine in it, but not nearly as much as coffee, and it seems more like a treat but not as indulgent as hot chocolate. OH, great, now I want a chai...
Plus, you can make chai with milk so it's nice and creamy or without, like regular tea. And you can buy the mix at Starbucks or you can buy it in a teabag. Okay, now I REALLY want chai!
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