I come from an 'addictive' family. It's in my gene's. That is one of the many reasons I don't drink very often and try to stay as far away from things I can become easily addicted too. I have seen and lived through the disease of addiction. I have seen first hand the way the disease of addiction has destroyed families, mine included. One day, I will post about it. One day....
With that being said, for years and years I have been drinking diet soda. One reason is because I don't like drinking my calories and for years I have battled my weight so this has always been my go to. Many people think they will lose weight drinking diet soda. Then a girlfriend was telling me how diet soda consumption may actually cause weight gain and increase in body fat. Not through calories, but through the way our bodies respond to it. This got me thinking.
Tell me if this sounds familiar. You get stressed, you reach for a Diet Coke. You feel like you've gained weight, you reach for a Diet Coke. You want some junk food, you reach for a Diet Coke, don't feel satisfied, reach for another, and then have the junk food anyway. Bad day with the kids, you reach for a Diet Coke, of course. As you can see, for me it's Diet Coke, for you it might be something else. Good or bad, either way, it's an addiction.
"A good thing can be a bad thing if you make it the main thing." How true is that with so many different areas in your life. Addiction can be masked even in the 'good' things in our life.
Last Wednesday, I decided to give up Diet Coke. Cold turkey. I knew I wanted to commit to a week. Keep in mind, every morning I would go to McDonald's and get a large fountain drink. I would then drink more for lunch, dinner and then at night when I was watching TV. Water would only enter my body when I would workout. Seriously, how unhealthy is this? Not until I decided to give it up did I realize how much I did drink.
Day 1. I was tired. It was that feeling when you were back in college and stayed up all night cramming for a test. It was that 2:00 mid afternoon feeling. Exhaustion. By Day 3 I wanted to hurt somebody. I was so frustrated with the fatigue. Patience level was-- zero. Day 4 comes around and I thought I was pregnant. For some of you skinny minnies this is no big deal. For me, I show the second that little stick turns pink. I looked six weeks pregnant. Bloated was an understatement. Day 6. To be honest, I was just looking forward to my week being over. I kept eating just so I wouldn't want to drink it. I soon realized after thinking for 2 days I was pregnant with Baby #4 that I was bloated because my body was taking in so much water. It's has been depleted of it for years.
Here is the deal. Addiction is no joke. I made it through the week. There is no baby #4 {Thank you Lord}. The bloating was one of the ways my body was trying to adjust. Will I give it up. Honestly, no. Every now and then I will have one. Moderation is something I am not good at but for the sake of my health I need to become good at it.
Have you ever taken a break from your Diet Soda?
