I'll add my vote of support to you if you're trying to quit caffeine. When I did it, so long ago, I found that mixing my usual caffeine things with non-caffeine things worked really well for me. I started diluting coffee with decaf, and I increased the dilution ratio slowly over time. For me, it worked like a charm.
It's worth noting that gospog was, I think, linking to an anti-Aspartame movie... I'd probably also like to avoid corn syrup... and yeah, all of these things are bad for me.
Diet Coke is what I get from the break room when I walk in looking for a snack, though... I shudder to think what I'd walk out of there with if not that. Once it was the horrible fake "juice cocktail" that they have in the vending machine for the price of a soda... other times it's a rice krispies treat, chex mix, or, worst of all, cheetos.
I have a big ol' thing of disposable poland springs water bottles in my cube. I need to cultivate the habit. Or get apple cider or some kind of fruit juice in a big ol' bottle in the fridge. But I would probably go through a half-gallon a day of OJ if I kept it stocked at work... and that's a lot of calories.
I think water is likely to be the best bet in all this, if I can make it the thing I consume while at work.
Well there is always my solution of unsweetened tea that gets into a whole other ball of "good for you" "bad for you" discussions. Besides the fruity herbles, there are also roobios as well as decaminated black teas.
I've done the same thing the times I've given up caffeine. I changed the dilution at the beginning of each week and held it constant for the entire week. Never had a single headache.
I've been avoiding basically all caffeine for nearly nine months now. While I have sleepy times, I think I attribute those more to other pregnancy related things than not enough caffeine. I am being more thoughtful about staying hydrated and making sure I am getting enough carbs and protein and such, basically eating "good" foods. If I do those things, I have the energy and alertness to get through my day. While I may have lower energy times, I never have the totally drained feeling I used to get if I had caffeine in the morning and then it wore off. At any one point, I might me very slightly less alert, but my average over the day is way better.
I am a huge fan of herbal tea, since I will drink a giant thing of tea much faster than a glassof plain water, especially in the winter. You should find what works for you. I will also second (or third, or whatever) the weaning slowly method of quitting caffeine. Make sure you're well hydrated too. Dehydration headaches and caffeine withdrawl headaches can feel the same (at least to me.)
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If you want a good scare:
http://www.wnho.net/sweet_misery_movie.htm
Good luck!
Lots of luck!
Diet Coke is what I get from the break room when I walk in looking for a snack, though... I shudder to think what I'd walk out of there with if not that. Once it was the horrible fake "juice cocktail" that they have in the vending machine for the price of a soda... other times it's a rice krispies treat, chex mix, or, worst of all, cheetos.
I have a big ol' thing of disposable poland springs water bottles in my cube. I need to cultivate the habit. Or get apple cider or some kind of fruit juice in a big ol' bottle in the fridge. But I would probably go through a half-gallon a day of OJ if I kept it stocked at work... and that's a lot of calories.
I think water is likely to be the best bet in all this, if I can make it the thing I consume while at work.
And I'm living proof that you can cultivate a taste for it.
I used to drink at least 2 liters of Coca Cola a day, much more if I was gaming.
I slowly cut down, while switching to tea.
Then I drank four cups of tea (black) a day. Then three. Then two.
Then one. Then half. Then none.
Caffeine withdrawl headaches suck but I only got them once and they never came back.
Good luck, man.
And yes, that movie is about aspertame. Evil, evil shit. But one step at a time, my friend. ;)
I am a huge fan of herbal tea, since I will drink a giant thing of tea much faster than a glassof plain water, especially in the winter. You should find what works for you. I will also second (or third, or whatever) the weaning slowly method of quitting caffeine. Make sure you're well hydrated too. Dehydration headaches and caffeine withdrawl headaches can feel the same (at least to me.)