the diet coke diaries: the fat lady sang

so, I thought I'd take a quick minute to give an update on the diet coke issue.

it's a shocker, but I'm totally done. I don't even like it that much anymore. I almost NEVER drink it. it's that 'almost' part that gets me though. Occasionally I'll find myself drinking one, or ordering one, or whatever the case, out of HABIT, when I KNOW I'm not even going to like it! it's a strange strange drug I tell you. But most often, I CHOOSE water over diet coke. and even I'm in shock.

most days I'll have a big tall glass of water mixed with a little cranberry pomegranate juice, and a couple teaspoons of chia seeds in there. yep, chia. as in chia pet. I probably have a giant chia pet sprouting in my stomach. :) but it's a great 'superfood' and I really like the texture in my drink. and I also like plain water too! read that again, would ya? I like WATER!

I cannot even explain to you how exciting this is to me. if you know me well, you probably thought I'd never last in this whole 'game' of giving it up. my love was too deep and my self control was too...shallow? :) but somehow I did it.

and, if you don't want to read this next paragraph, go ahead and skip it. possibly TMI for some people, but I have to tell you!

ok, my body has seen MAJOR changes with such a lack of chemical! it's unbelievable! and it's most obvious for about a week, once a month. ;) All the things that my body used to experience on a regular basis have come back to me. and, while I find myself VERY inconvenienced by it all, I think it's really good that body is in a more natural state! I always kind of thought that diet coke didn't really affect me that much, but it can NOT be a coincidence that I am really crabby and craving sushi and chocolate once a month ever since I quit it! It's like my body is finally aware of what it's going through, and responding accordingly, instead of being sort of numbed by whatevertheheck they put in diet coke. Now, don't ask my sweet husband or kids about how they feel about my more natural state. I'm still working on how to control my 'new' sensations. :) but I feel like it's such a GOOD thing to be more natural. and it's not only about PMSing. All of my emotions seem a little more real. I love harder, I cry more, I FEEL my heart hurting more for other people. I'm undisguised.

ok, so are you one of the people who is totally addicted to soda like I was? don't worry, I don't judge you. :) and you know what else? Don't expect me to even encourage you to quit drinking it. This has been such a journey for me. I've talked to so many people who are quite entertained by the whole 'diet coke diaries' idea. and I'm so glad. :) It's rather entertaining for me to write actually. But going through the process has really taught me so much. But I had to be READY. I wasn't ready for a long time. I had tried to quit so many times before, but even I wasn't convinced that it was going to be for good. this time was different. It was like I really wanted to overcome it.

and I did.

and now I feel like I can do ANYTHING!

but if you're not ready, don't worry. it's not that big of a deal. it will never work if you aren't ready to conquer it. and if you ARE, I can promise you that it gets better! and there's such a freedom in knowing that if I want a diet coke with my pizza, then by golly, I"m gonna have one. I'm past the point where I feel like I'm DEPRIVED of something I love. I feel good.

I feel GREAT! (like I knew I would...eventually.)

so, signing off from the 'diet coke diaries!' yay me! :)