Coffee. My life source. The reason I wake up in the morning or rather, the reason I CAN wake up in the morning. Keeping me real since I can remember and helping me get through every day with a little more pep in my step. (Or maybe a little more caffeine for my daydreams…).
But what happens when you take the caffeine out of the girl?
Yes, you heard me. I stopped drinking coffee and this is what happened…
Coffee lovers, what I’m about to say may shock you, so cover your eyes…
I’M OK. I MADE IT.
Although it was completely unintentional, I gave up coffee for 10 days… and I’m totally fine.
Why would anyone commit such a horrible coffee crime, you ask? Well, it all started with a terrible case of the flu, which really hit me for six. I lived under a doona for days and not even a freshly brewed beany beverage could shake me from my sickly slumber. I think I went 4 days without coffee before I had even realised that “OMG, it’s been four days since I’ve had a coffee!”. I didn’t have a headache, I wasn’t suffering from withdrawals and by the time I started to feel better again, I just didn’t have the same desire for my long black with a dash of cold milk anymore. (As much as I wanted to believe that I needed it for my survival).
I basically woke up one day and decided I didn’t feel the same anymore. I still loved coffee, I just wasn’t IN love with it. It wasn’t the coffee, it was me. I had changed and I wasn’t sure if things could go back to how they were…
Here’s what happened:
#1 I wasn’t getting as anxious about my life. I was feeling more in control and any moment of stress that I encountered was much easier to get on top of.
#2 I was getting to sleep more easily. I love sleep, and I pride myself on a good 8 hours of shut-eye almost every night, but getting into my REM felt much more natural and I was able to ease into my dreams without being constantly awoken by crazy thoughts. 10:00pm is not the time to be wondering about what happened to my favourite vintage scarf.
#3 I was waking up more easily. This one shocked me the most. Instead of feeling like a lethargic, lacklustre mess and hitting snooze only to roll over for another 10 minutes (ok, 30 minutes!) I was actually wide-eyed and ready to rumble.
All in all, I’m feeling surprisingly good without my daily dose of coffee, but let’s be real, I can’t live without it entirely forever. I’ve realised that I simply needed to improve my balancing act and limit myself to one coffee a day, no matter how much sparkle I think an extra shot may add to my personality.
Tell us about your experience going caffeine free…
