To give you an idea of how bad it was, there was a time when I drank 5-6 cans a day. I know. Bad. The last few years I got down to 2sh cans a day and stayed there. I've debabted giving it up before but here's the thing. I don't like coffee or tea. Just can't do it. So giving up soda means giving up caffeine. I also get migraines. They've been pretty under control for the last few years but I live in fear of getting one because they are awful.
So I've done a lot to be as healthy as I can (I know, I still need to post about that), but I was still clinging onto my beloved sodas. I kept reading about how bad they are for you but I would stick my fingers in my ears "la la la". One day last week, I read it for the millionth time and randomly decided, let's do this. Claire is sleeping through the night and we don't have anything major going on. I also know that I've done it before and I got to the point where I didn't crave them anymore. I also realized that sometimes I was drinking them out of habit and a fear of a headache.
I decided to try going slow in an effort to try and avoid the headache. I have bottles so I would try and sip instead of drinking a whole can. I would also treat myself with a yummy snack whenever I would want to drink. I ended up having a couple of bad headaches 2 days in a row but it's been pretty good since then. I've been totally soda free since Friday. I'm still craving it and it's hard because we still have cans in the house (Blake is working his way through them). I would love to get to a point where I could have some every now and then but knowing myself, it's not worth the risk.
Moral of the story. You can intellectually know what you should do to be healthy, but it won't happen until you decide to do it and are ready to do it. We all have different things going on in our lives that might make it harder. I'm not sure I could have done this while working full time, or when Claire was a baby, or when Blake was studying for his PE test, etc. Once you find the right time and decide you're ready, then DO IT! Research, read other stories, make a plan, and do it. I know giving up soda might seem like an insignificant, easy thing, but it's daunting giving up something you enjoy and knowing you will have to go through pain. And I've gotta say that I'm pretty proud of myself :)
