Any recovering soda addicts in here?
cerillo_encendido
Posts: 74 Member
This year marks 8 years i haven’t touched a soda. And i will admit at times the thought of drinking a nice coke or Dr. Pepper sounds delicious. Coming from a Mexican background, soda was life LOL. Just curious as to how long you have been able to go without drinking soda? What benefits have you noticed after stopping? Do you miss it? What keeps you going?
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Replies
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I drink a Coke Zero most days. So, nope, I don't miss it.6
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Having discovered a while back that I have an intolerance to Caffeine, I gave up Coffee & Cola and have felt much better for it. Miss the taste but not the after effects. Have cut back on most fizzy drinks too. Used to drink something everyday.2
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Dr pepper drinker.. 6+ can a day.. (used to)
Still drink one can probably between 1-2 weeks when I can fit it in my cal.3 -
I actually can't remember the last time I had any type of soda. I was never addicted but I did have a golden rule that pizza had to be accompanied by root beer.
I'm not sure how my body would react to it at this point.3 -
I was once a six can a day diet Pepsi fiend. The hardest part of getting free was when my allotted portion was half a can. That was almost twenty years ago. Nowadays I drink root beer maybe once a month. Fewer migraines and less gas. Plus no worries about where the next can would come from. Water is my happy beverage.4
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I gave up soda (specifically anything carbonated) due to severe GERD almost 2 years ago. I had to give up lots of other things at the same time including coffee, caffeine, alcohol, etc.
Now I only drink water, Tazo Passion tea, and occasionally milk/homemade smoothies.
One of the best surprise results has been reduced sensitivity of my teeth. The acid from carbonated drinks was hard on my tooth enamel.
No weight difference from this change because I only drank diet sodas before.
I'm willing to do about anything to not have heartburn, pain, and develop esophageal cancer. Giving up soda is a pretty minor change compared to some of the others (no spicy food is almost torture).2 -
I quit drinking soda again most 3 weeks ago. I went maybe 2 years without it during my pregnancy/nursing stage and the started back up again. I don’t miss it when I’m not drinking it. But it’s a slippery slope. If I start then it just becomes a habit for me. Sometime I’ll get my soda fix in a mixed drink and that’s about it.2
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I used to drink 104 oz of Dr.Pepper daily. When I realized how many calories I was consuming I quit cold turkey. It was a rough two weeks. I lost about 40 lbs after I stopped. Occasionally I will crave one. But it's too sweet now so after a sip or two I just throw it out.5
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I used to drink a couple of 2 liters a day. When I was shown by a dietician that I was drinking my calories, not eating them, I quit. Maybe 10 years ago. I don’t drink it now, but occasionally I will have a choice of cola now or wait for water. If I’m thirsty enough, I will have one. It doesn’t bother me at all anymore.4
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Hi Everyone! I'm a 12 can A DAY pop drinker - I love my Coke! I cannot stomach any artificial sweeteners at all (plant based or otherwise) and will have to cold-turkey it. What helped you get through the first two awful days? Thank you, and have a great day! - Deb2
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What helped me was iced tea. Still had the caffeine. Could put sugar in it. I tried it all the way from no sugar to as sweet as cola. Turns out for me, flavored tea with no sugar was best. Like Lipton peach tea. For the first week or so, I just couldn’t get enough, drank it til my stomach hurt, but it got better pretty quick, if I remember.
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debrasheers wrote: »Hi Everyone! I'm a 12 can A DAY pop drinker - I love my Coke! I cannot stomach any artificial sweeteners at all (plant based or otherwise) and will have to cold-turkey it. What helped you get through the first two awful days? Thank you, and have a great day! - Deb
What makes you think you will have to quit cold turkey? I would personally suggest reducing slowly - maybe reduce by 1 can every 3 days. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/caffeine-withdrawal-symptoms#section10
"Individuals who are determined to rid themselves of caffeine dependence should be advised to decrease caffeine consumption gradually to prevent caffeine withdrawal syndrome." Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK430790/3 -
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I actually can't remember the last time I had any type of soda. I was never addicted but I did have a golden rule that pizza had to be accompanied by root beer.
I'm not sure how my body would react to it at this point.
@LyndaBSS Thank you for making me crave Pizza and Root Beer! Almost ruined my diet! Haha just kidding. Awesome work! Keep remaining strong. Truth is we don’t need soda.1 -
Anniesquats100 wrote: »I was once a six can a day diet Pepsi fiend. The hardest part of getting free was when my allotted portion was half a can. That was almost twenty years ago. Nowadays I drink root beer maybe once a month. Fewer migraines and less gas. Plus no worries about where the next can would come from. Water is my happy beverage.
@Anniesquats100 water was so hard to drink at first. But now water is also my happy beverage!!0 -
I gave up soda (specifically anything carbonated) due to severe GERD almost 2 years ago. I had to give up lots of other things at the same time including coffee, caffeine, alcohol, etc.
Now I only drink water, Tazo Passion tea, and occasionally milk/homemade smoothies.
One of the best surprise results has been reduced sensitivity of my teeth. The acid from carbonated drinks was hard on my tooth enamel.
No weight difference from this change because I only drank diet sodas before.
I'm willing to do about anything to not have heartburn, pain, and develop esophageal cancer. Giving up soda is a pretty minor change compared to some of the others (no spicy food is almost torture).
@boldknee I commend you for making such an excellent decision to benefit your health. Great work!!
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I quit drinking soda again most 3 weeks ago. I went maybe 2 years without it during my pregnancy/nursing stage and the started back up again. I don’t miss it when I’m not drinking it. But it’s a slippery slope. If I start then it just becomes a habit for me. Sometime I’ll get my soda fix in a mixed drink and that’s about it.
@jus4kix06 i also commend you for your determination! It’s definitely hard! But don’t look back!! Soda has absolutely no benefit. On the contrary, it only does us harm. So try meditating on all the reasons why you shouldn’t drink any and maybe that will be the extra motivation you need to remain strong!! You got this!!!0 -
debrasheers wrote: »Hi Everyone! I'm a 12 can A DAY pop drinker - I love my Coke! I cannot stomach any artificial sweeteners at all (plant based or otherwise) and will have to cold-turkey it. What helped you get through the first two awful days? Thank you, and have a great day! - Deb
@debrasheers
I also agree with @puffbrat it may be better to slowly reduce your caffeine intake rather that quit all of a sudden. 12 cans a day is a lot and who knows how your body may react. Granted, you’ll get through it. Now i don’t think there is a need to prolong the process for months or several weeks because this may just minimize the importance of quitting. Maybe do 10 cans one day, then 8 the next, then 6 then 4, etc. All while drastically increasing your water intake. I found that the more water i drank the less i started craving soda. You have to train your body: “Water is my friend and this is all i need.” It can be done!! Don’t give in to temptation! You got this!0 -
I'm in the midst of kicking an 8-12 sodas per day habit myself. This week is my first week (first few days I had one soda a day, today marks day 3 of only water and no soda) I didn't think kicking a 20+ year addiction was going to be a walk in the park, and it most definitely has been very difficult, but I honestly feel TERRIBLE. I have never felt so tired in my life. (I took 2 naps this week....I never nap). Completing any task takes every ounce of my energy and I'm just feeling exhausted constantly. When does this end?0
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At one point I stopped drinking diet soda for 2.5 years and nothing happened. It didn't have any negative or positive effects, so my take on it is neutral0
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Sadie2PointOh wrote: »When does this end?
Ah, why didn't I think about it... depending on what you drank, it is the caffeine withdrawal that is causing the bas feeling. Hang in there, just get through today. Tomorrow will be better.
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Caffeine withdrawal is real.2
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I realized I was drinking too much soda and gave it up cold turkey for 11 years. No cheating.
Then, two years ago, I said to myself, "you should have some again, you'll be able to moderate yourself." 😂😂😂
Nope. Once a soda addict, always a soda addict. I've quit again and I'm doing fine. I'm an all or nothing person and I can't just have a can or two a week. I'd rather have it ALL or have none of it.3 -
I was never a fiend but I cut out soda about 10 years ago. I mostly drank Diet Coke.
The biggest thing is that I can now only stand 7up type sodas, ginger ale as a mixer. Even then a full can can be a bit much. Any other sofa is sickeningly sweet to me. I took a sip of coke this summer and it was awful. Even sweet tea is too sweet, and if I order a coffee with a syrup I need to ask for fewer pumps, the full amount is too much.
How much I drink varies, but I can easily go over a month without drinking any. I never crave it.
Instead I drink water (plain only, don’t like bubbles or flavour) or coffee (with milk). Also alcohol, where I also can’t stand sweet beverages.0 -
Stocked my frig w/cases of soda/beer and was drinking 6-8 cans of Coke and 3-4 cans of Bud daily for years.
This was a major factor in 1st reaching 200# (my red line) about 6 yrs ago, so I stopped buying and drinking the stuff cold turkey and lost 40# right away.
Maintained that wt loss for a couple yrs but then fell off the wagon, I forget why, and regained the 40# in a yr after starting to stock & drink the stuff again.
Lost the 40# again in 6 mos and have maintained the loss in the 3+ yrs since. Have not touched another soda in that time but I still drink a beer or 2 but only on draft when eating out, never at home where it's just too easy to break open can after can w/o restraint.
Still a recovering soda addict to this,day and I've sworn to never touch the stuff again.3 -
Im still addicted 😂 seems to be an addiction I can't break 🙄1
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I drink the occasional diet soda, so they're not totally gone. But I used to drink 8-12 full sugar sodas per day, every day when I was a teen. Until I went to the dentist and had over 30 cavities. Nothing will turn you off sugar soda quite like sitting through dozens of fillings and countless Novocaine needles! I don't miss it at all really, regular soda tastes sickeningly sweet to me now.1
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Sadie2PointOh wrote: »I'm in the midst of kicking an 8-12 sodas per day habit myself. This week is my first week (first few days I had one soda a day, today marks day 3 of only water and no soda) I didn't think kicking a 20+ year addiction was going to be a walk in the park, and it most definitely has been very difficult, but I honestly feel TERRIBLE. I have never felt so tired in my life. (I took 2 naps this week....I never nap). Completing any task takes every ounce of my energy and I'm just feeling exhausted constantly. When does this end?
It takes about two weeks before you feel better. Take Excedrin or midol if you need to get rid of a headache. The both have a little bit of caffeine. Good luck!1 -
How do you recommend going about quitting soda? I know sugary drinks are my biggest source of empty calories, but I honestly feel kind of sick when I don’t drink them. I’ve been able to quit soda but only by subbing to juice/Gatorade which aren’t much better. I can drink unsweetened tea for flavor but I don’t know how to handle the lack of sugar or if that will go away in time3
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How do you recommend going about quitting soda? I know sugary drinks are my biggest source of empty calories, but I honestly feel kind of sick when I don’t drink them. I’ve been able to quit soda but only by subbing to juice/Gatorade which aren’t much better. I can drink unsweetened tea for flavor but I don’t know how to handle the lack of sugar or if that will go away in time
I'm only on day 9 of cutting down soda and day 4 of absolutely no soda, so without much time or experience under my belt, I don't know if I'm qualified to answer this; (especially since my body is still experiencing caffeine + sugar withdrawal)
I drank 8-12 sodas per day (1300-2000 calories) for 20+ years, so I can definitely empathize with your hesitation due to feeling sick without it and inability to know how to handle it.
I'm not going to lie....I feel horrible. I've never been so tired in my life, and have never had such a hard time trying to get my brain to function....it's like I'm in a constant state of feeling groggy and exhausted yet jittery and anxious at the same time....very strange to experience simultaneously. However, I haven't had any headaches thank goodness, despite that probably being the most common side effect. I know this will pass and I will feel better soon though! I'm not mentioning this in an attempt to dissuade you, but rather to prepare you so that you're more likely to be successful and not blindsided by that.
As I said, I went from 8-12 down to 1 for 5 days and then no sodas after that. For some people, just quitting cold turkey is a better option. For others, gradually tapering off might've the best bet. For me personally, I thought cold turkey would be too hard mentally, and felt that slowly tapering off would lead me to fall back into old habits more easily (well I'm allowed 6 today so 7 won't hurt...then 8, 9, 10, 11, and back to 12) But do what YOU think might help YOU be most successful.
I didn't substitute with juices or coffee or anything else, just water. But again, maybe that won't be the best option for you either.
Sorry I don't have more solid answers or advice. Feel free to add me as a friend or shoot me a message if you need some encouragement.1
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