It’s 5 a.m. My husband gently kisses my sleeping cheek to wake me. I smile without opening my eyes as he says, “Good morning.”
He whispers, “It’s five, you wanted to get up early so you could do some writing before the kids wake up.” My smile turns to a disapproving scowl and I turn and bury my head in my pillow.
After a few groggy minutes, I slowly raise myself out of bed. Now that I am up, I can’t wait for a cup of coffee.
I stumble downstairs and can practically taste the bold and silky richness of the drink. The weight of the mug, the steam pouring out of the top, the way the liquid inside warms my throat with each glorious sip. My name is Susan and I might be a coffee addict.
I have enjoyed coffee since my twenties. When I was a teenager, there was not a Starbucks in every strip mall, grocery store or Target shopping center. I did not know the joy of a Frappuccino.
My exposure to a daily cup of coffee came during college and my part-time job of working at a retail jewelry store at the mall. I used to like the fancy sugared coffee drinks but now I am the happiest with some medium to dark roast, freshly ground beans and a touch of flavored creamer.
On a usual day, my husband and I will go through a pot of coffee before we leave the house at 7:30. By two or three in the afternoon, I am starting to get the craving for an iced coffee. I feel like it will help me get through the rest of the day. Is all this caffeine harmful?
It is not as if I have never quit drinking caffeine. Each time I became pregnant, I stopped drinking coffee as soon I saw the positive result of the test. I went cold turkey. I don’t recommend it.
I had horrific headaches for days but enough time had past between pregnancies that I didn’t remember how bad it was to just stop. My doctor would tell me each time afterwards that small amounts of caffeine were okay.
However, after enduring the withdrawal symptoms for nearly a week, I was not going back. Occasionally, I would still have a decaf coffee or a small glass of diet coke. Both as treats simply because I enjoyed the taste.
I also always know when I am getting sick because I don’t crave coffee in the morning. When I come down with a cold or virus, I am somehow able to go days without drinking coffee. Maybe I feel so rotten from being sick, that I don’t notice the caffeine withdrawal. But without fail, I always go back.
I can distinctly remember how good that cup of coffee tasted after having my children and weaning them from breastfeeding. For each child, I went almost two years without caffeine yet couldn’t wait to work it back into my day.
What is the pull? What is the draw? Somehow my day just starts better when I am holding my ceramic mug, hearing the dripping of fresh brewing coffee, and smelling the undeniable scent of the dark, rich beans.
Another related article written by Hillary Easom provides interesting information on caffeine. https://www.empowher.com/diet-amp-nutrition/content/truth-about-caffeine
You decide? Will you quit caffeine?
Edited by Jody Smith