Kicking Caffeine in One Week

I have been having many health problems and one thing that I knew had to go was my addiction to caffeine. I started drinking it during my pregnancies and this last pregnancy I especially craved soda and not just any soda, Cherry Coke. After I had my youngest, I kept drinking it. I would buy the 2-liter bottles and drink them throughout the entire day. I was amazed however when my church gave me a 12-pack of Cherry Coke in cans and I drank it all in two days. Umm. . . apparently I had a problem. I began to realize that I had been drinking a 2-liter bottle of soda EVERY DAY. 

Yes, all mine. 

So I decided to stop. So I quit drinking it. Easy peasy right? Not so much. After 24 hours, I developed the worst and first migraine of my life and nothing helped. Medicine, sleeping, time. . . NOTHING was helping my head. I endured 24 hours of this migraine until I ate some chocolate and within 15 minutes, my headache was relieved slightly. Not gone, just not as painful. It clicked and I realized my body was crying out for caffeine. I sent my hubbie to the grocery store and he picked up some soda for me. 30 minutes after drinking it, my migraine was gone completely. Huh. That's not good. 

I battled it back and forth but every time I got close to going any amount of time without the caffeine, I struggled with a headache and since I am mom and wife first, I drank my Cherry Coke. By doing that, I cut back to eventually half of a 2-liter a day but seemed to think that was fine. 

Then the body pains began. Every morning and through out the night, I would wake up with stiff legs, arms and feet. It was painful but bearable and I just kept going. Until I realized that maybe this pain was being caused by something. My mom suggested that maybe it was from the soda. Now it was time to get serious. 

In my post, My Addiction Confession, I talked a little bit about my problem with caffeine but I honestly wasn't sure if I would be able to kick it. Well I was and I'm overjoyed to say that I have been soda-free for 6 days now. But I wanted to share how I did it because my body could not do it cold turkey, it was too difficult to be mom and wife and glorifying to God at the same time. (When I am in pain, I am NOT a pleasant person!) 

My Kicking-Caffeine in One Week System

1. Day 1: I filled up my small bottle with the big bottle and drew a line on the side with a marker to visually SEE how much I drank. Then I kept the bottle in the fridge (through the whole week) and every time I wanted a drink or craved a drink or began to get a headache, I drank from it. I limited myself to the small bottle for the day. 
2. Day 2: I filled my bottle about 3/4 of the way and drew a line on the side and limited myself to that much for that day. 
3. Day 3: I filled it up half full and limited myself to that much for that day
4. Day 4: Now I filled it up to 1/4 and limited myself to that much for that day. 
5. Day 5: Now I am done with the bottle and I will NOT drink any more UNLESS I start to get a headache. I had cravings for it but no headache. So no soda. 
6. Day 6: No soda. No headache. a few cravings.
7. Day 7: No soda, no headache, no cravings. 

As you can see, I still had remaining soda in my 2-liter bottle and in my little bottle and after taking the picture, I threw it all away! I know it will still be a temptation to me to drink the soda but after a while, I know that will go away and I will be healthier for it! Oh and guess what? Day 7 - NO BODY PAINS! :0) 

In HIS Grip, 
               

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God: The Master Discipliner

I do not like disciplining my kids. It's hard. It's probably one of the hardest things I have undertaken. I've read books, I've prayed, I've cried buckets of tears, I've failed, and I've failed, and I've failed. Sometimes, I think I've had a victorious moment and my sweet little child seems to finally "get it," but then some itty bitty little thing happens that irks me or is against my will and BOOM!!! I've failed again. I was reminded today about how God is my greatest example in this area. He is the Master Discipliner! His children have rebelled, hated, despised, spit on, mocked, and disobeyed in ways that I shudder to think about. I am one of His children and I shudder to think how I have wronged Him! Now that I have been a mom, I now feel as though my mom is the most amazing and incredible person in the world. Monuments should be built in her honor! She should go down in the history books because she is MOM. However, the pain I have caused her in my growing up years is nothing compared to the pain I have caused my Heavenly Father. I have failed my Father in so many countless ways. But yet, He has always disciplined me perfectly. How He disciplines me is always with His perfect love, always with His perfect patience, always with His perfect wisdom. Wow! I know that in my humanness, I can never rise to the peak of perfection when it comes to disciplining my kids. But how humbling to know, that where I fail, God is still there and He will take the reins when I submit them to Him. Here are some verses from the book of Hebrews that have really encouraged me and helped me in my times of discipline trials.

" 'My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, Nor faint when you are reproved by Him; For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines, And He scourges every son whom He receives.' It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness." Hebrews 12: 5-11

I have failed, and God has or will discipline me. He will do it with the most perfect love, patience and wisdom. My children have failed and I am going to strive to constantly look to God to help me discipline my children with that same love, patience and wisdom. Any good that I do or comes from me, I do because of Him.