Do we have to avoid Chocolate/Coffee/Alcohol Etc The Rest Of Our Lives?

celeron · Post by **celeron** » Fri Sep 05, 2008 9:04 am

I don't know about you, but I am addicted to chocolate, especially the Hersheys variety that is just being made available in Ireland. But anyways, this past week I have felt like $hit, and If I look back at what I have eaten over this past week, There has been a mixture of McDonalds,KFC,Coke,Coffee,Beer,Chocolate,Tea nothing but rubbish.

Problem is you do well for a while and exercise, and eat properly then in a moment of weakness you say to yourself "Aw I'll have that nice cold can of Coke" you have that and have no major problems, you then say to yourself, "Aw well I had the Coke and was fine, I'll be fine with this bar of Cookies and Chocolate" and before you know it BOOM!! Depression, Anxiety, Anger.

Do you get like this? It seems like I need to stay away totally from Caffeine and Alcohol and exerise regularly or I am going to feel like $hit, I got on the treadmill this evening, after feeling depressed for the past 2 days and I must admit it has lifted my mood even though I near died on that treadmill (Haven't been on it in 4 weeks

) It seems like I have to stick to this way of eating and exercising for the rest of my days.

What about you?

irish89 · Post by **irish89** » Fri Sep 05, 2008 9:40 am

My two cents is that it isn't the food/alcohol/caffeine bringing on your anxiety, it is your reaction to how those things make you feel....i think that is where the difference lies. Eating crap food makes everyone feel a bit more crappy, alcohol does what alcohol does, and chocolate and coke give a caffeine rush....the issue is that you are letting your anxiety grab hold of those feelings as not "normal".
I can relate. My big episode that kicked things off for me 8 months ago had to do with a lack of exercise and poor eating. Ive been a runner for years but in december I had a combination of high work stress and travel: these meant I ate on the road a lot and never had time to run. I felt physically crappy as well as stressed....and I kept predicting that the panic which had been gone for 7 years would come back, sure enough I predicted it back into my life as i gave power to it again and it grasped hold of how i was feeling different than usual.

My advice: eat a Big Mac, wash it down with a Coke and tell your anxiety to bring it on as you can take it. in fact, ask your anxiety if "it wants fries with that" before you let out an evil chuckle. that being said, exercise is a good thing....get back on that horse not just mentally but for physical well being.

Kodiak44 · Post by **Kodiak44** » Fri Sep 05, 2008 9:45 am

I haven't had Chocolate or Caffeine for about 4 months now. I do love dark chocolate and have found it hard to go get ice cream with the wife and kids because it limits my choices. The caffeine is not really a big deal because you can have a Sprite or Root Beer for your soda pop and I drink de-caffeinated green tea.

I don't drink alcohol anywhere near as much, partly because I'm afraid to mix it with my medications that I'm on. I don't have to drink a case or anything, but I do get worried with more than a couple.

So cutting back on the chocolate and caffeine have not been a big deal for me, I do hate the fact that I don't enjoy a few beers from time to time. I worry a lot about it in fact. If we go to a wedding or someone's party, I feel like a downer because I con't drink and have a good time. I always had a good time before. But I'm scared that the medicine and beer will cause bad things to happen. Plus I'm not 25 anymore.

Good luck quiting what you feel you need to quit and maybe cutting back on what you still want. You can't deprive yourself of everything that makes you feel good for a while. That's part of living!!!

cuttingirl · Post by **cuttingirl** » Sat Sep 06, 2008 6:40 am

Hi! I don't think we have to live like ascetics, but know thyself. It sounds like you already do. No need to flog yourself. Personally, I still enjoy that cup of coffee or delicious pint (I love microbrews) and chocolate, wow, dark chocolate for me. There are times when my anxiety is high and therefore I don't drink any coffee or eat the chocolate or at least have less of it. My need for control has found a home in self-care instead of self-abuse. I accomodate my controlling and obsessing nature by cooking new and interesting things that are good for me, sharing food with neighbors and friends, and by exercising. I just made a chili with many fresh garden vegetables. Yum! It's also hard to feel bad when you have that happy endorphin rush from a workout. It's ok to have "those moments". We all have them. PS I think Hershey's is crap (no offense, lol) I want to eat the high-cocoa dark chocolate variety so hard to get in the U.S.!