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Fighting my Addiction to Coke

Posted in Food, Humour, Milestones by Elliott Back on March 30th, 2005.

It’s my third Coke-free day.

I stopped taking Coke with my meals just three long, torturous days ago. I stopped taking Coke to stay up at night. With every fibre of responsibility, I have refrained from temptation to imbibe Coke until at least 2 weeks have passed, and my addiction is broken.

Coke: My AddictionBut you don’t know how hard it is. When I walk into the bathroom to brush my teeth or gaze admiringly at my sunken and dark eyes in the mirror, I pass my roommate’s closet, which brims over with Coke. Cases and cases, full of delicious Coca-cola, that red and white can, cool in the dark closet. Shivers run up and down my spine, and my eyes never move as I leave the bathroom. I WANT to drink. How hard will it be tomorrow?

It all started when I was a teenager, and my Father gave me Coke for the first time. I tried a little sip–since I knew how bad it was for you–but it tasted so good. I couldn’t stop drinking, and before I know it, the whole can was gone. I loved the smooth fizz and sweet taste, the bubbles that ran down your throat. From then on, I was in high gear. I drank as many as 2 Cokes a day, on average. On a really bad day, I could drink as many as five, using the Coke high to stay up late into the night.

But, as my complexion got worse, my weight increased, and my teeth rotted, I knew I had to stop. Now, on my third coke-free day, I feel free, in a way. The cravings are still there, but my teeth are already stronger, I look better, and I can think more clearly. If you’re addicted to Coke, don’t wait. You can stop now, and turn your life around!

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 30th, 2005 at 2:32 am and is tagged with coke don, eyes in the mirror, dark closet, cokes, dark eyes, sweet taste, shivers, complexion, cravings, bad day, roommate, fibre, sip, bubbles, coca cola, spine, addiction, temptation, teeth, teenager. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback.

Viewing 159 Comments

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    Not to put a too-serious spin on that lovely sentiment, but one reason quitting Coke might be so hard is caffeine withdrawl, so quitting caffeine first might help. Like, buy Coke only from soda fountains and start with 3/4 Coke and 1/4 caffeine-free diet coke, and then slowly move to 1/2 and 1/2, and so on.

    But kudos to you for going cold-turkey! I'm definitely impressed, as I won't be quitting carbonated sugar any time soon.
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    I know what you mean. The first sip of coke after a long drought is nirvana, and the closest I've been to understanding cigarette or alcohol addiction. I've since switched to Diet Coke - it takes a while to get used to the flavor and aftertaste, but I've found Diet Cherry Coke to be pretty acceptable.

    Jonathan
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    I am too a recovering Coke addict...
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    Glad I'm not alone...

    I am a LONG time diet-coke girl...between 2 and 3 cans a day. Have you read up on the effects of long-term aspartame use?! Scary....I've quit twice before, always during a cold...I reccomend waiting till you get sick...when the thought of eating or drinking anything sweet turns your stomach....then never look back!!! Beware of the fits of crankiness...and headaches...
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    i too am a coke addict i been trying to get off the for 2 years if you were on herion you get help. you go every were coke there
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    The longest I've been able to push it was a month. I felt good that month. But the craving... oh God the craving. I fall back into it's loving embrace every time. Just can't stop.
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    I have a son who has learning disabilities who is addicted to diet coke - the maximum he has had has been about 4 dozen cans per day. It is ruining his life and ours and I cannot get help for him.

    As the nicotine to the caffeine and you can imagine what he is like - a raging tiger and a threat to us all if he cannot get his fix. He goes out in his car at 4.30 most mornings to get his morning fix - what do I do and how can I help? Any suggestions would be welcome.
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    Have been off Diet Coke since February 2005 and some days it's hard and other days I don't think about it. I keep one Diet Coke can in my cupboard at home just so I have one in the house like a security blanket but I haven't drunk it. I think it would be harder if I didn't have any in the house. Before denying myself I had been drinking multiple cans a day for close to 10 years starting when I got up and for lunch, a snack, for dinner and after dinner. It got really crazy and I needed to stop. I'm glad I did but I can't help but wish some days that I could have a can but I want to reach a year of being Diet Coke Free.
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    The longest i've ever been is 11 days. Here I am on Tuesday 4th October, I gave up last saturday and woke up with the worst headache on Sunday morning. I soldiered on but finally cracked, as soon as the liquid gold passed my lips my headache completely disappeared.

    Keep up the good work.
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    Love is two people sipping Coca Cola from the same straw on a warm sunny day.
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    I used to drink like 6 cans a day or a whole 2 litter a day since I was 7 years old! I used to cry to my parents to buy me more when i ran out! like 6 months ago i went to europe and cocacola is so exspenisve there i couldn't drink it that much and when i came back i started running and quit drinking coke all together i've had a couple cokes over the months but it doesn't taste as good as it used to. I switched to sprite zero its just as adicting but no calories and no caffenine so its got to be better for you right?
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    Fellow addicts! Im on between 2 and 4 cans a day. I cant switch to diet as it just doesnt do it for me.

    Tried quitting but i just can't. Still, im not overweight and my teeth are fine so it cant be that bad!
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    o got this friend right,.. he is a coke addict for many years now. At first it seemed funny but now every time we meet him he's all fucked up. He doesnt shave anymore, he stinks and his girlfriend broke up with him. He doesnt understand he is an addict. He spents more time at home then at school. His mother doesnt seem to care and she doesnt stop giving him that shit. We tried everything, but now we are desperated. Please give us advise how to help him. He's (we) can't take this any longer love kevin and jason
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    Hi guys, lol ive been drinking coke since I was 6 or 7 and i drink about 8-10 cans per day and since reading this ive decided to quit...... wish me luck :S

    (not sure ill do it though)!
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    ive been drinking 14 - 16 liters a week of coca cola, i want to quit cause i think it causing my headachs and lack of being able to concentrate and get a decent nights sleep and general ill feeling. i aim to quit this week coming.......... heres hoping... and good luck to you all aswell.
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    I am currently addicted to coke. I can remember when I did not drink coke. About a year ago I was drinking coke with my lunch atleast everyday just because it was good. by about feburary 05 i realized that me and a friend of mine were addicted. we hadnt gone more than 24 hours without coke before. we got off our addictions and he is still clean but he drinks about 2-3 cokes per week. I did not get addicted for the whole summer of 05 but about 2 weeks ago i started again. i was drinking between 1 and 4 cokes per day.

    2 days ago i decided to stop. it was good til about lunch time yesterday when i NEEDED one. i was sleepy as hell and i was having crazy withdrawl symptoms. i had a headache and i could not concentrait in class.

    i scavenged for a dollar and bought one. when i drank that coke i was so very high. but in less than an hour i was having withdrawl symptoms again. i got home and decided to take a nap instead of drinking coke. i was so sleepy that i slept for over 16 hours. since then i am coke free. its been a long day.

    sleeping is the other alternative but i know that if i sleep too much that i will need it too much so its gonna be a long hard struggle to stay clean.
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    I'm drinking Coke and having a smoke and in 6 hours I'll have go to work. I guess that says it all. I'll need to quit for some time since they say the gas bubble explode the liver cells. God damn the pusher man!
    Good luck to you all, children of the Coke generation.
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    Wow, so i'm not the only one addicted to coke, there are times when I totally cannot resist from opening a can, it always tastes so good but I feel sad afterwards for not being able to control myself.
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    Hi,

    I am seriously addicted to Diet Coke and have started my own forum on the topic since it is being totally neglected by the media/health organisations.

    Please check:

    http://marcmorian.forumup.org/

    I would appreciated it if you shared your story...

    Cheers,
    Marc
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    i am to an addict. it used to be full fat coke but now i have switched to diet, it was hard to switch but now i drink diet i cudnt imagine drinking full fat coke again as its just to sweet, and makes me really thirsty,
    i get through 2 x 2 litres aday i kno ishudnt but i just cant help it. my bf goes mad with me and im just in the middle of switching from diet to diet coke with out caffiene ( the gold bottle) but it isnt sold in cans or 500ml bottles or if it is i havent found it.

    i keep plodding on, when i get up in the morning the first thing i think of is which garage shall i go to on the way to work to get some coke if i have ran out the nite b 4. if i dont have coke all day i get really irritable and snap at every one, ive started to get headaches and now ive also got irritable bowel which the diet coke doesnt help, im tryin to diet but i cant giv up coke and find it difficult to lose the weight were as i kno if i just gave up coke i would probably lose lots of weight as i eat sensibly and proper portions i dont eat chocolate or sweets as they hurt my teeth as they are very sensitive ( probably due to coca cola).
    Has anyone got any words of advice for me email me on -
    K dorman 01 @ aol.com - just take the spaces out, i have now admitted to myself im addicted and i want to do something about it but no one i know is also addicted like me so i have no one to talk about it my mother just says dont buy it but its not that easy IS IT!!!

    thanks for reading

    kathryn
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    I looove coke! I'm a biochemistry major in NYC so I definitely know the horrible effects of coca cola. I also have kidney problems (genetic). Every time I see the doctor she asks me if i'm drinking lots of water. My response: umm... coke. When she asks how much i'm kinda ashamed to say so i just respond with: "a lot more than I should". I know i should stop, but i don't really drink anything else. Coke and milk - that's it. Funny huh? I should stop... but i don't really want to. It tastes so good. I really didn't realize that so many people were actually "hooked" on coke.
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    Hi, my name is 'Coke girl', and im a coke-a-holic, lol, this is so sad, and i cant believe that there is actually a site about this, lol....
    GOSH I NEED TO STOP DRINKING COKE....

    I THINK IM GONA GO GET ONE NOW....LOL..

    o yea i found the site by searching for coka cola addicts in google, is that sad that i actually went looking for a site for this?....lol..or is it sad that i actually found one, oh wait i think i found more than one...lol

    LONG LIVE COKA COLA....hm i think ive had one too many glasses of coke..lol...
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    I am a wife of a 37 year old coke addict. He gets surly without it, he's complained about his teeth yellowing, and he is gaining more weight than he should be for what he eats. I am really concerned about his health. He passed kidney stones, and his doctors told him not to drink coke. He stopped for a while, then got right back into it, somehow forgetting the excruciating pain of the kidney stones, but remembering how much he loved coke. Because we usually only have coke and water in the house, I mainly drink water. But I recently adopted an ' if you can't beat em join em' mentality and enjoyed a few cokes myself. Not being an addict (yet!), I noticed that since drinking coke, I got stomach aches and only wanted a coke to feel better. I JUST KNOW there is a connection. I also agree that it makes you thirsty.... for more coke. I think the coke company has put something in it- to stay on top of the cola industry...