Tuesday, September 05, 2006

I Like Me Better With Caffeine

In an effort to achieve greater health and well-being, my husband brought home a copy of a self-help book by a certain nutrition guru/nazi and thus began his quest to improve his diet which, at the time of the book purchase, included vast amounts of Pepsi, coffee, beer, and Sesame Chicken. My husband once spent an entire semester eating the same thing for lunch every day: Sesame Chicken, fried rice, and a large Pepsi. I was quite surprised to discover his commitment to forgo all his favorite dehydrating and urinary-tract-irritating beverages, his nightly glass of scotch, and even his red meats! He started guzzling water instead (probably contaminated with lead, the nutri-nazi warns us: we'd better get a water filter quickly before cancer sets in!), sipping anti-oxidant-laden green tea along with his brown rice and veggies. You could almost see his arteries breathing a sigh of relief. I thought this was an incredible step for someone who was raised on a farm in Nebraska on the stereotypical meat/potatoes/corn medley. (Being that opposites attract, it seems logical that he then married a vegetarian.)

So inspired by his lifestyle alterations was I, that I decided to give up coffee at the same time. At this point I think it's worth mentioning that I have a five month old baby in addition to my preschooler, and neither one of these adorable wee bairns sleep through the night. I am typically roused from a light sleep several times before dawn, sometimes to roll a frustrated newborn onto his back again after he gets stuck on his tummy, sometimes to get water for Joshua because he's "scared of shadows", and once to deny Joshua his violin practice time at 5:00 am. Coffee had become a habitual part of my persona. Dark, thick, tenacious, a brew to be reckoned with, but never to be offered to company, as I'm fairly certain it was also THE WORST coffee ever percolated this side of McDonalds.

A few days after stumbling about grumpily and complaining about how the namby-pamby green tea doesn't go well with pancakes, I realized two things: number one, I did feel better physically. Number two, it seems that the absorption of coffee into my system not only propped me up in the mornings, but was apparently also responsible for whatever charm or pizzazz I may have possessed at one time. Caffeine-free, I no longer boasted a quick wit, nor was I tickled pink. Trying to sustain a lighthearted conversation was a chore and a charade. Things improved a bit after a few weeks, but I still notice the absence of the anti-depressant effects. The consequences of sleep deprivation are more evident.

I'm continuing the experiment, attempting to get used to feeling pleasant but not excitable. Being even-keeled feels better than getting the jitters, but I must admit, I like me better with caffeine.

2 comments:

Ian said...

I like me better with caffeine too. I can't write well without at least a minor buzz.

BTW, you still have the old link to EDog's Everything Page on your blog. The new is http://ianthealy.blogspot.com.

Great to see you back on the blogtrail!

Ian

Sunrunner said...

You are a brave, brave woman (although I have to admit I've substituted some of my coffee caffeine with green tea at work). Keep at it!!!