Overwhelmed!

Seen the Dietitian, Registered Nurse and Social Worker yesterday at Humber. So much info!! So much to change....I have been procrastinating big time since I started this process in January. I need to start losing weight now...before the surgery as my BMI is too high. So now it starts!! Know what I'm afraid of the most??? NO CAFFEINE!!! I am a coffee drinker....I always drink coffee....so this morning I tried decaf tea....not so bad actually. On my way home I will get a decaf coffee....have to try it at some point...and as I say that...I am enjoying a large Tim Hortons coffee....

When I hit the no caffeine point I got the apple cinnamon tea from Tim Horton's smelled and tasted great, not quite the same as coffee, but I couldn't do black coffee either, so just gave up coffee till I could have cream again.

I don't remember ever drinking coffee for the caffeine. I drink decaf all the time....I don't even notice the difference, and I'm sure I wouldn't if you snuck a caffeinated coffee in the mix. Now having said that I drink maybe two coffees a day. Most often only one.

I felt the same way TammyC73!

I use to drink 7 xl coffees a day when I was younger. Then in the past 3 years I went to between 3-4 a day. Here are some of my tricks. First if you have a Keurig get the Timmy's decaf. It's honestly great! I have one coffee in the morning and one decaf after that if I really want one. I did it gradually so that I wouldn't get any headaches. I also use TRUVIA...not the other stevia brands but TRUVIA in my coffee and tea. I will also make coffee then put it in the fridge so it's like cheating with an iced coffee. My water trick is to put decaf fruit teas with 1 small tsp of TRUVIA. It seriously tastes like you are cheating!!! I use all different flavours and I never feel deprived anymore. Also the dietician said that since it's no sugar and caffeine free I can count it as water. If I want to stop at Timmy's I just order a regular coffee or decaf or tea. I keep TRUVIA in my SUV so that I never have to worry about artificial sweeteners or sugar. Try not to be overwhelmed. Try to do your best each day and PLAN...PLAN...PLAN your next days meals so that you don't have to cheat. I'm in the stage of making adjustments for my surgery on May 22nd.

As everyone says.....you got this girl !!!!!

Hey there, overwhelm can be debilitating for sure. Try to take on one change at a time... do it for a week, then add in another. If you try to do it all, it's too much. Self recrimination never helped any of us. :)

As for coffee and decaf, what about doing half and half for a week? Half decaf instead of full on? It will give your body time to adjust. I used to order that a lot at Tim's... they are used to it.

Finding creative ways to make changes can be your best ally in this journey. It feels like all or nothing, but taking a phased approach can really help. You got this! We're here to help. :)

I never even thought about starting with half and half...thanks for the idea :)

I don't know how much time you have, but I also weaned myself off caffeinated coffee gradually. I don't think I could have done it cold turkey. I think I did 3/4 caffeinated, 1/4 decaf for a couple of weeks, then half & half for a couple of weeks, then 1/4 caffeinated 3/4 decaf, then all decaf.

Half regular coffee and half decaf is how I got off caffeine pre surgery. I had tried to stop drinking coffee cold turkey previously and the caffeine withdrawal was terrible. Half decaf is a life saver.

How long before surgery do you need to be off caffeine?

It depends on your Centre. With my Centre, I drank caffeine right up to before my surgery. Some centres don't allow it though. Yours will tell you. :)