Hello.

I'm currently struggling with caffeine and sugar addiction. It is my desire to go raw. I was raw about 3 years ago and am quite familiar with the raw foods diet. I'd like to have one or two committed e-mail girlfriends whom I could provide encouragement to, as well as receive encouragement from, several days a week.

Is anyone interested?

hey there smilebig.....how's it going??? well i wouldl ove to be an email buddy with you....i am still learning this raw food thing too...i started on january 24th of this year for the first time...and i am loving it......my email is sachelle@rawfoods.com......i also suggest starting a diary in the diary section of this website...there are a few of us there that are always checking in and helping one another....we are like a little family there....and sometimes we dont' really check on the main forum though haha....so you should defintely add your little diary...and be ready for lots of support, inspiration and love!!
good luck and welcome back to raw foods!!!
love earth angel!!!
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox
btw my journal is under sachelle...i recently changed my sign in name because i didn't want my real name used so much since i talk about some personal issues with food and stuff and don't want future employers to see
xoxoxoxoxoxo

Earthangel,

Thanks for the advice regarding the diary section. I'll definitely check it out. Do you guys ever get together to do a live chat?

smilebig,

I understand how hard it is to kick sugar and caffeine! I'm a total chocolate addict, along with hot chocolate, candy, baked things, Green Tea Frappuccino, etc. I've found that after 2-3 days on a clean diet, the cravings pretty much cease, or at least let up enough to make choosing healthy things easy. Once I "cheat", though, it's back to square one with the addictions.
I'd love to provide mutual support! You can check out my blog in my signature, and can contact me either through the blog or here.

Best wishes!


harmonyraw.blogspot.com

Smile,

One way I have switched my thinking starting to change eating habbits I have looked at taste as short lived. A brief enjoyment when it passes the mouth then damage begins. Try some meditation and will start become a silent witness to your thoughts and actions. Tell yorself is this going help me evolve my being or is this going bring me back to the place where I have come and now am seeking ways to rid past conditioning and patterns that have me locked, to what it seeems to me unbreakable patterns. Crutches and habbits have a great deal of the world stuck in a state of limbo and delusion. Stepping out in the begining is hard and uncomfortable but you have countless beautiful examples of people changing there lifes and there paradigms that give is the fuel to keep trucking. I would like to personally like to welcome you back and say enjoy the new you that is just around the corner....

Ohmmmmmmmmmmmm Shanti Ohmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

I STILL struggle with those problems. When Im tired its the first thing I want.

I tried several things for my transition, but the best for me was organic yerba mate. It can be steeped in water of any temperature, and it is definitely stimulating.

Be careful though about buying non-organic, cuz I was using it and gave it to some Brazilians who were used to drinking it in Brazil. They later told me there was something wrong with it, it felt bad to them. I switched straight away to organic and noticed I felt better with it too.

hello smilebig, i'm kind of up and down with the raw diet. i'm also addicted to sugar and a little caffeine. i am not currently doing raw because it's real hard for me to stick to it being addicted to those things. here's my email ifyou want to talk about the addiction and raw.

thanks,
'
laura tristani

lltristani@aol.com

You could try reading "Caffeine Blues". Although I still have a cup of coffee in the morning - the book has helped me get rid of the multi cup habit that I did have. In fact, I would guess that a steady increase in raw foods actually makes it much easier to ease caffeine out of the diet. I just haven't been willing to give up the morning cup - maybe this summer when it's really hot outside (we don't have ac anymore! I have switched to Teecchino - it's an herbal/fruit/nut/seed coffee substitute that I really love. It seems that most people who try it really like it - even coffee drinkers who have no intention of quitting. You can find it at most health food stores and you can buy it by the case on amazon - it comes out to about $5.00 per can.

I never realized how REALLY bad for us caffeine is. I knew it wasn't health food, but I had no idea! I loaned out my book and can't remember the name of the author. He doesn't recommend that we go cold turkey, but that we ease in Teecchino and ease out coffee. Maybe I'll try that with this last cup that I haven't been willing to give up.

Anyhoo - good luck with that!

Life Is Good!

alive!

I can totally relate to the sugar addiction, I just wanted to share my experience, perhaps my story is a bit different but here it is anyway...

I come from a family history of eating disorders/addiction, diabetes, and severe depression/suicide. I'm the only one in my family who isn't on meds, and who sees the connection between sugar addiction and chemicals in the brain.

Sugar is completely like a drug, in my experience, and I never thought I would have a chance to escape it's clutches until the profound awakening I've had going raw. For the first time in my life, I've felt true "freedom." It was really amazing, and I just wish everyone could realize how much food affects their mental state and health on every possible level.

When I used to eat cooked, refined, sugary foods, I would feel hooked... and my body won't let me stop. There's clearly a biological reaction when I consume those things, because whenever I do, I experience severe happiness followed by severe depression immediately after. I can remember times when I would literally be crying while eating a bag of chocolate candies.

I was vegetarian for a long time and then vegan for a while, but I still felt like it wasn't enough, I still fought urges on a daily basis and I could feel that my body was still not at ease. That's why I recently decided to go raw, and after experiencing the effects, I feel deep inside of me that raw is the only answer. I feel so great, words cannot explain!

~Blessings~

i agree with you gracielle. i firmly believe food has a huge effect on everything in our lives. i believe in the raw diet for every reason possible but for me, it's very hard to stick with it. when i start eating raw for a week or so, i end up bingeing on all those foods we can't have. what did you do to keep yourself raw?

thanks,

Laura T

Hey Tristani,

I'm still new to raw foods myself, so I probably don't have the greatest advice... haha... but I notice that I feel really great though, the longer I do it. I keep in mind that I'm doing this for my health, and that I can quit anytime I want to, but I am CHOOSING to do this, because I look forward to a better quality of life.

My biggest tip would probably be: "Prevent yourself from getting REALLY hungry." Raw foods tend to digest very easily and efficiently, and it's a lot different than eating cooked food. It's like a whole new way of eating. I find that eating a little bit every couple hours, or once I *begin* feeling hungry, prevents me from feeling ravenous and then binging on other stuff that's not good for me. I always try to keep lots of ready to eat raw snacks on hand, I like strawberries, celery, carrots, and dried fruit a lot. It's a struggle for me, but I guess I try to look forward to the possibility of it becoming easier in the future.

Also, don't sabotage yourself by letting yourself near the trigger foods... because if you decide to cave, you'll start feeling remorseful after the first few bites. (I've done that, trust me, it sucks!)

Also, if you feel discouraged, wanting cooked food, or if you fall off the wagon, look up some raw foods video clips on u-tube with charismatic guys like David Wolfe and many others! Those always put a smile on my face and get me pumped up! Tee-hee!

Peace

Can someone please tell me what 'u-tube' is? I think that seeing some raw foods video clips would be encouraging.

Smile

u-tube is [www.youtube.com]. You can find raw food videos by searching for "rawfood".

First...Try diluting the coffee you are consuming...do this gradually...If you purchase coffee out...tell them to fill your cup half with hot water and half with coffee...and to heck with the look they will give you...Have a great day...Diana

thanks gracielle. i'm trying raw again. it's only been a couple of days but i'm doing ok. i did have some whole grain toast last night but that was the only cooked food i've had for a few days. i feel myself detoxing that's for sure. i will keep trying though.

thanks, laura