why i hate coffee...why do you?

[mangomama]

So...I hate coffee because of how addicting it is, because whenever I do have it, I want more and then I want some of the nasty pastries they sell right next to it. Because of the way it makes me feel, makes my skin break out, makes me forget how much I love *real food*.
Maybe you all could help me out by your responses so I can better remember why I hate coffee.
I would love your help. How do you avoid Starbucks, or Caribou or whatever? And please help me remember why :p
Thanks so much,
a mango loving mama to by 4 littles

[Gosia]

One reason only:
* I can't sleep even if I have the tiniest amount!

(Imagine, I used to HAVE to drink it so as not to fall asleep during my work, before going raw.)

All the best,
Gosia.

[karenisraw]

Mangomama,

Guess what, I work at Caribou Coffee! He He He.....Since I've been raw, I have not even remotely even wanted a cup of coffee. I drink the fruit smoothies (we get one free shift drink, whatever we want), or a soy chai latte.

[JennaBoBenna]

i used to have caramel fraps from starbucks because they were good. but then I stopped because i turned vegan and that stuff has all sorts of un-vegan stuff in it.
but I hate it because when I was in high school, I know people who were like "omg i have to have my morning coffee or i can't function" and they were 15!! ridiculous... :p

[karenisraw]

SmellyDelly,

I've been watching you on the boards and I think you are funny :)

[JennaBoBenna]

karenramsell--Thank you so much! That makes me feel really good! You brought a big huge smile to my face, which is very much appreciated because just a few minutes ago I was feeling very crummy(i put the details in the fasting forum) Thank you, again! Awww, come here *hugggs* :D :p

[karenisraw]

SmellyDelly,

Thanks for th hugs. I feel really great tonight because right here in my neighborhood, is a raw vegan restaraunt and the raw vegan doctor that owns it gives lecture in the same building every Tuesday night, so I get to meet these great raw vegan people every Tuesday night. Tonight after the lecture, I was in the restraunt looking at some of the products they sell and the doctor came up to me and started talking to me. I told him how great it was that I had a place to go and people to talk to that I could relate to and he said "you have a home here that you can come to any time you like"

In his lectures he also says that people need love to be healthy.

I'm having a difficult time because my boyfriend doesn't really say so but I get the feeling he thinks it's weird that I'm vegan-raw, like its anti-social or something. I can't really talk to him as much because he keeps trying to get me to eat meat for protien and he won't listen when I say its because I dont want to hurt the animals.

Anyway I feel good because of the doctor and your hugs.

Thank you.

It's awsome having this forum. It would be nice if we all lived in the same neighborhood so everyone could get together. It's like I'm starting a new life and you want to be with people that kind of "get it" where you're coming from.

[Sheryl]

After a couple of months without coffee, when I do have it (only a couple of times in the last few years) I'm crying within hours and mad at the world. This is reproducable... and I'm normally a very happy nice person!!!

It's quick amazing how strong the response is when your body isn't used to it.

Basically caffeine lowers the level of energy your body holds in reserve, so you basically BLEED out the extra energy your body is holding for healing and basic living functions. It think there is an emergency and releases the extra energy to deal with it. Think of that.. and it will help you choose other beverages that build health instead of tearing it down.

Smoothies anyone?
Sheryl

[rawsistah]

That *ick* tongue i get after i drink it, no matter what kind of yummy "flavourings" or how much sugar & cream i add!

peace
rawsista

[rawmd]

wish I could think of a reason :rolleyes:

[mangomama]

karenramsell,
are you talking about ecopolitian? I love that place, so yummy and relaxed.
THanks for all the replys. Yes I agree with the bad attitude that seems to be easy to give into after coffee.

[exurb]

mangomamma, do some googling, like coffee "toxic compounds", or coffee acrylamides, etc... Coffee is roasted at temperatures like 700F -1000F, and it's my opinion that when you burn stuff like that you create an array of toxic and possibly carcinogenic compounds. Personally I think the caffeine's the least of the worries.

Coffee still calls to me, but I don't answer. It's hard because the smell and taste are so seductive, the hubby has a pot brewed every morning of the best coffee. :( We were coffee afficionados before I went raw, as in we even bought a roaster for our home :eek: so we could have ultra fresh roasted coffee from the finest organic shade grown beans. Actually, the stuff at Starbucks tastes like crap and stale to me. Coffee beans starts to go stale a day or two after roasting, most coffee places don't bother to respect that, and just serve a stale product to an unaware public.

I would say try to substitute for a healthier alternative, then try to cultivate an enjoyment of those flavors, the clean feeling you get drinking it, etc... I do warm water and lemon, or ginger, or peppermint leaves, etc... Plus finding something else you like instead of coffee will put the focus on what you can have rather than what you can't.

It's the reading on all the toxins created by charring the coffee that keeps me from drinking it, so I suggest you immerse yourself in some knowledge of that, it will make it much easier to be put off of it.

[Purl]

I hate it because of the debilitating headache you get if you try to go without. I used to drink 2 quart canning jars each morning!!! Can you believe it!?!?! :eek: I gave it up around Thanksgiving and have only had it 1 or 2 times since. I thought it might be a nice "treat" but it actually didn't taste all that great. But I will never give up my annual Maple Latte from Mocha Joe's in Brattleboro, VT. Dh and I go up there every year for our anniversary during foliage season. :D

[karenisraw]

Mangomama,

Yes I am talking about ecopolitan. They have free lectures every Tuesday night from 6:30-8:30. It is a great place to meet people. One time I went into the juicebar for a juice before the lecture and there was this guy who was totally intruiged by the restaraunt and watching the cook make the raw food and he seemed like he liked the idea of going raw. I never knew there were other raw food people in the world until I found Ecopolitan.

Anyway about coffee....I used to love it and this doctor said No!, you can use the bean grinder to grind nuts and that's all you should be using it for.

[Miette]

I dont like coffee because of the dreadful hallucinations it gives me and the migranes I get from drinking it. Also 1 cup of coffee could keep me up for 3 or 4 days. Not fun.

Miette

[Lady Green Jeans]

Good thread.

In no particular order:

The high cost of prepared drinks (especially Starbucks)
The nasty 'make you sicker than a dog' detox a body must do when you decide to quit.
Knowing you are burning out your adrenals prematurely drinking it.
The heart palps and keeping you up when you try to sleep after drinking it
The acid condition it keeps your body in
Teeth staining and bad breath forming

Jee, why did I ever like it so much? Guess add addiction to the list.

[karenisraw]

Miette,

I don't get what the hallucinations are from the coffee? Do you not get them except for the coffee?

[mangomama]

Lady Green Jeans-
Thanks so much for your info! Yes, it's awful, so awful. And it's everywhere!!!! It's so good to be reminded. I think one of the draws for me is the 'indulge yourself, do something for you, etc...." nonsense.
I think the next time I want to do something for myself I'll get a glass of water and sit down to read to my littles! That sounds much better.
Thanks again, I think I'm going to keep a copy of this thread handy :)
Mangomama

[Alwaystriving]

I was drinking it primarily for the effect. That, and it's addictive. Mangomama, I know what you mean about needing a little something with that coffee like a donut or a pastry. Let's face it, coffee doesn't really taste that good. It needs to be masked with something sweet. If its not a pastry its chocolate, whipped cream, sugar or whatever Starbucks puts in it to make it fatty, sweet, tasty and expensive. It's a lousy substitute for a good night's sleep. It's okay to go to Starbucks for a tazo tea from time to time. But it's a lot better to wake up and hydrate yourself with a large glass or two of squeezed lemon and water.

[lodestar]

the closest thing I've ever had to coffee is mocha ice cream...doesn't sound like I've missed out on too much :-)

[mangomama]

alwaystriving, yes, coffee is stupid! Some people are making millions on it, but even that is stupid. Thanks for the come-along-beside. I'm looking forward to my morning hydrate...that motorcycle looks more fun than a trip to starbucks. Looks more expensive though. ;)
mangomama

[Crystal Rose]

I hate coffee because in my opinion it almost killed me.

My heart was skipping beats and palpitating A LOT until I got off it. Thank God for the Miracle of Raw Foods or I'd probably be in the grave now. And I'm not being dramatic. I really mean it.

I could tell my whole coffee story, but it would take up probably 100 pages.
I can give some reasons why I hate it tho.

In addition to what everyone else said, it's extremely DEHYDRATING. It's almost impossible to drink enough water to counter-affect the dehydrating effects of coffee when you're drinking a lot of it. I know this from personal experience.

I hate it because the more I drank of it the more I wanted, and I don't want to be addicted to ANYTHING anymore (another Miracle of Raw Food -- I believe my food addictions are gone, except for maybe raw chocolate -- although I can control it, whereas coffee and processed chocolate, I couldn't seem to control).

I hate it because my sleeping patters were all messed up.

I hate it because it's probably the worst "drug" out there. It's probably the most addicting and it's viewed by society as virtually harmless (it's so socially acceptable).

I hate it because it changed my personality. I'm actually a very easy-going person, but when I was on coffee, I was very hyper, excitable & cranky.

I hate it because of all the money I spent on Starbucks over the years -- a small fortune.

Yadda, yadda, yadda -- I could go on and on...

Thanks for letting me share and thanks for all the wonderful posts -- hopefully this will help someone somehow somewhere.

Peace & Love,
Vicki
9 mos. + raw
25 pounds lost

[Miette]

Karenramsell,

Hallucinations was caused from caffine overdose. I had an "ultimate" from coffee bean and tealeaf. Way too much caffine for me to handle. Since then I havent touched coffee freaked me out way too much. I dont wanna go through that again.

Miette

[exurb]

mangomamma, try Brazil nut milk for a great coffee/mocha like taste, really a better taste than the bitter yuchy tastes involved in coffee. Did you drink your coffee black, or with cream and sugar?

Another reason to hate it is it gives bad breath. Technicians who can measure people's bad breath with instruments can measure gross breath from coffee drinkers.

[Dot Brookes]

I hate it because of all the reasons above but, vainly and most shallowly it makes me retain water.

and, it never tastes as good as it smells

I still have a cup now and then - which in reality is about half a cup once every 2 or 3 months - normally i order a cup with great anticipation, it gets there and half way thru I go 'oh, darn this isn't as nice as I thought it would be and toss the rest"

Yes, and it is definitely addictive, once I have that half a cup I have to fight myself for a couple of weeks cause I keep thinking i want more.

Strangely enuff I get a craving in the week prior to menstruating.

Hope that helps :)

Dot

[JMD]

I HATE NOT ONLY HOW ADDICTING IT IS..BUT IT IS A TRENDY ADDICTION TOO ESPECIALLY IN THE WORKPLACE.

I ALSO HATED THAT I COULD ONLY HAVE MINE WITH FATTY CREMES AND SUGAR...EVEN WORSE FOR ME. I DID NOT EVEN LIKE THE TASTE BUT THOUGHT I LOOKED COOL...AND TRENDY--INSERT A "DAH" HERE.

THE SADDEST PART IS THAT I AM ITALIAN AND WAS GIVEN ESPRESSO AT LIKE AGE 5!!! AND GOT SICK BUT I WANTED TO DRINK WHAT THE BIG PEOPLE WERE DRINKING.... :eek:

TALK ABOUT SICK....

JMD

[karotw]

Coffee - boy do I have a love/hate relationship with the stuff. Never used to drink it, then I moved to the San Francisco Bay Area and there was a Starbucks on every corner (sometimes 2!) and I became addicted. Then I couldn't drink "bad" coffee - ;) only the really "good" stuff. . .Now, after having gone years without coffee, then going back, then going off, then going back, I feel like it holds me hostage. I realized that I'm the one who gets to make the decision to leave the stuff alone, but it certainly has a powerful draw. Oh yeah, not to mention that I don't sleep very well, my skin and lips get really dry, and that it's a vehicle for added sugar and dairy that I don't need. . .

Why is it that I like the stuff again?

Many Blessings,
Karen

[wyjoz]

Karen: try teecino herbal coffee It's delicious and read the ingredients: carbo, barley, chicory root, figs, almonds, dates, Enjoy this till you get to a 'green' healthy stage and will not want it any more. Joz

[eatyourbroccoli]

i hate coffee because it ALWAYS gives me terrible cramps that result in quite a few trips to the bathroom :rolleyes:

blech!

[Light of an Angel]

Sweat stains anyone? LOL I hate it because it makes me sweat and then gives me the chills. I hate it because it makes me super anxious, jittery, and it changes me into someone I don't know! I swear I feel plastic on it!

[Forever Young]

Hi folks, believe it or not I haven't had a cup of coffee in my life, can't stand the smell of it, but smoothies are great. Forever young :cool:

[solarliving]

I hate how I feel when I drink it. Dizzy and sick in my stomache. Not to forget the bad after taste. I look foward to my lemon and ginger water every morning. I'm glad I am one of the few who can actually live without coffee.

[SwishTN]

Well, I hate coffee b/c it steals all of my money :eek: . It turns me into a psycho murdering mad woman with no self-control. Not only do I become a rage-aholic, I can't handle my emotions very well, meaning, I cry very easily. Especially now that I have been without for a while. I DID have some the other day, and I SWEAR that I was like a toxic waste dump emitting fumes. It was horrible, because I was sitting in my little cubicle training someone! I could FEEL my body getting rid of it. Argh!

Being from Washington/Oregon before moving to Nashville, coffee was a VERY regular part of my routine. It has almost been a reward of sorts. One thing that is crazy, though, is that the mochas made me gag, almost throw up, yet I still HAD to have one or two a day. How nuts is THAT?

Lauri

It also makes your mouth smell like a litter box..... 'nuf said.

[Ginger]

I absolutely love drinking coffee! Only I can't anymore. Well I can.. if I want to have the most terrifying panic attacks. It messes with my mind really bad. So not worth it.

[juliebove]

I don't really like coffee and I live near Seattle! I really can't stand so much as the smell of Starbucks or that fancy espresso stuff. In the old days, I drank plain, black coffee. I smoked then too. So I associate coffee with cigarettes. I actually started drinking it in high school. I was very busy in those days with after school activities and a job. Got busier still in college and found myself many a night sitting up in Denny's all night doing homework and sucking down cup after cup of coffee. I didn't do it because I liked the taste. I did it because I needed to stay awake.

Then as an adult, I had a friend who drank a lot of it. When I went to her house, she'd brew pot after pot and I'd drink it there. I don't recall ever getting a caffeine buzz or feeling unwell from it. During the day, I never drank it unless I was visiting her. But I often met up with friends after work and I'd have coffee then because as drinks go, it was cheap and you got free refills.

Then I moved to MA. My husband sent me into Dunkin Donuts for coffee. We were headed out to PA to visit his family. I was tired and cranky and decided I'd get a cup too. The lady behind the counter asked if I wanted "regular". I assumed this meant plain, unflavored coffee since they had various flavors that to me smelled of icky chemicals. Well, I know know that "regular" means with cream and sugar. Pppppppppyuck!!! I do not like sweet drinks and I hate cream. I didn't have any coffee for a long time after that. In fact, I haven't had much coffee since then. His relatives would make it and sometimes I'd have a cup. And I'd sometimes have it when dining out. His relatives like to order dessert when they dine out and I'm not a dessert person. So I'd have coffee to give me something to do while they ate.

Then when I found out I was pregnant, I quit smoking. To me,coffee and cigarettes just go to together. I no longer want any coffee at all. And I don't even think it smells good. I can't stand to walk down the aisle in the grocery store where the coffee is. Smells horrible to me.

[macybare]

fall of 2005 My two friends and I would meet at a coffee shop and each drink their coffee. I would drink mine black and would down about three cups in less than an hour. I loved the feeling of awakeness it gave me. But then how about the fidgeting and headaches to go along with it. Or the bad breath and umm yuck yellow splotchy teeth. I thought I could never go with out it. Too bad I proved those coffee people wrong. Raw keeps me awake with energy all day long and w/o all the side effects.

[pinenut]

I hate it because it tastes so damm good!! I've been drinking it straight black for years. I can't begin to tell you how much money I've thrown into my coffee addiction.

I used to work a really horrible split graveyard type schedule when I lived in Philadelphia and I literally survived on coffee all day. I tried to stop for a while and felt like I was in such a heavy fog that I couldn't do my job.

Now that I live in Cayman and have a more human, functioning schedule, I'm gonna have another go at ditching the coffee habit. Plus as I transition toward 100% raw, I won't be wanting the coffee anymore (right?)....that's what I'm going to keep telling myself...

[misslinda]

OMG, I saw this thead afew days ago and avoided answering............

I use to be a coffee/Starbucks buff and abused it in the big time. So, between abusing it and related to a perosnal trauma, I have PTSD to coffee: sight,taste and smell. I wil not walk down the coffee aisle at the gorcery stores I literally start having anxiety and
panic to where I will almost pass out!!! :o Took me several years before I would even LOOK at the Starbucks symbol or go inside.......I can walk into Starbucks now but I avoid snigging the aroma.

Even if I could, I wouldn't drink it.


:)

[rawfigure]

I love the coffee ritual in the morning, BUT thanks to this post and KNOWING I needed to give it up as it does not belong in a raw diet, I weened off it in 4 days. Thanks to all who posted and thanks to RP or the motivation to wean off...and who ever posted about teecino ! That saved me. So whew I am off it. I have been clean before but now that i try to be more alkaline less acid foods I think i am done for good.

I see the teecino is not Raw, and I love the taste of coffee...so now to stop the teecino for a raw drink in the AM, love my ritual and taste of coffee !

So if anyone knows a drink that I can warm with that taste..and is RAW (and no calories to speak of) let me know.

[ljcoolj]

The smell, the taste, the color...I hate everything about coffee. Always have, if I have even a sip it makes me vomit...literally. I guess I'm one of the lucky few who haven't had to battle the ole coffee addiction, although I've had others to battle!!!

[Deradune]

First off I want to say that I was a MAJOR coffee drinker for about 25 years of my life -- averaging anywhere from 8 to 20 cups a day. Coffee was like my pacifier or blankee -- always within reach and frequently picked up. I drank so much coffee that I would get special coffee mugs that were 3X taller than normal coffeemugs just so I wouldn't have to get up so often to refill.

I hate coffee because of what it did to me:

-- many years of insomnia
-- fatique
-- depression
-- anxiety
-- acidifies the body (making it an ideal environment for all manner of disease and weight gain
-- it makes me feel the same way I would feel if I had a load of white sugar
-- and it just really bugs me to watch people be addicted to it like they can't live without it, especially knowing that I feel MORE energy since I quit drinking it and people drink it supposedly for energy. I DO use it average once a year when something comes up and I am unusually tired but circumstances force me to have to be awake and driving all night, something like that.

All of these things pretty much disappeared when I quit drinking coffee again about 4 years ago. (I had quit drinking coffee when I was on raw diet before, but I can tell you that the older you get the more you can feel the ill effects of coffee).

Before I quit coffee I could not imagine life without coffee. Well, it is easy. And I don't miss it. I actually enjoy the smell of coffee and if roommates or houseguests fix coffee every morning I just enjoy the fragrance and have NO compulsion to drink the stuff. I just feel lucky not to be addicted to coffee!!

I just got an idea for something similar to the idea of coffee (which I used to always drink sweetened and with milk):

Sesame milk + finely-ground raw cacao + dates

I haven't tried it yet, but will have to do that soon.

[Secret Heart]

I too have a total love/hate relationship with coffee.

It turns me into a stressful person and a rage-a-holic too. I feel so much less stressed out and relaxed when I'm "off" of it. I literally get chest tightness from being keyed up when I'm on it. I do think that some folks are more suceptible to caffeine's effects. I do like to read up on all of the reasons that it is bad for my health to help galvanize my willpower to quit this swill!

I know that it is terribly unhealthy and thus I must just get on with getting off of it permanently!

Heather

[Deradune]

I too have a total love/hate relationship with coffee.

I know that it is terribly unhealthy and thus I must just get on with getting off of it permanently!

Heather

You can do it, Heather! After you've been off it for a week or two you will feel so much better you won't even want to look back (if you're like me)! But beware: there will be those who find tricky ways to get you to start drinking it again, all the way from rationalizations that it's good for you to who knows what. Just don't give in. I do it like alcohol -- one or two times a year I'll drink it, no more! (smile)

Right now I'm drinking lemonade with Meyer's lemon, pure water and stevia. It's an acquired taste, sweetening with stevia, but really I rather like it now! (Kind of off topic, but you will be wanting to find other things to drink instead, so maybe not so off topic.)

You go girl!