chocolate

Day 17 – your highs and lows of this past year.

Posted on by JC

I’ve had a mixture of Highs and Lows over the past year. Many lows that I wont be going into but will probably write about when I feel like it.

Some of the high’s

  • Spring Harvest 2011
  • Finding the Trigger for migrains
  • Pain relief from lack of migrains
  • Discovered things I enjoy such as Rock Climbing
  • Made many new friends
  • Northampton Time – seeing friends from Uni Times
  • Getting involved with events I’ve helped with in the background

Some of the lows

  • Finding the Trigger for migrains to be chocolate
  • Not having someone to share stuff with

2010 – Migranes gone, so much opertunity to look forward

Posted on by JC

It is coming to another end of year but I can choose to look at time and see it in sections like years and months, but all I really see is days and even then its not really a set thing. Some days go fast, others so slow but time is there or maybe not at the same time. I hear its a constant but my view of it is constantly changing… can that be a true statement?

I have a few things I would like to do this next year, and many things that I’ve done this past year. Some of the things I want to acheive:

  • Play the guitar
  • Trampolining: Sumasaults with no help
  • Rock Climbing – more technique
  • A new passion in work, or something in life that I don’t want to put down
  • New cooking styles (at least for me, other peoples old styles are great – I just can’t do them)
  • Dance: become more fluid, confident, and relaxed in dance and expand the styles
  • Fitness: Get down to my ideal weight yet increase my fitness level through fun

My past year has been quite a mixed year, I’ve not done all I wanted but have discovered things that have quite litterally changed my life. I’ve struggled with migrane and cluster headaches for many years, and in october discovered the cause of them.

I’ve been ill a lot over the past year (mainly March to November), and much of it was side effects of the medications I was taking to reduce the headaches/migranes – in September while away on holiday, I was ill and not really enjoying the break. So ill that I couldn’t take the tablets as was sick soon after – kinda defeating the point so I stopped taking them and within a couple of days the side effects died down and I enjoyed the last day of my break.

I went through withdrawal from the medication – you are meant to stop taking it over a period of around 6 to 12 weeks, not over night. I also stopped taking anything that I heard could cause headaches such as cheese, caffeine, chocolate & alchol and the next week or two was just evil. So many headaches, feeling nausia, illness and my mood was not so great either (I found out a few weeks later after talking with people at work). I thought I was going through withdrawal for meds, I may aswell go it for everything at once. Not a nice experience but glad its over.

I re-introduced things into my diet but seems caffeine and chocolate are the real killers. I can have a little caffeine like a drink of cola or a cup of caffeinated tea every so often but often get a headache or hanging feeling in my head thats unconfortable for a few days but after about a day… however eat some delicious chocolate and within about 4 hours my eyes are hurting, everything is really loud, nausia and headaches which really sucks because I love the taste of chcolate, especially dairy milk chocolate.

The trade of pain and not being able to do anything for the taste of chocolate. Its amazing to see how many things contain it but the thought to go down to pain for a taste – its just not worth it.

It is the biggest thing I’ve found out this year personally – and since cutting out caffeine and chocolate I’ve been able to do a lot more too. Including regular swimming before work, trampolining and even started the very basics of rock climbing. My co-ordination has amazingingly got quite good and although haven’t danced in a long time feel its something I will get much better at now.

Now that I’m generally off medications, I feel an old side of me has risen to the surface – things I’ve struggled with for years just melting away and returning to a more confident and happy me. While at university, in groups and presentations I was always nervous to talk but one to one, or in small groups I could talk to anyone and I lost that for a long time but its coming back but not just like that – I’m now able to talk in presentations – I still get nervous but have felt while presenting that its a choice to show it or not. I’d never known the choice before – just that I was and felt others could see it. No need now, and knowing that seems to open more posibilities in life even though I don’t know what those could be.

The Loss of Cafeen

Posted on by JC

The loss of cafeen from my diet hasn’t been as bad as I thought it would be. I am missing some things but not others so much. At work, people bring in a lot of chocolate based things and biscuits of which I would quite happily eat through – now not so much… If its got chocolate, I leave it alone and at first it was really hard…

The evil temptation around all the time and then it was just there, another object that was to be seen and not to be eaten. Strange to see others eating it in that aspect but it no longer bothered me. The thought between taking a bite and that brief pleasure followed by the posibility of hours of pain – its just really not worth it.

As shopping, looking for alternatives I came across a shop of different Teas – many cafinnated but also many that were not – some green, many different berry versions – I go for the ones that are loose leaf and not teabags – its strange, after having loose leaf for a while – you can taste the teabags and they don’t help the tastyness.

Cadbury Store

Torture for the Cafeen Free, Heaven to the chocolate Lover

I came across a shop that usually I would have loved, but was just not right to find when cafeen and chocolate are not allowed. A cruilty to see and everything was on sale. Nightmare for me, heaven for previous me.

I had read that green teas were good for you, and previously never really liked them. Found them too bland but really like Jasmin Tea. I found it one time when in London. It was a cold evening and I was wandering around the city and was in China Town… I went in and got a Jasmin and honey Tea to go – it was really nice and went to get some jasmin tea. Took me a while to find – I could get tea bags but it didn’t taste right until I got the loose leaf… and a dollup of honey. Now I have it without honey in general but delicious both ways.

I am aware that not all green teas are cafeen free, but they are much lower than normal teas so I can enjoy them. It doesn’t seem that I need to be cafeen free to be pain free but take it in moderation. Just like salt and many other ingredients in foods, taken in moderation things just work.

Itching, addicted to chocolate n stuff

Posted on by JC

I’ve been feeling REALLY itchy all over since about 3pm yesterday – its difficult not to scratch but I can’t as last time, my nails went through the skin – the itching continued but hurt aswell…..

Now I see a prickly rash over my arms – actually one of many wierd things happening to me recently.

Nothing new taken – just happens sometimes for a few days – think its something in the air – like a hayfever reaction then it stops again for no reason – had that one before

I had a realisation of addiction to chocolate… I could feel myself eating chocolate, and more just eating it with no real effect or enjoyment of taste and then saw my self as thou I was above looking down at me while at the same time being the me, so kinda like an astral projection above watching things happen then suddenly pulling myself together.

There is also the realisation of things around me more – as thou time slows and you can notice things around that usually you’d pass and not notice… Its wierd and yet really kewl at the same time. I think its like dream logic time, where you could have slept for 20 minutes but have memories of hours passing

The Apple

Posted on by JC

Apples – used for so many things, sometimes as food, sometimes an icon or logo or even a place. Why exactly… I don’t know but its known across the planet.

I’ve came to realise that its a great little thing the apple. Something i’ve never really took the time to enjoy – a snack and yet a mini meal at the same time.

I’ve been trying to replace my snacks at work from sweeties to something a little healthier – I’ve taken on fruit to try it for a bit. I don’t seem to be having those sugar dips mid afternoon anymore since changing. Maybe I had too much sugar before. I know fruit has sugar in it too.