Last night a friend hit me up, looking for some advice on battling the sugar cravings that come with sobriety. I was touched that he wanted my advice and I was pretty proud to not be cuddling with a bag of cookies when his text rolled in. Which was a completely normal way for me to spend my time when I first quit drinking. I can’t honestly think of a drug I have never tried (most of them repeatedly) and sugar is by far the hardest one to quit. One it is very hard to avoid if you eat anything processed. Which most of us do. Two we grow up being taught that it is THE reward. Birthdays, good report cards and victorious soccer games come with sugar on top. It tastes like winning. When I got sober I stocked up on all the sweet treats. To reward myself and stay sane. My peanut butter cereal intake was shameful. If you dug through my purse at that time you would have been shocked by the wide variety of gummy candies I was able to get my hands on.. peach flavored penguins, cherry-esk Cadillacs, tiny coke bottles, chewy rats and tiny pineapple flavored fried eggs.. I was obsessed. On top of that I took myself out for ice cream, a lot. I day dreamed of a world where pie was made out of cookies, piled in soft serve and sprinkled with pop rocks. It gave me a tremendous amount of guilt and acne.. which I tried to cure with seemingly healthy smoothies from JuiceLand. It’s true, we replace the behavior. Sugar, sex, shopping.. it’s easy enough to do. Eventually, while shamelessly making out with an ice cream sandwich I realized I still had a problem. I didn’t go cold turkey. I knew sugar was screwing up my circadian rhythm and trashing my skin but it had a hold on me! I started by replacing the Noah’s Ark of gummies that my purse had become with tiny oranges and dried mango. I quit going out for ice cream (saving it only for first dates and special occasions) and opted for wickedly dark chocolate and a cup of licorice peppermint tea as my post dinner snack instead. It was sweet enough to kill the cravings and quickly became one of my favorite rituals that I still enjoy today. Then there was water. When I found myself wanting to concoct some hulkingly sweet diabetic nightmare I made myself drink water. I had to pee A LOT back then. I never did cut out sugar completely but I changed my relationship with it. The gummies are still MIA and in their place is a large variety of fruit that I dig into, guilt free. Turns out you can scratch the itch and nourish yourself too. And without further ado..
Day 135: Texas Peaches with yogurt, basil, mint, crunchy quinoa and blueberries. Eating seasonal fruit can help re-regulate our systems and taste buds to a natural and nourishing sugar experience. On this plate, bite by bite I am boosting my immune system, taking care of my skin and lowering my risk of cancer. The peaches, mint and yogurt aid in my digestion and make me less farty. If you’re wondering where the protein is look no further than the yogurt and quinoa. P.S. When eating peaches don’t forget to suck the pit 🖤