DORI MONSON

So long old friend – I’ll miss you

Aug 4, 2013, 5:27 PM | Updated: Aug 5, 2013, 1:16 pm

Who doesn’t love a nice, cold Coca Cola in the summertime? But I may have loved them just a l...

Who doesn't love a nice, cold Coca Cola in the summertime? But I may have loved them just a little bit too much. (AP Photo)

(AP Photo)

Dori writes…

I had a monkey on my back.

It started in the summertime when I was 14.

I’d wake up at 3 a.m. on hot summer nights – and I got in the habit of going to the fridge and chugging a Coca Cola. That was the beginning of a long relationship.

When I was in my late 20’s, worried about the calories in all that Coke, I switched to Diet Coke. I’ve been a six-can-a-day drinker ever since.

I don’t drink coffee, but I would pop a DC at 6:30 a.m. first thing every morning.

After my early-morning show prep, I go to the gym to work out – then, straight in to work – where I would immediately have #2.

DC #3 would come with me to the studio at Noon… #4 at 1:30pm – fuel for the second half of the show.

When I got home from work, I’d have #5 – and then another in the evening (I switched to caffeine-free a few years ago for those pops after 6 p.m.).

Six cans a day for more than 30 years. I knew it wasn’t good for me, but I had zero interest in stopping because it was so darn tasty.

But now I have a new goal – I’m going to get back to my college weight. And, after doing a lot of research, I’ve come to the conclusion that eliminating DC is a key element in that plan. I had my last Diet Coke at 6:30 a.m. last Tuesday. It’s been six days of going cold turkey.

I had a pretty good caffeine headache on Wednesday. Now, the physical craving is gone, but the habits of drinking remain. I went to the gym Saturday and Sunday. When I got home, I would always have a soda, but, for the first time in my adult life, there is none in the fridge. I played badminton with my daughter at 10 p.m. the other night. When I came in the house, my instinct was to have a pop. Now … it’s water.

By the way, that water is pretty bland.

I miss my old friend, but I’m gonna try to make this trial separation permanent.

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So long old friend – I’ll miss you