In a fit of enthusiasm (maybe to do with all the healthy resolutions one makes at this time of year) I have been drinking decaf coffee and Rooibos tea for the last few weeks. I've tried this before and was up for a couple of days of mild headaches, but this was different. The caffeine withdrawal symptoms presented themselves in all sorts of ways - headaches as expected, and then strange muscle and joint aches (we always described them as growing pains as kids) and what one website quaintly described as "fatigue incompatible with productivity". The same website suggested that irritability would be common and while I saw no evidence of this, my wife tactfully suggested that maybe they were onto something there.
All of these things disappeared within a couple of days, but they forced me to recognise that I have been an unconscious addict. My body was addicted to a substance that it was getting on a daily basis, and I was completely unaware of the hold it had over me. It made me wonder what else I may secretly be addicted to - what other things may have a hold over me that I am completely unaware of.
It's harder getting up in the mornings now, but I'm actually starting to enjoy Rooibos more (instead of just pretending to...)
