soda addiction need help

I am having a problem getting off soda pop does anyone have any suggestions on how to help me rid this bad habit? I usually drink 1/2 coke and 1/2 diet mixed yeah I know that sounds weird but it taste good! I can't stand to just drink diet well, maybe I could get used to it but I know I'm supposed to be off pop totally before surgery so I need some pointers. Thanks, Bev

Beverly what i did was buy caffeen free soda and started by mixing 1/2 and 1/2 reg soda with the caffeen free and starten increasing the caffeen free one untill i was drinking only the caffeen free one afterr that it was easy since i wasnt getting any caffeen from the soda i substituded it with splenda sweetned flavored waters. It worked for me and like i tell everyone about all of the things that we have to learn to do before surgery. Just remember nothing tastes as good as thin will feel. Keep your eye on the prize. If it is worth having you have to give lots up to do it. You can do it i know you can. Jan

Bev, I am a sodaholic. I have been soday free since the end of March. I use to drink at least a 12 pack + per day. I know it was diet, but it still had caffeine in it. What I did was, I monitored how much soda I drank in a day (for about 3 days). I could not believe how much soda I was drinking. I then decreased a soda or two for a few days and I added water in for the substitute. I kept tract and finally, one day I was down to one soda per day. I want my surgery so bad that I realized I could do without that last soda. It was such an accomplishment. I knew if I could get rid of my soda I would be able to make my life changes that I needed. I also did not make all my changes at once. I started with chewing slower with a slight decrease in soda. Another thing I did, I like sodas from Sonic. I would always go and order a Rt. 44 soda at least every day. I started asking for Rt. 44 Ice waters instead. I still had the cup and it made me feel like I was treating myself still. I know it sounds silly, but you got to do what you got to do. Good luck. Elisa

Beverly, I LOVE Classic Coke but I haven't had one for a year. Now I drink Tropicana SF Orangeade from WalMart. It comes in a can so you get that pop-the-top feeling but I swear I love it. They have Lemonade too but I love the Orange. I even use it to mix with my Nectar Fuzzy Navel protein. I was never really addicted to Coke, but if I was having a soda it had to be real sugar-sweetened Coke, no diet or Pepsi. I wish I had good pertinent advice to give you but know that I care and want you to be successful and it is worth anything you have to do. Remember I had to do a six month Doctor supervised diet and exercise program before I was approved and that wasn't exactly easy and I moaned and carried on but after the fact it was soooooo worth it. Hugs and love, Lana