http://www.mahalo.com/How_to_Give_Up_Chocolate

I really liked this website for including ways to give up my addiction.

Write Down Your Goals: It's helpful to see things in black and white.
Make Your Goals Well-Defined and Incremental: Changing anything about your diet can be difficult. It's important to set a few small, measurable goals along the way to the overarching one.
Tell Your Friends and Family: Their encouragement (and friendly policing) will make cutting back easier.
Use Visualization: Associating chocolate with something revolting can be a powerful deterrent for some. Some dieters picture something gross coming out of or covering the chocolate.
Cut Back Gradually: It is sometimes easier to wean yourself from a dietary crutch than it is to cut it out completely. Create a plan that replaces your normal chocolate indulgence with smaller amounts over time.
Cut Back on Other Sweets: Cindy Moore, the spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association, recommends cutting back on sweets entirely because eating them can spur more cravings.[5] "It sets up a cycle in a lot of people who have a problem with insulin regulation. If you can cut back on sweets, you can reduce cravings."
Know Your Vulnerable Times of Day: Obesity research Dr. Gerard Musante warns that, "All our organs have internal clocks. You may have taught your system to need chocolate at 3 o'clock. Recognize that it might take a week or two to break the habit, and some of it will require white-knuckling."
Drink Water and Sleep: American Dietetic Spokesperson Moore says that, "Your body can confuse the need for fluid or the need for sleep with the need for food." It's important to stay hydrate and get plenty of rest when you're trying to reduce cravings.
Exercise: Physical activity can keep cravings at bay. The feel-good endorphins that get released when eating chocolate can easily be replaced by the feel-good endorphins that get released after 20-30 minutes of moderate exercise.[6]
Keep Wrappers and Containers Out in the Open: Face the consequences of your bad habits by keeping any wrappers or containers out in the open. That way you'll see just how much you've been indulging.
Replace Your Habit: Substitute your chocolate-binging habit with a healthier one. If you eat chocolate when you're stressed, try mediating or going for a walk instead. Or, get a delicious strawberry smoothie instead of a chocolate shake.
Reward Yourself: Reward yourself as you reach your incremental goals with a non-chocolate treat.

My days without chocolate

It's a whole week since I ate chocolate. I have had some withdrawals which include:
some craving, actually how on earth is one person supposed to walk past the myriad of chocolate temptations when you go to the petrol station, supermarket, bakery, book shop. It's everywhere!

AND at the supermarkets there is nearly a whole ISLE DEVOTED to the chocolate selection. If that doesn't get you then the end of the aisle will - you know the end bits? They always have the lastest new chocolate creation AND its usually on special.

They even had the PINK potion Tim Tams over near the fruit & veg....HELLO - marketing technique. Mostly women were shopping at the time of day I was there and it was the most strategically placed item for that demographic. Of course, it's pink & all women I know want to support breast cancer research. When I see pink on the food wrapping I automatically think it supports the research even if it doesn't. It seems ridiculously out of place when every other surrounding stand had some kind of fruit or vegetable on it.

It seemed like it was the tim tams last ditch effort to be noticed.....following me around the store saying, "hellooooo.....don't forget meeee....zees is your last chance to take me wiz youuu....." (for some reason Tim Tams are Mexican in my head)

Ordinarily I would have taken a packet, got home, made a cuppa, or three and slammed the whole packet. Secret is out. But those days are over. I am no longer a one pack a day girl....

Anyway I do think about the things I am denying myself....a lot... the craving is definitely coming back to me at these times....
1. When I'm watching chick flicks
2. When I am feeling emotional which is a lot (problems with ex-friends, long story)
3. When I go anywhere
4. Just after dinner
Thank fully some beautiful friends have offered support and didn't do what my dad did which was to buy a whole packet of buscuits and 'hide' them in the fridge. (top shelf - saw them as soon as I opened the fridge door)
Doesn't he know I can sniff out chocolate through its wrapper, through the fridge from the opposite side of the room? The familiar sound of the wrapper opening can be heard from down the back of the yard.....ok so I'm over stating but yeah - thanks to everyone who offered support and read thus far. It is good to know this is not just self talk going out into the ether somewhere.

If you need support working through an addiction I'm your girl. Except for heroin, cigarettes & ice actually any drug at all are tough. You might need back up for that. If you are in that boat. Seek help NOW. Get......going......
YOUR LIFE IS NOT JUST VALUABLE TO YOU Y'KNOW

Chocolate for breakfast, morning tea, second breakfast , elevenses etc....

My story. Shocking expose on an addiction out of control.

I crave chocolate on a daily sometimes hourly basis.

That's it - it's out there. Judge me as you will but the first sign of a problem is admitting it so there were have it. I have come out of the wrapper. I . . . . am a chocaholic (insert applause and knowing smiles).

The other day I had 3/4 of a packet of chocolate biscuits on the way to work for breakfast. On the same day I had half a packet of jaffas for lunch. (insert 'thanks for sharing')

White chocolate chip & blueberry scones from BD were the latest big thing to catch my eye. They are so so so so adictive and therefore not my fault that I love them and want to have them.

I needed help. I recalled a friend telling me of her ban on chocolate for a year whilst studying so I knew it could be done. Last week I set myself the challenge of giving up my beloved chocolate for a whole year. I have fallen of the wagon once at the two day mark and had two - ok five chocolate biscuits (ok it was seven). Was it worth it? Hell yes.

Did I get back on the wagon (wheel :) ) well of course I did. Like any addiction you fall off it from time to time but the important thing (according to my friend in drug & achohol councelling) was that I keep going & it (apparently) gets easier to say no or at least the time between a slip back into king size tim tam slams is longer.

Has it been easier since the first fall? Yeah, totally. I don't really want it (much). I have discovered some thing else called 'fruit' and 'vegetables' AND there are things you can do with them to make them edible.
Buying them for a start.

My diet in the last week has never included so much fibre and natural sugar. I really don't know what is going on. Suddenly my craving for the smooth texture of sweet sweet milky chocolate goodness is replaced with a joy for eating a capsicum while I work & half a whole celery to tide me over till lunch. What the #$% is going on? Where did my craving go for crying out loud? Have I been duped for all these years to think that I need chocolate to be a whole person. Stuff that. CHOCOLATE DOES NOT DAMN WELL COMPLETE ME!

Recently, friends & I had discovered the rationalle for fasting and I learned that denying myself meals for 24 hours was achievable.
In fact, not being ruled by the body has been a massive thing for me.

I have bitten my nails till they bled since I was a little kid and recently tried a bit of self control and tried not to. My nails are actually longer than they have been in years and look great.

Back to the chocolate thing. I've discovered a lot of myths about chocolate and I'll write more as I learn the technical sides. For now, too much sugar is evil for my body. It shall be banished as shall the 6 monthly cheeseburger that always makes me feel sick despite my trust that "this time will be different.'

I have created this blog because my gym told me to. Well actually....I read in one of my old gym's magazines that writing down weight loss challenges, trials, disasters, mishaps and successes....(they do happen) for others to see is a good way to keep to goals. A number of my friends are writing blogs and I've decided to spend some valuable exercise time writing down my experience thus far in the hope that those who read it can relate, understand and perhaps even be encouraged by it. So, add comments, post notes, interact. Who knows what might happen.