Weekly Check-In: High on Existence

This week marks my first seven days of the “High on Existence” challenge — a practice of stepping away from coffee, alcohol, nicotine, and other stimulants, to see what remains when nothing stands between me and reality.

Day 1–3: Breaking the Habit

On the first day, I allowed myself one final cup of coffee, a gentler exit from the six or seven I usually drank each day. The following days were harder — headaches arrived quickly, sharp at first, then dull, then fading after the third day. It was as if my nervous system was learning how to breathe on its own again.

I realized coffee wasn’t just a drink. It was a ritual of avoidance: a way to bypass discomfort, fill silences, or push through fatigue.

Day 4–5: The Shift

By the fourth day, something shifted. The headaches loosened their grip, and my body began to feel calmer. Without coffee, I no longer lived in constant sympathetic drive — the mode of stress, urgency, fight-or-flight. Instead, I felt a deeper steadiness, as if I could hear my body’s own feedback again.

At work, the cravings showed up — especially in quiet moments in the office, when I would normally reach for a cup out of habit. But I resisted, and instead turned to tea, breathwork, and water.

Day 6–7: Clarity and Calm

Now, a week later, I feel clearer. My sleep improved, my lungs no longer feel strained, and there is a kind of lightness in my chest. The cravings still whisper occasionally, but they no longer pull me as strongly.

It feels like my body is finally recalibrating.

Reflections

This first week revealed something deeper: coffee had been a tool of disconnection, numbing me from my body’s signals. Without it, I am forced to listen — to tiredness, to discomfort, to natural rhythms. And in that listening, there is growth.

The challenge isn’t just about removing stimulants. It’s about removing noise. And in the quiet that remains, existence itself becomes intoxicating.

Looking Ahead

For Week 2, my focus is gentleness. The hardest part is behind me, but now comes the work of integration — finding new rituals that honor my body rather than override it.

• More walks.
• More water and tea.
• More presence with discomfort instead of bypassing it.

Reflection Question for Readers:

What in your daily life acts as a buffer between you and your raw existence — and what would happen if you put it down for a while?