Giving up caffeine is a game changer

monsquid

monsquid

Kingfisher
Zoso said:
How long has been the longest abstinence syndrome that some of you have had?

I stopped caffeine in march since I read that it could be related with some pains in the neck and shoulder. Also, before that, I was drinking a bit more of normal, often 4-5 cups per day at office.
I havent drunk any cup since then but the same month I stopped, with no explanation, I got a lot of headaches and even full stress and strong anxiety periods but couldn't know if they were due to abstinence or kind of a response for quarantine.
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Caffeine withdrawal is very common, even for people who only drinking one cup a day in the morning. I went through daily afternoon headaches until about three weeks after I stopped drinking caffeine. Drinking only water has been the toughest part. I'm used to drinking tea but I stopped that also to completely cut off caffeine.

I drink herbal tea from time to time but it's just not the same as my black, jasmine, green, or oolong tea. Sigh.
 
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solotak

Pigeon
I recently started caffeine 0.5-1 cup a day, and i find my alertness, sleep patterns and productivity has enhanced significantly than without it. I can wake up earlier and naturally. I can punch through tasks that don't come as easily or naturally to me. Words flow out with clarity and intellect. Brainstorming comes to life!
Very similar to my experiences with M, except without the loved up feeling. I guess my body responds well with stimulants - even though i suffered from chronic fatigue syndrome and sleep apnea my whole life. I did sleep studies and heart exams, spent thousands on health checks to figure out what's up but could not come up with anything other than the standard advice- no caffeine, no drugs, clean eating, veggies, exercise. I do all that but nothing really helped.
For some reason coffee seems to be a stabiliser in my everyday life. I'm still very sensitive to it and have to drink it before 10am or else i can't sleep at all. I started doing it only on weekends because those are outdoor active days, and then transitioned every other day on weekdays, to everyday.

I remember long time ago after having 1 cup of coffee i would crash bad. But now i can have a full cup, and feel fine the whole day without needing another cup, nor effecting my sleep.
Very strange, i don't know what has changed in my biochemistry to respond favourably to this.
 
kel

kel

Pelican
Does anyone have a brand of decaf (that's widely available/ships) they can recommend? I started doing half-caf or pure decaf later in the day, it's not terrible but it doesn't taste like my preferred beans.

I like medium-roast, low-acidity coffee, if that helps recommendations. Velvety, creamy, bold in coffee flavor rather than lots of acidity or bitterness or smoke.
 
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pirate

Sparrow
MichaelWitcoff said:
I should probably cut back. I’ve reached the point where I can drink a full cup and be tired and yawning within minutes anyway.
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This is the hallmark of addiction- when taking the drug begins to only partially resolve the withdrawal effects of the previous dose.

If you've ever been a heavy smoker you may have experienced the siliness of reaching into your pocket for cigarettes whilst having a lit one in your mouth.
 
JiggyLordJr

JiggyLordJr

Kingfisher
nagareboshi said:
I quit coffee around a week ago, but my sleep is still quite terrible. Sleep for 10 hours when other people only need 7 hours to feel rested. Help!
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WD sucks, but goes away after a month of so. Make sure not to slip up, and drink herbal teas (non caf) if you’re feeling a warm beverage.

For sleep, take melatonin (0.3mg) and zinc (30-60mg) about an hour before you rest. Along with exercise, this should knock you out cold.
 
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KiwiInBudapest

Sparrow
Just an anecdote here but I've read that the enzyme CYP1A2 is responsible for breaking down about 90% of the caffeine in your body. And people - like myself - who are super sensitive to caffeine don't produce much of the enzyme so the caffeine basically stays in your body and keeps you awake for hours.

Cause if I take a coffee or even chocolate in the morning I will usually stay up to about 7-8 AM the next day meanwhile the rest of my family drink several cups of tea and coffee every day without any problems.
 
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nagareboshi

Newbie
JiggyLordJr said:
WD sucks, but goes away after a month of so. Make sure not to slip up, and drink herbal teas (non caf) if you’re feeling a warm beverage.

For sleep, take melatonin (0.3mg) and zinc (30-60mg) about an hour before you rest. Along with exercise, this should knock you out cold.
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Thanks bro, seems like a reasonable step. I will keep waiting for around a month then.

NickK said:
I quit caffeine for three months and saw no change whatsoever, so now I 'm back to drinking coffee.
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What do you mean you saw no change? If there's no change at all, then why even drink coffee if it doesn't do anything for you?
 
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NickK

Sparrow
nagareboshi said:
What do you mean you saw no change? If there's no change at all, then why even drink coffee if it doesn't do anything for you?
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I saw no change in my energy levels, mood and sleep patterns.
When I started drinking again, I again saw no change.

I now consume a spoon of coffee (half of it decaf) in the morning and one in the afternoon.
I like the taste of it and the sense of homely comfort a cup of hot tastey coffee brings.
 
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nagareboshi

Newbie
NickK said:
I saw no change in my energy levels, mood and sleep patterns.
When I started drinking again, I again saw no change.

I now consume a spoon of coffee (half of it decaf) in the morning and one in the afternoon.
I like the taste of it and the sense of homely comfort a cup of hot tastey coffee brings.
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lol, maybe you have a very strong enzyme and can digest caffeine too quickly for it to have an effect on you
 
Johnnyvee

Johnnyvee

Pelican
KiwiInBudapest said:
Just an anecdote here but I've read that the enzyme CYP1A2 is responsible for breaking down about 90% of the caffeine in your body. And people - like myself - who are super sensitive to caffeine don't produce much of the enzyme so the caffeine basically stays in your body and keeps you awake for hours.

Cause if I take a coffee or even chocolate in the morning I will usually stay up to about 7-8 AM the next day meanwhile the rest of my family drink several cups of tea and coffee every day without any problems.
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There are many different allelic variations (genetic differences) that can have an effect on how you handle caffeine, and also other similar substances found in coffee beans, tea and dark chocolate mainly. (methylxanthines) Caffeine has a heck of a lot of interactions with various organs, enzymes, proteins etc. in the body. It`s a fascinating subject that I`ve been researching on and off for many years now. (I`m a biologist so I like to geek out on these things from time to time)

The half life of caffeine seems to be in the range of 5-6 hours in most people though. And the time until actual withdrawal sets in is about 60 hours in someone that is a chronic caffeine consumer. I.e. the time it takes in general to eliminate all the caffeine from your system. You also have to take into account the first metabolites of caffeine, in particular paraxanthine, as they have similar effects as caffeine itself. (namely adenosine antagonism mainly) There`s also quite a few things that can impair the enzymatic degradation of caffeine, like any form of reduction in liver function. So even having a few drinks might increase the half-life of caffeine. Other things like contraceptives in women drastically increases the half life of caffeine, smoking in fact decreases it. (not a great argument for starting smoking, but still.) Certain foods can impact the clearance of caffeine also, but that seems to mainly be associated with liver function again. So not consuming things that require the liver to work hard, or damage the liver will increase the rate of clearance.

But again, how fast coffee is cleared in the liver is only a very small part of the overall picture. Caffeine for example increases glycation, or the formation of AGES, on of the primary causes of ageing in general. It does so both by increasing glucose (significantly btw) and by interacting and inhibiting an enzyme called N-acetyltransferase 2. https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/pdf/10.1089/dia.2015.0017 Some people have less activity of this enzyme naturally, so you might then very significantly increase the rate of glycation in the body with the added effect of caffeine intake. Think wrinkles, stiffening of arteries etc. All in all, coffee does taste good and it`s extremely addictive, but it does people a lot of harm. This damage will also increase with age, as our epigenome is altered in a way that means that you will tolerate caffeine even less then when you where younger. (age 35-40 is usually when you start feeling that effect.)
 
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nagareboshi

Newbie
If you want to get rid of coffee addiction, this Poland chicory coffee (Inka) is pretty tasty

 
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