Has anybody successfully quit using caffeine altogether?

DanTheMan

My anxiety and stress levels are really bad lately. I think i'd be doing myself a favor to quit caffeine, as it has become a real catch-22 for me, where I need it to stay awake, but it causes me to lose sleep, so i need more of it to stay awake, etc.

i've learned through experience that i'm very sensitive to any sort of chemical substance that affects neurotransmitter flow, and, given my general propensity towards depression/anxiety/paranoia/ADD, i think that at least one thing i could do to give me a calmer, more stable neurotransmitter mix would be to eliminate caffeine. I've tried to reduce before, and I've found that i just start making excuses to have a little more, a little more, until i'm right back where i started.

So, i'm just wondering if anybody else has had a similar experience where they felt the need to not just reduce but eliminate caffeine altogether, and if so, how did it go, did it help, how long has it been, etc.

plmkrzy

Has anybody successfully quit using caffeine altogether?

lol!

no

looking_glass

Yes, it takes me around three days before I stop having a severe headache and irritability. After that the symptoms ease. I occasionally go back to it, but I try to go back to organic coffee as it is processed differently and the chemical effects are less on the body as a whole.

My nutritionist explained to me that it is not so much the coffee that people have problems w/ but rather the way the way it is processed. If your body is in the flight or fight stage on a regular basis, then the chemicals used in processing the coffee beans is what messes w/ your adrenal glands. At least that is what was the problem with me.

Good luck, it is very hard. I liken it to people who try to give up smoking. However, coffee is far more acceptable and the smell of it is everywhere.

jstalin

Last year I decided to quit drinking everything but water for a month. It was pretty tough because I drink a lot of coffee. The first week was rough... headaches and just a general feeling of not feeling right. But after that, it was no problem. The hardest part was giving up beer. But, I lasted a month and returned to my old ways, though I drink decaf coffee now.

katiekitten

Yes.

I didnt drink too much beforehand, but I phased it out as part of a detox, and never really went back. Oddly, I only ever want to drink it now when I am ill.

Id say plan a detox over a weekend so that your work wont be affected by any adverse symptoms. If you start on Friday night you should be over the worst of the headaches and mood swings by Monday. Plan to drink lots of water and get lots of sleep.

Go on, give your liver a treat!

Im on a marathon detox at the moment (which involves cutting out alcohol, coffee, any refined food, flour, any sugary food and drink) and my skin is starting to look fantastic. The rest of my body is taking a long time to catch on that it should be looking more goddess like than it currently is tho. grrrrr

xjwms

LOL.....No.....not a chance.

I like the idea of drinking more water.

What would I do without my wine and gin?

forsharry

I have.

I have heart problems (stemming from aneorexia during college). Anyway, I drank like 8-10 cups of coffee a day, smoked a pack of cigarettes, and drank at least 2 drinks a night. Went to the docs cause I was having such problems...my heart would race, and I'd all but pass out from the stress of it...I had to quit everything cold turkey so they could monitor me.

It stunk. Bad. With the cafeine, I had headaches, but that lasted about a week tops...of course I was really tired too cause I lived on caffeine and nicotine. However, after a couple of days of feeling really rundown, I started feeling a little better. Also important was that I followed a diet the doc gave me filled with a lot of vegetables, fruit, protien and complex carbs...it gave me energy and nutrients so that I was giving my body the right kind of fuel to keep going. Sleep helped too.

However, since then, I don't drink coffee anymore. I mean I'll have a cup occasionally, out to dinner or on vacation at Dutch Brothers or something...but otherwise I don't drink it anymore.

whyamihere

I have heart problems (stemming from aneorexia during college). Anyway, I drank like 8-10 cups of coffee a day, smoked a pack of cigarettes, and drank at least 2 drinks a night. Went to the docs cause I was having such problems...my heart would race, and I'd all but pass out from the stress of it...I had to quit everything cold turkey so they could monitor me.

Wow you too? I have been in and out of the hospital all last month because of my caffeine intake(among my eating habits).....

Anyway, my advice to you is quit cold turkey. I did it for 2 weeks, since then I have had some caffeine, but not like I used too.(12-24 cups of coffee). What I do now is, I chose 1 caffeine product a day. It has been hard, but I am doing pretty well with it. I still can smell Starbucks miles away....*sniff* "ahhh the smell of the Gods sweet nectar"

Things to have on hand: Gum and Toothpicks! That's helped me fidget easier without my coffee.

forsharry

We're like the JW rejects or something. ;)

Yes, gum is your friend...so is advil for the first week...and keep yourself busy. If you have time to sit and think about it you will go back to it. :)

DanTheMan

Thanks for your feedback everybody.

looking-glass:

Yes, it takes me around three days before I stop having a severe headache and irritability

Irritability is one of the main reasons why I feel such a strong need to eliminate caffeine.

katiekitten:

Id say plan a detox over a weekend so that your work wont be affected by any adverse symptoms

I'm off work today and tomorrow, so my plan is to limit myself to half a mug today and tomorrow, and then no coffee Wednesday. It will be the first time in years that I've gone for a whole day w/o caffeine.

There's so much conflicting info about caffeine, it's hard to know what to believe. It seems like once a week there's an article on some news site like Yahoo or MSN where that says '3 or 4 cups a day - no problem'. But then the other day I ran across an article that advised that people who have stress and anxiety issues (ME) should eliminate it from their diet.

jstalin:

The hardest part was giving up beer

I'm thinking about doing that too.

forsharry:

Anyway, I drank like 8-10 cups of coffee a day, smoked a pack of cigarettes, and drank at least 2 drinks a night

Holy!

whyamihere:

I still can smell Starbucks miles away....*sniff* "ahhh the smell of the Gods sweet nectar"

Oh, i know. I love the taste of coffee, mmmmm. I have found a grain beverage called Pero that is pretty good though, it's black and sorta bitter; you wouldn't mistake it for coffee but it has it's own unique flavor that I find to be pleasant enough.

I have an idea, I'll throw out my coffee and whenever I want caffeine, I'll drink tea - that'll cure me in a hurry. Blech!!!

Has anybody successfully quit using caffeine altogether?

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