Quitting Coffee/Caffeine

[DixieWrecked]

I'm on day three of no coffee and minimal caffeine. Man am I tired and my head hurts. Withdrawal symptoms are pretty bad. I was probably consuming about 500mg of caffiene a day. Was hoping to hear other's stories to find out how their experience quitting coffee was and if it was worth it.

 

[TLR]

I'm on day three of no coffee and minimal caffeine. Man am I tired and my head hurts. Withdrawal symptoms are pretty bad. I was probably consuming about 500mg of caffiene a day. Was hoping to hear other's stories to find out how their experience quitting coffee was and if it was worth it.

It sucked and I didn’t notice any real help with anxiety, which is why I stopped. Usually drank 2-3 cups during the day with tea at lunch.

 

[tareload]

You guys are awesome. I will pass. I am going to go have another cup.

 

[Fernando Almaguer]

I'm on day three of no coffee and minimal caffeine. Man am I tired and my head hurts. Withdrawal symptoms are pretty bad. I was probably consuming about 500mg of caffiene a day. Was hoping to hear other's stories to find out how their experience quitting coffee was and if it was worth it.

I did for a month or so. Remember coffee is liver protective. Black of course. But i understand how having 2-3 cups of coffee can open the gates to energy drinks and quickly become 500mgs a day.

 

[Vince]

I really enjoyed my black cup of coffee. I work out in the morning so I like to have a cup of coffee with my workout. I never thought of giving it up. I started drinking it because I worked third shift when I was 18 and it became a delicious habit.

 

[Belekas]

Loved my coffee for a few decades or so but gave up due to gut issues and sides like hyper-activity, feeling wired, anxiety, etc. It all came in waves and some days was pretty tolerable but others it murdered my gut and felt off all day so it became just not worth the gamble. Will try to get some clean, low acidicy coffee and perhaps try once my gut heals. Wouldn't mind a tasty cup of coffee the way I like it right now though hehe

 

[tareload]

I did for a month or so. Remember coffee is liver protective. Black of course. But i understand how having 2-3 cups of coffee can open the gates to energy drinks and quickly become 500mgs a day.

Monster zero sugar!! Now you are talking.

 

[t_spacemonkey]

back in december I quit coffee. lasted 3 months. felt really amazing. had no withdrawal at that point, but month 1 was rough. then went back on it. fast forward I think it was a mistake. will do another withdrawal soon. caffeine is a slave drug. it messes with your emotions/happiness/calm and for some like me causes anxiety and weird cravings.
the key is it NOT to cold turkey lol. especially from 500mg. a quick taper is good. the way I withdrew back in dec is first 2 weeks i took plain caffeine pills. first week 2x50mg (caffeine+l-theanine), second week just 50mg. then the next 2 weeks i drank 1 drink called drinkupdate. it has paraxanthine in it which is a caffeine metabolite. that completely killed my physical symptoms like headaches. after 2 weeks I stopped completely and started supplementing acetyl-l-tyrosine+dlpa which helped with the 'dopamine crash'. by month 2-3 it was all over. the problem I have is that wife likes it and is not willing to stop. so each AM she makes one and invites me. but the benefits far outweight the side effects for me. i think it hinders fat loss efforts big time. despite a lot are saying it actually helps. it messes with slowing down and connecting with nature. but i understand this is not everybody

 

[BigTex]

I have never had a problem quitting caffeine. I drink 4oz of espresso (100mg caffeine) every morning and on workout days drink the same before training (ttl - 200mg). I have quit many times for a month or two and never have problems. I always go back because honestly I love the taste of the Cuban colada I drink daily. Good luck with our caffeine addiction symptoms.

 

[Nelson Vergel]

I have a triple espresso in the morning. If I have more than that, I can't fall asleep before midnight.

 

[tareload]

I have a triple espresso in the morning. If I have more than that, I can't fall asleep before midnight.

Haha. Double expresso last night 2 hrs before bed. Slept fine. I have serious tolerance from too much caffeine!

Not a great habit for someone with prior AFIB and arrythmia. Luckily I found escitalopram LOL.

 

[BigTex]

Haha. Double expresso last night 2 hrs before bed. Slept fine. I have serious tolerance from too much caffeine!

Not a great habit for someone with prior AFIB and arrythmia. Luckily I found escitalopram LOL.

Hey, I woke up at 3:30am yesterday and had Afib. At 11:00am I had my espresso which I have never done before with Afib and in 10 minutes it was completely gone. Who knows??? What the heck, my wife already wanted to kill me because I went out an mowed the yard before that. I have proximal afib so this is only the 2nd incident this year. My wife drinks coffee before bed too. It take me 3-4 hours to get it out of my system to sleep. So nothing after 3pm for me. Let me clarify, a single espresso is 1oz.....mine is 4oz, so I guess that is a quadruple?

Research suggests that caffeine isn’t a cause of abnormal heart rhythms or atrial fibrillation, and drinking four to five cups of tea or coffee a day shouldn’t increase your risk of developing coronary heart disease either.​

​

Can I drink caffeine if I have atrial fibrillation?

Our expert explains the possible effects of caffeine on people with atrial fibrillation.

www.bhf.org.uk

Can You Exercise With Atrial Fibrillation?

Your heart needs exercise, even when you're living with AFib. A few simple tips from WebMD can help you do it safely.

www.webmd.com

 

[tareload]

3:30am yesterday and had Afib

Always nice that it kicks in middle of night. So polite LOL!

I am glad it is infrequent and you own it like a champ. To your point I think my issue was brought on by TSH spike with androgen use and my Hashimotos. I have been very aggressive with T4 meds in last year to bring TSH under tight control and I have to increase T4 when I increase Test dose to maintain TSH control. So far lots of caffeine and no AFIB issues lately but I fear tempting the gods.

Yesterday I was pushing hard on bike and getting some PVCs/PACs. Some days better than others. Take care of yourself!

Only thing on my Christmas list:

 

[FunkOdyssey]

I have quit coffee/caffeine multiple times for extended lengths of time now. In one case I abstained for about six months and most recently I was off for almost a year.

I believe tapering off increases your chances of success and is necessary in most cases to remain functional at work and in your family life. It is a powerful psychostimulant drug and you should treat it with respect, like tapering off an antidepressant, to avoid shocking the system too badly. This matters more if you are vulnerable to ADHD or depression, because coffee is acting like a medication for the treatment of these disorders, and the withdrawal can leave your mood, motivation, executive function, and ability to focus way below baseline.

Whenever I persuaded myself to remove coffee from my life, or rationalized returning to it, I immersed myself deeply in both sides of the argument for and against it. These points focus mainly on coffee, not caffeine. Caffeine as an isolated ingredient does not necessarily share the same properties as coffee -- differences can be significant with regard to depression, digestion, and other health effects. To save time, I am not going to dig up the studies for the claims below, but let me know if there is a particular one you want to see.

In favor:

• Coffee consumption is associated with a long list of favorable health outcomes, including lower all-cause mortality, lower cardiovascular mortality, lower risk of type 2 diabetes, lower risk of depression, lower risk of gallstones, lower risk of parkinson's disease, lower risk of dementia (though some studies suggest opposite), etc.
• Studies suggest a possible role for caffeine in the treatment of ADHD. In my case, there is no doubt that it is effective (I'll elaborate below).
• Studies suggest coffee may be effective to improve depression, and I believe this is the case for myself.
• Coffee increases the production and secretion of bile and accelerates gut motility, which can be helpful for people like myself that have sluggish digestion and tend towards constipation.

Against:

• Can cause insomnia and damage sleep quality, although partial tolerance develops to these effects in most people. Coffee may suppress the production of melatonin and shrink the pineal gland over time in high lifelong consumers.
• Increases baseline levels of anxiety and vulnerability to panic attacks. Partial tolerance can develop in most people.
• Mendelian randomization studies suggest most of the associations of coffee with positive health outcomes are not causal. One of the only health benefits listed above which has survived the scrutiny of mendelian randomization is the reduced risk of gallstones, which was confirmed.
• Coffee is associated with increased risk of osteoarthritis. Potential mechanisms have been identified whereby caffeine inhibits the production of collagen and adenosine injections into joints repairs cartilage damage.
• Mendelian randomization suggests higher coffee consumption is casually associated with reduced cerebral gray matter volume.
• Some studies suggest the perceived improvements in energy and mood caused by caffeine consumption only reflect a return to baseline by staving off withdrawal effects. In other words, chronic consumption of caffeine causes reduced energy and mood each day at the nadir of caffeine concentration in the body, and you return to approximately your uncaffeinated baseline in these areas when you consume your daily dose.

For me personally, coffee acts as a mild antidepressant and moderately strong ADHD medication. Coffee is far more sustainable than the prescription stimulants I've tried, which caused intolerable sides and just felt toxic to my system. During periods of consistent coffee use, I have completed multiple college degrees and received multiple promotions at work. The periods without coffee were marked by stagnation, poor job performance, and worsened depression.

I think there is definitely some truth to the idea that you build tolerance to the benefits of coffee/caffeine, however, like the side effects, I don't believe that tolerance is 100% complete. Certainly with regard to the ADHD symptoms, I am seeing consistent long-term benefits that are undeniable.

I quit coffee because it worsens my GERD a bit (although I have found ways to minimize that), it causes some joint pain, and it exaggerated the overstimulation and anxiety I felt when starting TRT in the past. However, after repeated experiments with abstinence, I am convinced that I have created a life and career with the aid of coffee that I cannot maintain without it. I can either continue using it or watch everything slowly crumble.

I think people that aren't effectively self-medicating ADHD with coffee will suffer far less without it and may find their overall well-being enhanced, with better sleep, better hydration, and a calmer, more relaxed disposition.

 

[tareload]

I have quit coffee/caffeine multiple times for extended lengths of time now. In one case I abstained for about six months and most recently I was off for almost a year.

I believe tapering off increases your chances of success and is necessary in most cases to remain functional at work and in your family life. It is a powerful psychostimulant drug and you should treat it with respect, like tapering off an antidepressant, to avoid shocking the system too badly. This matters more if you are vulnerable to ADHD or depression, because coffee is acting like a medication for the treatment of these disorders, and the withdrawal can leave your mood, motivation, executive function, and ability to focus way below baseline.

Whenever I persuaded myself to remove coffee from my life, or rationalized returning to it, I immersed myself deeply in both sides of the argument for and against it. These points focus mainly on coffee, not caffeine. Caffeine as an isolated ingredient does not necessarily share the same properties as coffee -- differences can be significant with regard to depression, digestion, and other health effects. To save time, I am not going to dig up the studies for the claims below, but let me know if there is a particular one you want to see.

In favor:

• Coffee consumption is associated with a long list favorable health outcomes, including lower all-cause mortality, lower cardiovascular mortality, lower risk of type 2 diabetes, lower risk of depression, lower risk of gallstones, lower risk of parkinson's disease, lower risk of dementia (though some studies suggest opposite), etc.
• Studies suggest a possible role for caffeine in the treatment of ADHD. In my case, there is no doubt that it is effective (I'll elaborate below).
• Studies suggest coffee may be effective to improve depression, and I believe this is the case for myself.
• Coffee increases the production and secretion of bile and accelerates gut motility, which can be helpful for people like myself that have sluggish digestion and tend towards constipation.

Against:

• Can cause insomnia and damage sleep quality, although partial tolerance develops to these effects in most people. Coffee may suppress the production of melatonin and shrink the pineal gland over time in high lifelong consumers.
• Increases baseline levels of anxiety and vulnerability to panic attacks. Partial tolerance can develop in most people.
• Mendelian randomization studies suggest most of the associations of coffee with positive health outcomes are not causal. One of the only health benefits listed above which has survived the scrutiny of mendelian randomization is the reduced risk of gallstones, which was confirmed.
• Coffee is associated with increased risk of osteoarthritis. Potential mechanisms have been identified whereby caffeine inhibits the production of collagen and adenosine injections into joints repairs cartilage damage.
• Mendelian randomization suggests higher coffee consumption is casually associated with reduced cerebral gray matter volume.
• Some studies suggest the perceived improvements in energy and mood caused by caffeine consumption only reflect a return to baseline by staving off withdrawal effects. In other words, chronic consumption of caffeine causes reduced energy and mood each day at the nadir of caffeine concentration in the body, and you return to approximately your uncaffeinated baseline in these areas when you consume your daily dose.

For me personally, coffee acts as a mild antidepressant and moderately strong ADHD medication. Coffee is far more sustainable than the prescription stimulants I've tried, which caused intolerable sides and just felt toxic to my system. During periods of consistent coffee use, I have completed multiple college degrees and received multiple promotions at work. The periods without coffee were marked by stagnation, poor job performance, and worsened depression.

I think there is definitely some truth to the idea that you build tolerance to the benefits of coffee/caffeine, however, like the side effects, I don't believe that tolerance is 100% complete. Certainly with regard to the ADHD symptoms, I am seeing consistent long-term benefits that are undeniable.

I quit coffee because it worsens my GERD a bit (although I have found ways to minimize that), it causes some joint pain, and it exaggerated the overstimulation and anxiety I felt when starting TRT in the past. However, after repeated experiments with abstinence, I am convinced that I have created a life and career with the aid of coffee that I cannot maintain without it. I can either continue using it or watch everything slowly crumble.

I think people that aren't effectively self-medicating ADHD with coffee will suffer far less without it and may find their overall well-being enhanced, with better sleep, better hydration, and a calmer, more relaxed disposition.

Great post. Thank you. Was thinking about trialing some abstinence for the potential OA benefit.


Let me tell you a story about how much studying and work got done about 25 years ago with a little ephedrine every once in a while. Coffee was just to chase it down. Ripped Fuel and Thermadrene were quite popular. The Ultimate was of course Ultimate Orange. We had cokeheads coming in to buy it who said they craved the ECA stack more than coke. It was on the next shelf over from the Inositol powder that corporate was selling for like $100 bucks per 16 oz powder. Then I learned why they were charging so much for it haha.

Word to the wise...never throw down a couple of packets of the Herbal Ecstacy circa 1996. Wild west and who knows what they were throwing in there.

 

[Fernando Almaguer]

Always nice that it kicks in middle of night. So polite LOL!

I am glad it is infrequent and you own it like a champ. To your point I think my issue was brought on by TSH spike with androgen use and my Hashimotos. I have been very aggressive with T4 meds in last year to bring TSH under tight control and I have to increase T4 when I increase Test dose to maintain TSH control. So far lots of caffeine and no AFIB issues lately but I fear tempting the gods.

Yesterday I was pushing hard on bike and getting some PVCs/PACs. Some days better than others. Take care of yourself!

Only thing on my Christmas list:

View attachment 35442

Ah yes, now a lot of these have taurine which is also supposed to be good. I'm not sure on the effectiveness of the dose though.

I enjoy a Ghost or c4 as those have dopamine precursors and a little alpha GPC. It's almost cheating! (neutropics).

Just remember about 400mgs per day is good. Over that caffeine may have hazardous side effects. Varys from person to person of course.

 

[Steve78]

I'm on day three of no coffee and minimal caffeine. Man am I tired and my head hurts. Withdrawal symptoms are pretty bad. I was probably consuming about 500mg of caffiene a day. Was hoping to hear other's stories to find out how their experience quitting coffee was and if it was worth it.

Why?!??

Coffee is the nectar of the Gods! Lol. Honestly, look it up, there is a linear correlation between amount of coffee consumed (black, no sugar, dark roast) and longevity. Coffee is a health food, it’s like saying I quit veggies cold turkey imo.

 

[Steve78]

What’s least risky, 100 yearly or 250 x 12 weeks once or maybe twice a year? Goal not joint support but add some mass and let the trt keep the gains…

 

[Runnerman]

I'm on day three of no coffee and minimal caffeine. Man am I tired and my head hurts. Withdrawal symptoms are pretty bad. I was probably consuming about 500mg of caffiene a day. Was hoping to hear other's stories to find out how their experience quitting coffee was and if it was worth it.

This may be late advice but if you are going to try getting off coffee, you should ween it down slowly over some time, maybe a few weeks. For me, i wanted to try quitting coffee because it seemed to give me muscle and joint aches. I found that stopping coffee seemed to help that at least for me. I ended up substituting Monster zero sugar which has caffeine and taurine. It seems to give me a boost. let us know how it goes.

 

[DixieWrecked]

This may be late advice but if you are going to try getting off coffee, you should ween it down slowly over some time, maybe a few weeks. For me, i wanted to try quitting coffee because it seemed to give me muscle and joint aches. I found that stopping coffee seemed to help that at least for me. I ended up substituting Monster zero sugar which has caffeine and taurine. It seems to give me a boost. let us know how it goes.

So I basically cut back but didn't go cold turkeylike you mentioned. Been a couple weeks now and honestly I am glad I did it. I feel more hydrated, and I am sleeping better. Now that I am more hydrated, my afternoon workouts are fine. I am able to sleep at night without the caffiene in my blood, which means I dont need as much coffee the next day since I slept well.