I'm addicted and I need help...

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Replies

  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,443 Member
    Unsweetened vanilla almond milk, about a quarter cup and one tablespoon of creamer. I use International Delight fat-free, sugar-free Toasted Hazelnut.
  • I agree with Troutsy. I used to put tons of sugar and creamer in my coffee. I just put a little less each week until now I put about 1/2 tsp truvia and about 1 tsp of creamer.
    Troutsy wrote: »
    Have you tried weening back slowly? I had to do this. Every week I just put a little less creamer in my coffee until I started drinking it black with 1 sugar. Surprisingly I really started to like the taste of coffee- I just have to remember to let it cool down a bit.

  • katya_be
    katya_be Posts: 227 Member
    I use full fat milk with some Torani sugar free caramel syrup..
  • ackman2002
    ackman2002 Posts: 69 Member
    I used to load my coffee up with the usual, sugar, creamers, milk, flavored this or that whatever I could find. Now during the week (at work) I'm drinking black with one splenda. I think I'm going to try to back off to half a splenda in the near future though.
  • raisealittlehell
    raisealittlehell Posts: 341 Member
    edited January 2015
    ndj1979 wrote: »
    OP - if you did not get your coffee fix …would you pick up a gun and rob the nearest convenience store for money/coffee to fulfill your "caffeine" fix; or would you go rummage through a dumpster for coffee grounds? If not, then you are not addicted and just need to learn self control.

    How is addiction measured by the propensity to commit a crime? Addiction is defined as "the state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming."

    So yes, someone could have a caffeine addiction without it just being a lack of "self control". Without it they can have withdrawal symptoms "headaches, nausea, shakes, etc" as you would if you were addicted to a controlled/illegal substance. Does that mean they are going to go rob a convenience store? No. Just because someone is addicted to drugs doesn't mean that they go a hold up stores or panhandle for money. Do people do that? Absolutely, but not everyone with an addiction is a criminal.

    Perhaps instead of belittling someone and saying its just "self control" look at the actual facts. Caffeine is classified as being addictive just like drugs or alcohol. Someone people can cut it out cold turkey, others need a more gradual process. Everyone struggles with something, and we all have a lack of willpower at times. However, it is not for you or I to judge her or put her down. A little encouragement can go a long way.

    Furthermore I think she was using the word "addiction" in a very loose sense and not clinically speaking.

    OP- try doing one less spoonful then you normally do and see how that goes. If it fits into your calories for the day, and its something you enjoy then I wouldn't worry about it. We all have our vices. :)
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,626 Member
    Cold turkey means withdrawal. The headaches are very rough and the Advil won't help much. If you can be outside a lot, that seems to help a lot with headaches. Activity does, too, to some extent.

    Tapering down until you're off the caffeine will get you off without the headaches, but it is very difficult for some people to actually kick a habit if they're still doing it habitually. Go figure.

    The choice is yours. Good luck! :)
  • jenn_ed
    jenn_ed Posts: 41 Member
    I always drank my coffee with cream and sugar (especially my Tim Hortons!) and never thought I would be able to drink it any other way. Just recently though I was given a milk frother - it turns my very boring skim milk into something very foamy and creamy. I now add that to my coffee, which I also now drink without sugar because I find the skim milk quite sweet.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,139 Member
    ndj1979 wrote: »
    OP - if you did not get your coffee fix …would you pick up a gun and rob the nearest convenience store for money/coffee to fulfill your "caffeine" fix; or would you go rummage through a dumpster for coffee grounds? If not, then you are not addicted and just need to learn self control.

    How is addiction measured by the propensity to commit a crime? Addiction is defined as "the state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming."

    So yes, someone could have a caffeine addiction without it just being a lack of "self control". Without it they can have withdrawal symptoms "headaches, nausea, shakes, etc" as you would if you were addicted to a controlled/illegal substance. Does that mean they are going to go rob a convenience store? No. Just because someone is addicted to drugs doesn't mean that they go a hold up stores or panhandle for money. Do people do that? Absolutely, but not everyone with an addiction is a criminal.

    Perhaps instead of belittling someone and saying its just "self control" look at the actual facts. Caffeine is classified as being addictive just like drugs or alcohol. Someone people can cut it out cold turkey, others need a more gradual process. Everyone struggles with something, and we all have a lack of willpower at times. However, it is not for you or I to judge her or put her down. A little encouragement can go a long way.

    Furthermore I think she was using the word "addiction" in a very loose sense and not clinically speaking.

    OP- try doing one less spoonful then you normally do and see how that goes. If it fits into your calories for the day, and its something you enjoy then I wouldn't worry about it. We all have our vices. :)

    I am pointing out the fallacy of using the word "addiction" for self control issues...

    last time I checked, people were not checking themselves into rehab centers because they were addicted to caffeine...

    and do I really have to list every action that a potential addict would take to point out the idiocy of saying that one is addicted to coffee...I mean I can start listing them if you really want...I was just using two quick ones...

    OP - have you ever taken 500.00 out of the ATM at 4am in the morning to fulfill your coffee addiction? < is that better?
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,626 Member
    ndj1979 wrote: »
    OP - if you did not get your coffee fix …would you pick up a gun and rob the nearest convenience store for money/coffee to fulfill your "caffeine" fix; or would you go rummage through a dumpster for coffee grounds? If not, then you are not addicted and just need to learn self control.

    How is addiction measured by the propensity to commit a crime?
    It isn't.

    Caffeine is absolutely addictive and will have withdrawal symptoms if you take in a lot on a regular basis and quit cold turkey. Headache is #1. Constipation and the general "I don't feel right without it" are also common.

    It's not as difficult a withdrawal process as the alcoholic or crack addict would go through, but it is unpleasant enough, that's for sure.
  • StandardFiend
    StandardFiend Posts: 9 Member
    I like coffee a variety of ways and i find if i can fit the extra calories in ill go ahead and have it sweet with sugar if thats what im in the mood for. I find it helps cut down on my craving for sweets the rest of the day.

    Also i really dont think its helpful or necessary to nitpick someone over their use of exaggeration. I dont know everyone else personally, but I was aware that OP did not really mean they were addicted and can appreciate the added flavor to their post considering I have also been in the position where I felt frustration over a struggle giving up a favorite food.
  • williams969
    williams969 Posts: 2,528 Member
    I like my coffee light. Usually, that means 2% milk in it at home (which is creamy enough for me). Those little creamer cups (regular 1/2 oz. ones are only 20 cals each) if I'm at school. Either way, I budget 75-150 calories of it daily. I'm fine using no-cal sweetener (Splenda for me), but I won't compromise on the lightener/creamer.
  • martyqueen52
    martyqueen52 Posts: 1,120 Member
    I use cashew milk for creamer. It's like 25cal for a whole cup. So... use a few tbsp and it's really nothing.
  • gothchiq
    gothchiq Posts: 4,598 Member
    I put whole milk in my coffee. It's not such a large amount as to screw things up. I log it. I am certainly a caffeine addict and I don't care. I will stay on it for life lol.
  • raisealittlehell
    raisealittlehell Posts: 341 Member
    [/quote]

    I am pointing out the fallacy of using the word "addiction" for self control issues...

    last time I checked, people were not checking themselves into rehab centers because they were addicted to caffeine...

    and do I really have to list every action that a potential addict would take to point out the idiocy of saying that one is addicted to coffee...I mean I can start listing them if you really want...I was just using two quick ones...

    OP - have you ever taken 500.00 out of the ATM at 4am in the morning to fulfill your coffee addiction? < is that better?[/quote]

    There have been studies, that show that caffeine is an addictive substance along the same lines as drugs and alcohol. To quote from a study done in 1994 by Dr. Roland Griffiths and Dr. Eric Strain in the department of psychiatry and behavior sciences at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore "Some people are addicted to caffeine in the same way that others are addicted to cigarettes, alcohol or intravenous drugs." The DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Health Disorders) has included Caffeine withdrawal as a mental health disorder.

    Why is something only an addiction if you have to go to rehab for it? Do you know how many people are alcoholics/ drug addicts that never go to rehab? Or that addicts have to go to great lengths to acquire what it is that they need.

    According to the DSM if you meet 3 or more of the criteria below you are labled as being addicted:

    Tolerance: Does the patient tend to need more of the drug over time to get the same effect?

    Withdrawal symptoms: Does the patient experience withdrawal symptoms when he or she does not use the drug?

    Continued use of drug despite harm: Is the patient experiencing physical or psychological harm from the drug?

    Loss of control: Does the patient take the drug in larger amounts, or for longer than planned?

    Attempts to cut down: Has the patient made a conscious, but unsuccessful, effort to reduce his or her drug use?

    Salience: Does the patient spend significant time obtaining or thinking about the drug, or recovering from its effects?

    Reduced involvement: Has the patient given up or reduced his or her involvement in social, occupational or recreational activities due to the drug?


    Do all people who drink coffee have an addiction? No. Just like not everyone who drinks copious amounts of alcohol is an alcoholic.

    You mentioned that you were pointing out the fallacy of using the word addiction for self control issues.

    I am pointing out the fallacy in your line of reasoning that cafeine addiction does not exisit.

    "Fallacy: "a mistaken belief, especially one based on unsound argument"

    My point being that you are basing the word "addiction" and being "addicted" on your own preconceived notion of what that entails. If you personally do not believe that someone can be addicted to caffeine, than you are more than entitled to that opinion. But ones opinions are just that OPINIONS not fact.

  • gothchiq
    gothchiq Posts: 4,598 Member
    And now, here is the Merriam-Webster definition of addiction: compulsive need for and use of a habit-forming substance (as heroin, nicotine, or alcohol) characterized by tolerance and by well-defined physiological symptoms upon withdrawal.

    So: Compulsive, habit forming, tolerance, and withdrawal symptoms. By the official definition, then, caffeine qualifies. Enough with making up one's own definition in order to invalidate others' legitimate experiences.
  • SuggaD
    SuggaD Posts: 1,369 Member
    Slowly wean yourself off. I used to need it to taste like a milkshake. Now I'm down to just a tip of 1/2 and 1/2 to change the color.
  • SwankyTomato
    SwankyTomato Posts: 442 Member
    Right there with you. We did get Keurig so now I only have 1 cup a day. Giving up smoking was easier than my morning cup of joe, go figure.
  • Lazz5k
    Lazz5k Posts: 251 Member
    I love my coffee. (just coffee and milk) I think in February I'm going to try and cut out my coffee, redbull addiction and start to drink advocare SPARK. look into it !
  • Rabblehey
    Rabblehey Posts: 5 Member
    Instead of addiction, coffee drinkers can develop a physical dependency. Does that term work better for those with negative reactions to the term "addiction"? I know I can't function without coffee after years of working in a coffee shop. But coffee is good for you, so long as you don't heart issues or anxiety. I personally LOVE black coffee and my morning cup is one of the great joys of my day. Drinking a cup in the morning is the only bit of "me" time I get all day and I savor it.

    As long as you're keeping within your goals for sugar and calories, why deny yourself? Almond milk is a great alternative, I love the nutty flavor with coffee. Switching to healthier alternative sweetener might be a good idea, if you're worried about your sugar consumption. If you're worried about your caffeine consumption, decide what is appropriate for you and wean yourself down. I've switched to green tea in the afternoons when I need a little boost, but don't want to overdue my coffee consumption so late in the day.

    Good luck!