breaking a caffeine addiction?

mccorml · September 2016

So my biggest addiction is Rockstar energy drinks not the sugar free kind I hate the taste of those, no im talking the full blown crack in a can 260 callories in a 16 oz 31g’s of sugar 160mg of caffeine per can. My addiction started in the army my last year we only had 2 armorers for almost a full year so it was me and another guy doing 24 hour shifts at the police station. So 24 hours on 24 hours off (majority was spent sleeping) and I was at my worst drinking 4 a day (yah I know that’s awful). So now I’m down to 1 in the morning, and possibly 1 at night if im exhausted and have a lot of homework. These things are the only thing that I feel wakes me up but I know that’s just the addiction to caffeine talking and ill feel much better when I cut it out. What are some good replacements for it? I drink coffee but its not tart and sweet like the rockstar idk maybe im just being nitpicky.

not_my_first_rodeo · September 2016

Are you trying to stop drinking caffeine products? Or are you looking for another kind of caffeine product?

I think the sugar thing is like anything else. If you wean yourself off these drinks at some point, they'll start to seem too sweet.

mccorml · September 2016

Hmm so maybe just force myself to switch to coffee. Im trying to adopt a healthier lifestyle in general and I think my caffeine surplus is probably the first place to start because it seems like in the mornings I'm super sluggish until I've had enough caffeine to get my blood pumping. I feel like if i were to switch to more water and less caffeine after a couple weeks I'd have more natural energy. Obviously fruits are probably good in terms of carbohydrates that will give me energy? Idk I guess I'm just spit-balling. Thanks for your response.

beatyfamily1 · September 2016

I had the same problem. Was drinking about 4 of those a day plus soda on top of that. I tried switching to coffee. It wasn't the same and I was resistant to the change. I went cold turkey. If you do this I recommend doing it when you have a couple days off to recover. I was in bed for 3 days with severe stomach cramps, vomiting, and cold sweats. My husband did the same thing, but he was in bed for 7 days. I gave in and bought one of those It Works Greens. I despise their products, but this one did work for my problem. I just wanted the stomach cramping to stop. It was that bad. The It Works Greens relaxed the cramping and I was able to get through the withdrawal quicker than anticipated. My husband did not want to try the It Works Greens. I don't drink the energy drinks anymore or any caffeinated drinks because I don't want to go through that again. I now have more energy than when I was drinking them and have a regular sleep cycle.

goldthistime · September 2016

You could try just slowly reducing the amount you drink. It means pouring some Rockstar down the drain (or being willing to drink leftovers the next day). I find that as long as you're willing to cut back slowly you can avoid any caffeine withdrawal headaches.

I've been trying to cut out caffeine myself these last few weeks and have found that my bigger problem is those days when you feel like reintroducing caffeine is the only sensible decision (like your example of feeling exhausted but have a lot of homework, or in my case, looking after a two year old for a couple of days). I think if I could get away from it for a longer period of time (like a few weeks), it wouldn't be my defacto solution for low energy. The other stumbling block for me is that my motivation is low, caffeine isn't that worrisome and can actually be helpful when trying to cut calories. If you feel the same way then perhaps a switch to coffee is your best bet.

Christine_72 · September 2016

beatyfamily1 wrote: »

I had the same problem. Was drinking about 4 of those a day plus soda on top of that. I tried switching to coffee. It wasn't the same and I was resistant to the change. I went cold turkey. If you do this I recommend doing it when you have a couple days off to recover. I was in bed for 3 days with severe stomach cramps, vomiting, and cold sweats. My husband did the same thing, but he was in bed for 7 days. I gave in and bought one of those It Works Greens. I despise their products, but this one did work for my problem. I just wanted the stomach cramping to stop. It was that bad. The It Works Greens relaxed the cramping and I was able to get through the withdrawal quicker than anticipated. My husband did not want to try the It Works Greens. I don't drink the energy drinks anymore or any caffeinated drinks because I don't want to go through that again. I now have more energy than when I was drinking them and have a regular sleep cycle.

Man that sounds full on! I'm not a big coffee drinker and i don't drink soda or energy drinks. After reading your post, I'm glad i dont.

Op i don't know what to advise.. What about caffeine pills and slowly wean yourself off of them? I know it's replacing one vice with another, but I've read some scary reports on what those energy drinks do to your heart. .

lemurcat12 · September 2016

The easiest way to get off caffeine is taper. You can go cold turkey, but you will feel low energy and quite possibly get headaches (no biggie, I've done it when cutting out caffeinated beverages for Lent, but unnecessary).

You could just try drinking .75 of a can for a couple days, then .5 for a couple, then dropping one of them and then the other. Or, you could switch to something with less caffeine. (My guess is coffee has a similar amount but you can check, and the sugar will have a pick-me-up effect on many too. You could sub a piece of fruit for a more gradual version of that, if desired.)

I'm obsessed with coffee and in the process of trying to convince myself to track and taper off, so I empathize! Tea has somewhat less than coffee (sadly, I just don't like tea as much or I'd simply switch), so I'm trying to sub that sometimes.

Troutsy · September 2016

I want to echo lemurcat and say to taper slowly. Cold turkey may produce headaches from the lack of caffeine. I would cut down slowly and give your self a week to adjust before decreasing the amount again. I know you said you hate the taste of the zero calorie but they are always an option. Honestly I hated diet soda for the longest time, but once I made the switch and stayed with it regular soda now tastes weird to me.

Pow377 · September 2016

Try swapping to sugar free red bull. Lower caffeine content. No sugar. Then taper down the amount you have.

Francl27 · September 2016

Yep, switch to coffee, and eat less and less of it.

not_my_first_rodeo · September 2016

Cold turkey was brutal for me. I weaned myself down to a half reg/half decaf 10 oz. black coffee. It sounds like for you it's a question of caffeine plus the sugar content. I would suggest doing as the others suggest by tapering off. Once you're at your desired level of caffeine intake, maybe you can figure out another source for the sugars.

xmarye · September 2016

It helps when you figure out WHY you want to quit drinking coffee. Here's 10 reasons:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_T2B3oNfy8

Also, for me I switched to green tea at first, since I didnt really liked tea and I knew it promotes weight loss as well as helping reach my water intake. After a while I started taking a liking to it and experimenting with different teas. Now one of my favourite is Chai tea with frothed soy milk.

Hope this helps! Good luck oxox

Michael190lbs · September 2016

I did it was drinking 5 a day everyday quit with Black coffee lost weight and bought a Yamaha VMax with the money I saved Ya $300 a month such a waste!! Never again - Good luck

breaking a caffeine addiction?

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