Removing caffeine

I am a complete addict. I have cut caffeine a few times. Going cold turkey causes horrible headaches. I would suggest cutting back slowly. The withdrawal is much easier. I am currently down to 2 12 oz. cups a day which is a good place for me.

I am completely addicted to the amount I consume a day..

But nevah go cold turkey.. taper it back slowly. you will thank me for this advice.

I went cold turkey and DO NOT recommend that at all. I ended up sleeping 18-20 hours a day. What I did instead is started taking caffeine pills so I could function while weaning myself off (Walgreen's Stay Awake are pretty cheap). Each pill is the equivalent of 2 cups of coffee so I started taking 2 pills. After a week or so, I took 1-1/2, then 1, then 1/2, then none. I did find I was a bit lethargic in the morning after totally being off caffeine so I did start having 2 regular size or one jumbo coffee in the morning but no other caffeine during the day. I chose to do the pills instead of cutting down on caffeinated beverages so I caan control exactly how much caffeine I was getting.

If I don't get my morning caffeine, I do get a bit tired but it isn't bad like it used to be. Caffeine used to affect my sleep so limiting myself to only having it in the morning has helped that.

Since caffeine is no longer considered bad, I have been having trouble finding caffeine free beverages. There isn't much of a selection of coffee and tea anymore and a couple of my favorite sodas no longer come in caffeine free versions. There frequently is no option for something that is both diet and caffeine free in a restaurant. A few will have diet Sprite but that is it. Most fast food places have nothing.

Kevoofthehoradrim wrote: »

I think I'm addicted to caffeine and removing it from my life right now. Anyone else felt they had this issue and removed it? If so, could you share with me the differences you experienced after consuming it after a while?

I struggle with this back and forth. I drink way too much. For a while it was making my breath stink and I realized that switching to black coffee helped immensely. Also helped with calorie control. I drink, on average, 5 kcups a day of strong coffee (cafe bustelo espresso estilo) in addition to the caffiene in my fat burners.

I have from time to time replacing a cup here and there with either black tea or herbal tea depending on my mood, and this seems to help with over all caffiene consumption for me. This seems to be only and last substance I am addicted to. I quit cigarettes over a year ago, but dropping coffee.... is much harder. Mostly because of headaches and lethargy from having less.

I used to drink Dr. Pepper - 8 to 12 cans a day, depending on the kind of day I was having - at work. Didn't drink it at home very often and almost never on the weekends. Probably the reason I had frequent weekend headaches back then. About three years ago, I decided I needed to cut out the caffeine, so I did. Replaced the Dr. Pepper with bottles of water mixed with Hawaiian Punch powder. Food and drink intake for me is very much about the taste, so I needed something in the water to replace the taste I was losing by cutting out the Dr. Pepper. Anyway, I was off the caffeine cold turkey at that point. The first week, I experienced headaches and a reduction of energy during the day, but after that, everything was fine. I still have a Dr. Pepper every once in a while when I really, really, really crave that particular flavor, but I've never really wanted to resume the caffeine intake.

I found that peppermint tea gives me a little boost without the caffeine. It is my afternoon drink now.

Is there a way to track your caffiene in MFP?

I'm a teacher. I generally cut back on caffeine during the summer, because I don't have to be at my summer job until 10 or 11 (depending on the day). I do it gradually, though, so I generally don't notice withdrawal.

I've been completely surviving on caffeine for years. I drink an entire pot in the morning, and then 2-4 rockstar lemonades during the day. Just yesterday I decided I needed to cut way back before I do permanent damage to myself. I didn't do as well as I had hoped. 1 full pot of coffee and only 1 rockstar... tomorrow going to try to lose the rockstar. I don't know how I'll live without my coffee though. (probably longer and better)

Kevoofthehoradrim wrote: »

I think I'm addicted to caffeine and removing it from my life right now. Anyone else felt they had this issue and removed it? If so, could you share with me the differences you experienced after consuming it after a while?

When I was in college, I was addicted to coffee. After I graduated, I decided to cut back on coffee. I haven't looked back. the first few weeks were brutal. I had headaches, I slept a lot, and was irritable. someone told me to mix half caffeinated half decaf. Before anyone poo-poos on decaf....it's not bad, so long as you get a good quality decaf coffee. I have a good grinder and French press at home (as well as an espresso machine), and I taste the difference when I buy better quality whole bean decaf coffee and grind it up right before im going to use it. I cycle between caffeinated and decaf coffee or I will mix both bean types together and proceed. I usually put more decaf than caffeinated beans. if you have equipment at home, I would recommend finding a small local coffee shop and getting coffee from them (vs the bigger places like starbucks and DD.)