Ladies, does caffeine make your periods worse?

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its_whisper
its_whisper Posts: 112 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Ladies, have you noticed during your period that coffee or consumption of caffeine, makes you have anxiety? or if you have depression it makes it worse?



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  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    Moderate amounts, no (2-3 cups of coffee or less). More than that does cause anxiety for me.
  • its_whisper
    its_whisper Posts: 112 Member
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    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Moderate amounts, no (2-3 cups of coffee or less). More than that does cause anxiety for me.

    I usually drink a cup every morning. Usually I don't notice that my anxiety is worse, but last month I read that caffeine is linked to extreme anxiety issues related to PMS. I am worried that if i just cut my morning joe out cold turkey that I'll be moody from withdraw but i also want to help my anxiety out. Man, what a mess.
  • KosmosKitten
    KosmosKitten Posts: 10,476 Member
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    Exact opposite for me, but I have diagnosed generalized anxiety, IBS and as a woman, periods (unfortunately). I've never noticed caffeine to make any of those conditions worse, but it might be because I've had caffeine coursing through my veins from a very early age, so I've built up a tolerance.

    For example, caffeine in general does absolutely nothing for me. I drink coffee because I enjoy the warmth and its taste (assuming it's not terrible tasting mud). It doesn't raise my anxiety or make my IBS worse (despite doctor's warnings that it would). As for periods, no changes due to caffeine consumption, but again, I may just be incredibly used to it. I can take caffeine pills and nada. Highly caffeinated coffee and energy drinks? Nope, nada.

    My anxiety actually normalizes a little bit from having a little bit of caffeine in my system. No idea why.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    its_whisper wrote: »
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Moderate amounts, no (2-3 cups of coffee or less). More than that does cause anxiety for me.

    I usually drink a cup every morning. Usually I don't notice that my anxiety is worse, but last month I read that caffeine is linked to extreme anxiety issues related to PMS. I am worried that if i just cut my morning joe out cold turkey that I'll be moody from withdraw but i also want to help my anxiety out. Man, what a mess.

    I think my anxiety would be worse if I tried to eliminate caffeine during my period (or at least my fatigue, another symptom I have, would be a lot worse). Good luck!
  • ksmoira
    ksmoira Posts: 5 Member
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    Yes definitely caffeine contributes to painful cramps for me. And anxiety if I have too much at any point in my cycle. Also worth noting that if you have urinary problems (like urges, overactive bladder), coffee is a bladder irritant. I drink coffee but these are things I keep in mind if I'm having a problem!
  • slaite1
    slaite1 Posts: 1,307 Member
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    Opposite for me. The perfect mix of ibruprofen, caffeine and regular snacks are the key things that make the cramps, headaches and fatigue manageable. The caffeine is an integral part of the equation for me.
  • ksmoira
    ksmoira Posts: 5 Member
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    If you get a lot of anxiety during PMS I might suggest less coffee. But you don't have to go cold turkey! American portions of coffee are big. Less might be better! I drink mine with lots of milk (good calcium). Also this is weird but I find that drinking coffee cold rather than hot, I am far less likely to get anxious!
  • its_whisper
    its_whisper Posts: 112 Member
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    I have been drinking coffee since a child ( I'm 25 now) and going more than a day without it I get really moody. Maybe last month was just a one time thing but my anxiety was extreme and I didn't know why. Like most of you, I need my daily dose of caffeine as it helps me feel normal. I might just cut it out for a day and see how my anxiety is. I'm almost afraid of my period this month! I start in 2 days. Wish me luck
  • its_whisper
    its_whisper Posts: 112 Member
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    CanesGalactica wrote: »
    Exact opposite for me, but I have diagnosed generalized anxiety, IBS and as a woman, periods (unfortunately). I've never noticed caffeine to make any of those conditions worse, but it might be because I've had caffeine coursing through my veins from a very early age, so I've built up a tolerance.

    For example, caffeine in general does absolutely nothing for me. I drink coffee because I enjoy the warmth and its taste (assuming it's not terrible tasting mud). It doesn't raise my anxiety or make my IBS worse (despite doctor's warnings that it would). As for periods, no changes due to caffeine consumption, but again, I may just be incredibly used to it. I can take caffeine pills and nada. Highly caffeinated coffee and energy drinks? Nope, nada.

    My anxiety actually normalizes a little bit from having a little bit of caffeine in my system. No idea why.

    Like you, caffeine doesn't really do anything to me. I don't get hyper, I don't feel energized. Without it though I'm a monster LOL. Idk why, but maybe like you I built up a tolerance.

    I also have IBS and coffee helps me go which I'm grateful for. Otherwise I can go days without going to the bathroom. The joys of womanhood.
  • its_whisper
    its_whisper Posts: 112 Member
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    ksmoira wrote: »
    If you get a lot of anxiety during PMS I might suggest less coffee. But you don't have to go cold turkey! American portions of coffee are big. Less might be better! I drink mine with lots of milk (good calcium). Also this is weird but I find that drinking coffee cold rather than hot, I am far less likely to get anxious!

    I usually only drink 1 cup so that's why I thought I'd just not drink any. I love iced coffee! hot coffee is okay but hand me a iced latte and my whole day is made :D
  • bonnielee708
    bonnielee708 Posts: 65 Member
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    @its_whisper Could you please provide the link to that study? I'd like to know how they are defining extreme anxiety and the size of the sample cohort in the study. How much caffeine was being ingested and how was the beverage prepared? Caffeine is a stimulant, so I'd expect to see it have greater effects on people with anxiety disorders, but in people with no issues I'd not expect to see a large swing even during PMS or peri-menopause.
  • its_whisper
    its_whisper Posts: 112 Member
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    @bonnielee708
    http://www.progressivehealth.com/a-link-between-pms-symptoms-and-caffeine.htm
  • aylajane
    aylajane Posts: 979 Member
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    Without caffeine I feel like I am walking through jello. Not worth the experiment to find out :)
  • MommaGem2017
    MommaGem2017 Posts: 405 Member
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    janejellyroll wrote: »
    its_whisper wrote: »
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Moderate amounts, no (2-3 cups of coffee or less). More than that does cause anxiety for me.

    I usually drink a cup every morning. Usually I don't notice that my anxiety is worse, but last month I read that caffeine is linked to extreme anxiety issues related to PMS. I am worried that if i just cut my morning joe out cold turkey that I'll be moody from withdraw but i also want to help my anxiety out. Man, what a mess.

    I think my anxiety would be worse if I tried to eliminate caffeine during my period (or at least my fatigue, another symptom I have, would be a lot worse). Good luck!

    Oh my goodness, THIS!
  • Grimmerick
    Grimmerick Posts: 3,342 Member
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    For me it messes with me hormonally, if you drink 2 or more cups of coffee a day it can raise your estrogen levels up to 70%, which coupled with my love of wine on most days reeked havoc on my period and I also had hormonal acne (along the jawline) Once I got those 2 things under control things started clearing up.
  • gamerbabe14
    gamerbabe14 Posts: 876 Member
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    Nope. They've always sucked. Actually worse now that I've lost weight....
  • GemstoneofHeart
    GemstoneofHeart Posts: 865 Member
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    I drink coffee daily as of a couple of years ago and I have never noticed a difference in my periods to what they were like before becoming a coffee drinker, but that's just me!
  • its_whisper
    its_whisper Posts: 112 Member
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    gamerbabe14 wrote: »
    Nope. They've always sucked. Actually worse now that I've lost weight....

    That's interesting you say that. I lost 100 pounds and since my periods have been lighter. This past year though they have become painful which is new for me. When i was obese my periods were super heavy
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,515 Member
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    Nope, and I don't do a contraceptive pill stop week, thus I don't have this issue anyway. The only way I could imagine is that caffeine works as a very mild diurrhetic. Peeing more removes just a bit more magnesium and calcium, hence stronger cramps? No idea.
  • its_whisper
    its_whisper Posts: 112 Member
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    yirara wrote: »
    Nope, and I don't do a contraceptive pill stop week, thus I don't have this issue anyway. The only way I could imagine is that caffeine works as a very mild diurrhetic. Peeing more removes just a bit more magnesium and calcium, hence stronger cramps? No idea.

    I'm not sure but that would make sense. I tend to go number 2 more if i drink a lot of coffee but not so much pee. The only drink that makes me pee a lot is when i drink water.

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