Caffeine addiction??? With Poll!

[DT4K]

Gee really? I think I'm going to write an article about how the sky looks blue and water is wet.

I don't know of a single coffee addict who thinks that drinking their morning coffee makes them extra energetic. We all do it because we NEED it to wake up (AKA get to normal level of alertness).

 

[SandEagle]

I guess they need to start putting blow in the coffee now.

i thought you only drank Palestinian blood?

 

[CraigRT]

Meh I dunno.. I drink a cup of coffee or maybe 2 every day when I wake up, or within an hour of waking up, and not again for the rest of the day after that. I don't consider myself an addict, but I like the first item of business of the day coffee.

 

[Dumac]

Caffeine has never really had an effect on me. I am usually in a constant state of low energy, no matter how much caffeine I consume.

I have tried multiple energy drinks or coffees or espressos. Nothing has ever come of it.

 

[Krazy4Real]

mmmmm pie

 

[AVAFREAK182]

and in the past, when I've gave it a go it would over stimulate me to the point where I felt my heart racing.

hmmmm

 

[destrekor]

How long should one gradually step down caffeine consumption?

Say, 4 strong cups worth a day.
What would be the best route to taper that, and not lose too much alertness in the day?

I think I am one of those that they mention has having a gene that predisposes me to some anxiety, and a large amount of caffeine is probably not helping anything.

I loathe headaches, and really don't want to be groggy all day, and considering I've been in hell for 4 years now (university), giving it up anytime in these past few years is something I never even wanted to think about. Not the time to start playing around with lower energy and alertness levels.

Some days, with enough of an extra bit on top of usual, I definitely get an energy boost. Other days, I feel basically the same as any other day as long as I get the usual amount of my fix between various caffeine products.

With post-graduation summer coming up, I definitely want to try and return to that true baseline, with a lot of things. If anything, I need to cycle my tolerance levels so I can get more effect from less (and learn next time to cycle far sooner instead of ramping it up). Not sure if cutting back on snus and caffeine at the same time will be a great idea, but I'm gonna try it.

At least I have more energy in the summer than I do in colder months (mild case of S.A.D.?), so I shouldn't be too difficult to be around.

 

[nageov3t]

back when I drank soda by the bucketful, I could chug a 20 oz bottle of mountain dew and go to bed 10 minutes later.

now that I drink coffee sparingly (and soda not at all), a single cup and I'm bouncing off the walls.

 

[GiggleGirl]

i drink coffee fairly regularly but when i dont drink it, im not craving it. it doesnt keep me awake or affect my behavior (at least not that ive noticed). i dont have to drink coffee, i more just love it. i cant imagine being addicted to caffeine though i think other people are more prone to this.

 

[duragezic]

I usually started the day at work with a good size coffee or later McDonald's got me buying their damn $3 Latte things. Usually followed by a 20 oz bottle or two or a couple of cans of pop through the day and evening.

These days I usually just have a bottle of Coke and if I really need energy, 1/2 or a full caffeine pill. I've been addicted forever. If I don't have some within ~48 hours, I get a headache.

x90 200mg caffeine pills for $3 is much better than a lot of that hyped shit, but I do like the taste of coffee and some of those drinks.

 

[destrekor]

I usually started the day at work with a good size coffee or later McDonald's got me buying their damn $3 Latte things. Usually followed by a 20 oz bottle or two or a couple of cans of pop through the day and evening.

These days I usually just have a bottle of Coke and if I really need energy, 1/2 or a full caffeine pill. I've been addicted forever. If I don't have some within ~48 hours, I get a headache.

x90 200mg caffeine pills for $3 is much better than a lot of that hyped shit, but I do like the taste of coffee and some of those drinks.

JetAlert?

My local Targets stopped carrying that brand. Hell, the local Targets stopped carrying caffeine pills in general. Bastards.
And local stores like CVS and Walgreens do not carry Jet Alert. They offer their store-brand versions of Vivarin (and are barely cheaper than Vivarin), and then they usually stock 60ct (or is it 40ct) bottles of NoDoz as well. Like $6 or 7, for 60, and 90 of the same strength, same chemical, is $3ish.
Damn. Might start buying massive bulk caffeine pills just to save money.
Then again, I do want to start cutting back.
After my last round (ever) of college finals, at least.

 

[DrPizza]

The first thing on my list of things to consider whenever I get a headache is "did I drink coffee this morning?" More often than not, the answer is no.

 

[Crono]

How long should one gradually step down caffeine consumption?

Say, 4 strong cups worth a day.
What would be the best route to taper that, and not lose too much alertness in the day?

I'd move to 3 cups a day for 3 days, then 2 cups for 4 days, then 1 cup for 3 days, then substitute coffee for tea for about a week (you can drink 2 or 3 cups throughout the day), then move to green tea for the final week. After that you can quit caffeine without withdrawal.

Green tea is the only caffeinated beverage that I find I can drink pretty much without consequence as much as I want (I usually don't want more than 6 - 8 cups a day max, usually just 4 - 6 cups). Instead of caffeine "anxiety", I find it to be very soothing while still giving a little bit of extra altertness (when coming off baseline).

While I love all types of caffeinated beverages, white and green teas are my fave. They also don't irritate my stomach; unfortunately the more caffeine a drink has, the greater it ramps up acid production. And even worse is that caffeinated beverages (aside from teas) contain a good amount of acid to begin with.

And I wouldn't take caffeine pills, ever. It's to easy to become dependent on it when it's not in food/drink, which limits to some degree the amount you can take. With pills it's just too easy to pop one whenever you think you need one. Remember Jessie from Saved By The Bell? I'm so excited...

 

[duragezic]

JetAlert?

My local Targets stopped carrying that brand. Hell, the local Targets stopped carrying caffeine pills in general. Bastards.
And local stores like CVS and Walgreens do not carry Jet Alert. They offer their store-brand versions of Vivarin (and are barely cheaper than Vivarin), and then they usually stock 60ct (or is it 40ct) bottles of NoDoz as well. Like $6 or 7, for 60, and 90 of the same strength, same chemical, is $3ish.
Damn. Might start buying massive bulk caffeine pills just to save money.
Then again, I do want to start cutting back.
After my last round (ever) of college finals, at least.

Yeah, JetAlert. I've bought them from Walmart. Like you said, they are more pills for half the price than even the generic ones usually. I hardly use them since school though.