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Caffeine addiction?

0098386

0098386

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Original poster
Jan 18, 2005
21,574
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I started drinking energy drinks whilst in my last year of uni and the buggers worked. Used to have at least 2 cans daily (250ml Red Bull), sometimes more if I was participating in lectures. I stopped buying them for a few reasons but since then I've always had 1-3 330ml cans of Coke daily or a full 2 litre bottle if one is available, this is going on almost 2 years.
A friend gave up drinking alcohol last week so I thought I'd give up my vice since it had been causing me nervous problems.

But daaamn! I stopped on Saturday and I've been in an anxious state for the last 2 days! It's all quite mild though, I mean I have a few cans in the fridge and I'm not tearing down walls to get to them. All ice cold and yummy looking. But enough is enough! If my friend can give up on something as physically addictive as alcohol then I can give up on something as low as this.

So... I guess I'm wondering if any of you Mac chaps or chapettes have been through similar with caffeine?
 
Stopping caffeine cold turkey is very hard. I recommend that you use small doses of caffeine pills to control your dosage and slowly taper off of caffeine.

Also, if you are trying to stop caffeine, why is it in your fridge? :eek::D
 
Nope, I used to drink probably 7 or 8 cans of Diet Coke everyday (if not more) and one day I decided it was bad for me, and I stopped cold turkey. I had no problems quitting and had no weird feelings. I have caffeine occasionally, but usually stick to sprite, lemonade, or water. :)
 
emt1 said:
Also, if you are trying to stop caffeine, why is it in your fridge? :eek::D
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My bro loves the stuff too. Plus I think it's a nice will booster to know there are readily available cans but I'm sat drinking fruit juice instead (which I prefer the taste of, just hasn't got that caffeine kick is all!).
 
eeek Caffeine can be a rough addiction and hard to quit, especially since it's in almost all sodas and other drinks. I'm trying my best to avoid caffeine all together (but I picked up smoking WTF!?). Anyway, overcoming any physical addiction is tough, so good luck.
 
I just gave up caffeine recently and it was rough the first week or two. After that, I didn't really miss it much. You can do it.

You should give the remaining ones in your fridge away or pour them down the sink. It's really hard to quit when it's right there for you to grab.
 
How much were you drinking before you gave up? And would my litre or so of Coca Cola a day really have the potential to cause a small addiction (ok it sounds bad writing that :eek:)?
 
raggedjimmi said:
I stopped buying them for a few reasons but since then I've always had 1-3 330ml cans of Coke daily or a full 2 litre bottle if one is available, this is going on almost 2 years.
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Dude, that is soooooo much Coke per day :eek:

Never mind the caffeine, holy freakin' sugar overload!

I hope you're able to stay away from those levels in the future. Let's try to keep the diabetes away, shall we?


I used to drink 1 can, sometimes 2 cans, of Coke a day. I stopped doing that around 6-7 years ago. Now I only have one per week (if that). I don't miss it- when I have one, it's like a nice treat.

I drink coffee daily though- but only with a little milk and sugar, and most definitely not with as much sugar as what is in a can of Coke.

Am I addicted to caffeine? It's possible. But I like my morning and late afternoon coffee, so until I decide to skip those beverages, I'll never know.
 
raggedjimmi said:
How much were you drinking before you gave up? And would my litre or so of Coca Cola a day really have the potential to cause a small addiction (ok it sounds bad writing that :eek:)?
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I would say a liter sounds right. What helped me break the addiction was having a water bottle near me for most of the day. I purchased a camelbak bottle and have been toting that everyday around campus. Whenever I want a sip, I have that to sip on instead of looking for a nearby coke machine.
 
emt1 said:
Also, if you are trying to stop caffeine, why is it in your fridge? :eek::D
Click to expand...

Life's funny, isn't it? ;)

Get your brother to quit too!


Oh, and have you thought about switching to coffee? It's actually not very unhealthy for you. It has no nutritional value, but contains some dietary fibre which is good. It also has very very few calories, just like water. It's not like Coke, which contains a lot of sugar.

Uh.....if you're only doing this to cut your caffeine intake, and not for your overall health, then ignore me. :p
 
Abstract said:
LOh, and have you thought about switching to coffee? It's actually not very unhealthy for you. It has no nutritional value, but contains some dietary fibre which is good. It also has very very few calories, just like water.

Just saying...
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Coffee's good. I used to drink a pot before lunch, but have cut back to a large travel mug ~ 20oz.
 
Nobody here can tell you if you should stop or not.

I'd find out why you felt you needed to take caffeine, and worst of all to keep it up.
 
Are you feeling anxious because you want the caffeine, or just anxious in general?

Normally when you go through withdrawals after coming off a drug, you experience an extreme of the opposite to what the drug does. Caffeine is a stimulant, so I'd expect you to be feeling pretty wiped, not much energy at all. And before everyone gets all up in arms about me calling caffeine a drug; yes caffeine is a drug in the sense that it induces physiological changes in your body. It may not be an illicit or illegal drug, and I'm not making any morality statements here (I happen to love my caffeinated drinks), but it's a drug by definition.

SLC
 
SLC Flyfishing said:
Normally when you go through withdrawals after coming off a drug, you experience an extreme of the opposite to what the drug does. Caffeine is a stimulant, so I'd expect you to be feeling pretty wiped, not much energy at all. And before everyone gets all up in arms about me calling caffeine a drug; yes caffeine is a drug in the sense that it induces physiological changes in your body. It may not be an illicit or illegal drug, and I'm not making any morality statements here (I happen to love my caffeinated drinks), but it's a drug by definition.
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I don't think anyone was going to get all up in arms about it... It's widely accepted that it's a drug (not just in the mormoe community)
 
Caffeine withdrawal usually means tiredness and headaches. I know you have a bit of anxiety to begin with, it almost sounds like you're getting off pretty easily on the withdrawal symptoms, which is excellent. I quit my morning 2-3 cups of coffee and for about a week I was tired, mean and achy. (I mean, even more so than normal :p)

Best of luck, Jimmi. That is a crapload of caffeine and sugar you were ingesting. I can't help but think it's a good thing to cut that out. :)
 
I want to buy some caffeine candy pills, wich one do you recomend... in school I get sick tired in the afternoons, I usually take light red bull, I dont really need the extra calories.
the pills seem a good idea well its low calories and I guess they do their job.
 
deorg said:
I want to buy some caffeine candy pills, wich one do you recomend... in school I get sick tired in the afternoons, I usually take light red bull, I dont really need the extra calories.
the pills seem a good idea well its low calories and I guess they do their job.
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Why don't you just turn to adderall like a good college student.
 
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