Caffeine Addiction

...I have a personal trainer and he quit caffiene a couple of years ago. He told me when he did it he had the same symptoms you did and he just stuck it out, treated it like the flu, and eventually it passed by itself. He didn't have any appetite for most those days. After that, he was going to eat chicken, and couldn't. He eventually became a vegan. That last part was unecessary, but the caffiene part may help.

They also sell half and half (half de-caf and half caffeinated) if you want to come off slowly and the next time I bought the de-caf and then I was okay with it. We all are different. Congratulations on being off of alchohol.
Good luck on whichever way you decide to do it!

Wow I completely understand where you come from. I, myself, would indulge in caffeine to the point of wanting to puke if I inhaled another soda....People would often comment on my secret addiction and I would roll my eyes telling them "at least I don't do other things."

well my little problem became a nightmare for me-the caffiene gave me high blood pressure and I already had a fast heart rate (at the time I didn't know) so one night it threw off a clot and I had a tia (minor stroke) I was 32.Caffeine speeds the heart-rate up and god forbid you drink the amount I did..I was a bomb waiting to go off..... I'm not saying at all this will happen to you-but I remember the symptoms you have wrote about-
a year later I have been clean of my addiction and don't feel the urge to sip my craving anymore. I still have my heart problems but now I can control them without the caffeine.

My big advice is in the morning pour yourself a big tall glass of cool water-your body needs it since it hasn't had any for over eight hours. Many people run to get their coffee and from there it's the battle of the day with the caffeine buzz-i never have the down time that caffeine gave me usually around two in the afternoon....

Goodluck

I saw the Chris's story then I had to write this note. I'm currently quit drinking caffeine about a week ago. 3-5 days I had bad bad headache then now I can't get to sleep at night. I don't feel tired even though I know I'm tire. My body doesn’t give me any sign. Also when I sleep I don't get really good deep sleep. Is this normal? I have been drinking caffeine all most 20 something years it's hard to break habit. I almost attempted old way.

Hi haengsuni,

Do you by any chance have ADD or ADHD?

Sometimes caffiene has the opposite effect for individuals with ADD- it puts them to sleep versus keeping them up.

If not, I'd chalk this up to your body adjusting to it's new regime. 20 years is a long time so it might take awhile to even it out, so to speak.

I quit caffiene 4.5 years ago, and had similar symptoms (except for the no sleep thing). It took about a month to normalize.

What's an unhealthy range for caffeine intake, BTW? I drink 1-2 espresso daily. Should I really consider quitting?

First of all, your problem is at least as serious as all the other ones here. I never udnerstood personally why alcohol and other drugs are such a huge topic but nobody talks about caffeine addiction.

In the end they are all drugs.

I had the same symptoms when I quit. I took step by step and eventually got rid of it as my name says. But I learnt a lot of things along the way. (But too much to talk about here...)

The most important things are that you do not give up and that you DO NOT go "cold turkey". Try to reduce your dose consistently day by day. And find something else to drink instead. Maybe tea or fruit juices.

Also make sure you get more sleep, the more you sleep, the less you will feel like drinkign alcohol. If you still need the taste of caffeine, mix decaf with normal and gradually more and more decaf while less and less normal one.

Good luck and let us know how you are doing...