Hi all. To start off, I am a guy who rarely drank coffee before very recently (I'm 20). Recently, I've started waking up earlier, working more and lifting weights five days a week. While I enjoy every part of my day and working hard, I find my current lifestyle very tiring. I feel drained quite often, especially later on in the week. So I started drinking coffee every morning, and this helped my energy levels, my social interactions and my alertness. All in all, I feel much better with the same workload. My problem is this: I truly hate the fact that I need a chemical supplement, or a drug, to maintain my day to day lifestyle. I don't like that I am dependent on it to function at the levels I consider my standard. Furthermore, I hear stories about caffeine tolerance and I've seen it in my family, which scares me a bit. At the same time, I feel I need it to maintain myself normally because there have been times I've fallen asleep at lectures, or feel too drained to study. So I'm writing this to ask you guys what your opinion is on using caffeine daily. Nothing excessive, a cup of coffee a day, and I intend to cycle off it during holidays like Christmas and Easter. I guess I'm looking for some sort of justification for my use, but that doesn't mean I have to like it. Any help appreciated. DS.
I'm 24 and I started drinking coffee daily a little over a year ago. I usually do it before or after focusing hard on something or when I'm looking for a lift in the afternoon or morning. I also drink red bull. I've heard caffeine is not particularly good for you especially if you have adhd, anxiety or other mental health issues. The front of my face and my head ache and I become aggressive when I drink red bull but it lifts me up a bit out of a depressive feeling so I continue to drink it fairly regularly. If I were you I would try to limit my coffee and caffeine intake as much as possible. I think a couple cups a week or an energy drink every now and then is fine but if You find yourself needing caffeine daily you should try to break the habit.
There have been times in my life, ds, when I've really drunk far too much caffeine and it's been very bad for me, particularly as anxiety is a problem for me and caffeine's perfect to get you nice and jittery. I was speaking to a friend the other day who managed to give herself palpitations as a result of too much coffee. Sounds like you're doing things in a very measured way, which is brilliant. It is a drug and you will develop dependence and tolerance, but I doubt it's going to be a problem for you the way you're going at the moment. I've come off caffeine a couple of times and for quite sustained periods - a matter of months, certainly - and I seem to recall my energy levels improving after a while. I sometimes wish I didn't need it, and every morning I feel that "need" is not an inappropriate word! The withdrawals when you stop will leave you in no doubt that it's doing something quite powerful. I'd recommend doing some reading about it, ds. Find out what it's doing to you and if you're happy to continue doing that. I would also say that everything we eat, drink... it's all chemicals, so I wouldn't neccessarilly draw an artificial line around caffeine for that reason. Interested to hear what you think and how you get on.
My opinion caffiene is small doses like your doing is harmless. But your on the right track of thinking. Why do you need the boost of the drug? Along time ago I read about the topic how Americans are so dependent on the drug to get through the day. There is probably somthing that is throwing your body off. I would look at your diet first, then sleep plus quality of sleep. Are you starting at a screen right before bed that can mess a person's sleep rhythm up.
Admittedly, I don't like drinking caffeinated drinks everyday, partly for my perceived health standards, but I don't think a coffee a day is particularly bad. I would recommend sticking with coffee though (because if you start drinking energy drinks regularly that's when it becomes definitively unhealthy. And make sure your caffeine consumption doesn't escalate (ie to 2-3 cups everyday). Apart from that I'd say it's fine. Coffee is great, anyway!
