Caffeine Withdrawal Really Sucks

[Apoptosis]

The past few weeks I've been living on soda and tea as I pulled a number of all nighters to get articles done for the site and when I took a break from the site over the 4th of July weekend I crashed big time and pretty much slept the entire weekend. On Sunday I read an article about how caffeine is really bad for you and you become addicted to it. I then thought about all the tea and soda that I drink every day. I usually drink a pitcher of Lipton Cold Brew ice tea every 1-2 days and at least 2-3 sodas a day on top of that. Do the math on that and you have a ton of calories and caffeine. So, after reading the article on how caffeine is bad for you and how you should quit I went to Target bought decaf Lipton cold brew tea $5 versus $2 for the caffeine Lipton cold brew and a big bag of Splenda... Figured I'd cut the sugar calories as well. Sunday night I drank my last Dr. Pepper and went to bed... bad I know, but I start the day and finish the day with a soda...

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I woke up, dumped out the pitcher of tea since it was regular tea and made a pitcher of decaf tea and went on to work on the site that Monday morning. All was fine till about 8am and I got hit with a massive headache, sweats and what felt like the flu. I fought through it with no Tylenol and it went away. Right after lunch when I usually get another does of caffeine the same thing happened and the same after dinner... Holy crap, I was really addicted to caffeine! I tossed and turned all night and I slept 1-2 hours longer than normal... The same has happened yesterday and today... Right now I have the migraine of my life...

I've searched the web and found what I am experiencing is normal for caffeine withdrawal and can last like this for up to two weeks with minor side effects lastly even longer.

"Caffeine is the world's most commonly used stimulant, and it's cheap and readily available so people can maintain their use of caffeine quite easily," says Roland Griffiths, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry and neuroscience at Johns Hopkins. "The latest research demonstrates, however, that when people don't get their usual dose they can suffer a range of withdrawal symptoms, including headache, fatigue, difficulty concentrating. They may even feel like they have the flu with nausea and muscle pain."

The story on CBS News and Hopkins are pretty good, but the one on the website CoffeeFAQ.com takes the win. It has 61 pages of posts on that article about people going through caffeine withdrawal...

I'd like to challenge other readers here on Legit Reviews to try and kick Caffeine to see if they are really addicted. I'm shocked how bad withdrawal really is. Anyone that drinks more than a few drinks that contain caffeine, should think about it. I'll report back here how long the withdrawal lasts

[bubba]

I know how it feels, and it sucks.

When I was in school and working full time I was sleeping 2-3 hours a night, I drank two 2 liters of Mnt. Dew a DAY, for 3 years. When I finished school, work took its place. I was work any where from 60-70 hours a week. Then my daughter was born, and work slowed down to a normal 40 hour week. With things slowed down and I cut back on the soda, this was July of 99. I switched to a 2 liter of Dr. Pepper a day. My stomach hurt for a good 3 months, massive head aches, and I was rather cranky. I also developed kidney stones, due to the calcium build up from the excessive soda drinking. rather unpleasant, avoid it.

Now I gotten myself on somewhat of a schedule, only drink soda at work, and water/juice/Kool-Aid at home. For every once of soda I drink I try to drink twice the amount in water. Helps clean the kidneys out. The doc that took care of my kidney stones told me that when you take a leak and its not clear your not drinking enough water to flush your kidneys.

Every now and then I get stressed and I get off track, once back on track I feel miserable for a couple days. With the energy drinks out (like Monster, Bawls, Red Bull) its amazing that the world doesn't have more issues with it.

[DMB2000uk]

Damn dude, maybe you should have gone half-caff first?

I know a friend who lives off the lipton ice tea stuff, when he can get it he drinks like 2L of the stuff a day. So i hate to think of the state of his insides! He's not managed to get hold of any for a while, so I wonder if he's crashed as bad as you have.

Hearing this makes me glad I never took up coffee/tea drinking as my regular beverage. I'm proud to say that I mostly drink water, can't get much better for you than that! ^_^

Dan

[Alathald]

I don't drink a lot of caffeine, maybe a cup or two of tea a week...I used to drink a lot of Luzianne Iced Tea (great stuff BTW) but after I ran out I decided to stick with only hot tea to cut back a bit. When you have to boil the water for a cup, it's just not as appealing because I'm lazy (even though I have a kettle ).

Not a big fan of pop or coffee either, only a root beer every now and then. Milk and water (and alcohol) work for me.

Don't forget chocolate has caffeine in it too, 'tis my favorite source maybe grab some really dark chocolate (like ~70-90% if you can find it) for when you need a caffeine fix, hopefully the bitterness will keep you from eating too much (although that's not always true, I LOVE dark chocolate...)

Congrats on deciding to break a bad habit!

[vicaphit]

I was kind of the same way. I worked at the college maintenance center one summer, had to be at work at 7am. I drank so much mtn dew that summer that when I started the school year I went cold turkey without pop. That was in 2005, and I haven't drank it since. I may have had some cola in a Long Island Ice Tea, but that is about it. I did try a sip of sprite one time, and it tasted disgusting. I can't drink it will all of the carbonation. I drink too much iced tea though, and I try to drink water when it is available cold.

[skier]

is this stuff caffeinated crazily, i go through a pitcher a day, but it doesnt feel like i'm getting caffeine, if i want caffeine, several orange sodas will keep me WIDE awake all night - (at project grad, we got to our destination at midnight, had dinner, and had a raffle at 3 AM where i won a little Mp3 player and i stayed up all...morning, volleyball at 5 was fun, and 5:30 seemed to last for an hour and a half, i had probably a can of Orange soda every hour or better, and was only hit by tired for about ~20 min on the way home @11AM because it was a long ride with no soda (i had to leave before whitewater rafting with a couple other kids because we had playoffs for tennis)then an hour before the ride was over, i was fine for the rest, really energetic again, even though the other kids were sleeping but around 5PM, i started to get a little tired WITH the soda because i was in a very rough doubles match, and hadn't slept for 30 hours, and was very active the whole time)

[Sporg]

I read Nate's post and had to reply with what's on my desk at work...

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It's not as bad as it looks, I haven't made it to the recycle bin in a couple of days. And have only had one cup of coffee this morning. But I guess people see this when they walk by.

[Apoptosis]

afternoon headache is killing me.... ahhhhhhhhh I want to beat my head on something... This sucks... Sooooooo tempted to just drink a soda... It's calling me... All 23 flavors of Dr. Pepper....

[Apoptosis]

is this stuff caffeinated crazily, i go through a pitcher a day, but it doesnt feel like i'm getting caffeine, if i want caffeine, several orange sodas will keep me WIDE awake all night - (at project grad, we got to our destination at midnight, had dinner, and had a raffle at 3 AM where i won a little Mp3 player and i stayed up all...morning, volleyball at 5 was fun, and 5:30 seemed to last for an hour and a half, i had probably a can of Orange soda every hour or better, and was only hit by tired for about ~20 min on the way home @11AM because it was a long ride with no soda (i had to leave before whitewater rafting with a couple other kids because we had playoffs for tennis)then an hour before the ride was over, i was fine for the rest, really energetic again, even though the other kids were sleeping but around 5PM, i started to get a little tired WITH the soda because i was in a very rough doubles match, and hadn't slept for 30 hours, and was very active the whole time)

Yes it has caffeine in it... From thr 4C FAQ Website:

Do your tea and drink mixes contain caffeine?

That's a great question! Caffeine is a naturally occuring substance in nature found in the leaves and seeds/beans of over 60 plants. The most well known of which being the coffee, cocoa, kola, and, the tea plants. Therefore, all of our 4C Tea Mixes contain some level of caffeine, even the decaffeinated teas, (which is done using a natural water decaffeination process), still contains a very small amount of caffeine. Decaffeinated does not mean caffeine free, no decaffeinating process can remove 100% of the caffeine content. We have included the approximate caffeine content information in the "Family of Products" section next to each one of our 4C Tea Mix Products,(or click here). It is important to note that the caffeine values are "approximate" because since caffeine is a naturally forming substance, it can vary slightly from one production batch to another. Just as a point of reference - our 4C Tea Mixes range from less than 2mg-to-18mg per 8oz., while a can of a carbonates cola soft drink has anywhere from 34-to-46.8mg of caffeine per 8oz., and brewed drip coffee is between 80-to-135 milligrams per 8 oz.cup. None of our other 4C drink mixes contain any caffeine, 0mg. of caffeine, excluding our Energy Rush™ drink mix products.

[DMB2000uk]

Did you try taking some analgesics (aspirin) that the coffee FAQ's suggested to?

Dan

[skier]

our 4C Tea Mixes range from less than 2mg-to-18mg per 8oz., while a can of a carbonates cola soft drink has anywhere from 34-to-46.8mg of caffeine per 8oz., and brewed drip coffee is between 80-to-135 milligrams per 8 oz.cup. None of our other 4C drink mixes contain any caffeine, 0mg. of caffeine, excluding our Energy Rush™ drink mix products.

so it has some caffeine, but nowhere near as much as a can of soda, that must be why it doesnt seem like it does(1 can of Orange Soda is ~60mg compared to a pitcher of Iced tea prolly ~80mg)

[Bio-Hazard]

I drink at least one complete pot of black coffee by myself everyday, I begin in the morning and stop at night right before I go to bed.

I'd be lost without my daily fix of caffeine................

[martini161]

i tired going cold turkey not to long ago and it was unbearable. a couple of years of drinking a case of read bull every 2 days or so really builds up. in more ways than one as bubba said. i recently found out why saying "you look like your trying to pass a kidney stone" makes a lot of sense

[stopthekilling77]

I once overdosed on caffeine when I was working at a Chick-Fil-A. I had been working from 5:30am to 2-3pm and staying up til anywhere from 1am to 2am, napping, then going to work again. I did this for almost 2 years surviving on an ever growing dependency to nicotine and caffeine. One morning I'd had some coffee when I'd woken up before driving to work, had a couple cigarettes before clocking in, had some soda and unloaded a stock truck. When my energy dove down I had a Rockstar and a quick cigarette. When that energy went away around 9:30am, I made a run to the next door 7-11 and got some kind of maximum caffeine drink which actually ended up being a weight lifting supplement. Long story short, it took a while to get the caffeine in my system and I'd gotten impatient and had a cup of coffee and some soda to wake up. That's when my heart started palpitating and I felt like i was floating. My heart stopped for about 25 seconds and I started screaming at my boss that I was in trouble. I guess the screaming helped a bit cause my heart went back to skipping beats but yeah, I cut WAY back on the caffeine. Took a while to kill my cigarette addiction though. Since then I usually don't drink anything with caffeine unless I truly need a little lift. Quitting smoking was a complete killer. The headaches were completely debilitating, but they only lasted a few days then got less intense and less often. Glad that you acknowledged something that could have been a real problem down the road!Kudos!

[KnightRid]

I switched to 1/2 caf for coffee (folgers), and I try decaf every now and then, but if you take my 1/2 caf from me, I will have to kill you

Good luck with kicking the habit! I used to only drink folgers and coke, but switched to only 1 pot of 1/2 caf a day (sometimes I skip even this!), maybe 2 sodas a day and water with those drink packets in them that have no caffeine or sugar for the rest. I drink a LOT in a day, so this was a HUGE step for me.

It sucks though because now drinking full caffiene enriched coffee gives me the shakes and makes me feel sick to the stomach!! Guess its for the best though

Mike

Do you notice a BIG taste difference between the decaf tea and the regular? I know these drink packs taste great even though they have none of the bad stuff in them.

[unfaithfulsfan]

Good luck kicking the habit.

On the funnier side, my 85 yo mother is addicted to Diet Coke. She was in the hospital for tests and had to fast for 12 hours beforehand. She awoke with a killer headache and the nurse asked what was wrong. Mom told her "Oh, nothing, just a headache. I just need a 'snort' of coke" Thirty minutes later, a drug abuse counselor showed up in her room to assess her cocaine addiction. True story!!!

Since I was diagnosed with Chronic Kidney Disease, I've gradually weaned myself off the 1-2 liters of Diet Whatever I drank daily mostly because of the phosphorus content. (you wouldn't believe how much of the stuff is in a 12 oz serving) Now I only drink 1 or 2 carbonated sodas a week. Mostly I drink clear flavored water sweetened with splenda. Still hooked on the Cold Brew Iced Tea, though. My wife can't drink the decaf version because it makes her super-hyper. Go figure.

Jack

[Apoptosis]

Day 4 -

Today was a decent day... woke up with just a mild headache and made it the entire day Tylenol free. The internet was down from 2am to 1pm and it's still off and on all day thanks to Charter Communications. The outage is so big it was on TV on NBC here in St. Louis at noon and a blurb is up about it on their website. http://www.ksdk.com/news/local/story.as ... 44&catid=3 I think that had me stressed out as I couldn't post a review this morning nor news... My apologies to all for that, but it was out of my control.

The first 72 hours without Caffeine was hell... shaking, cold/hot sweats, headaches and just feeling run down.

Today I feel pretty good other than the mild throb I have in my head. I had a sprite soda last night as a treat, so one soda in four days and it was caffeine free. Also it might be worth mentioning, I didn't have any decaf tea today. I might try some tomorrow to see if that causes a headache.

[NAiLs]

Jeez... addicted much? I've cut WAAAAY back on soda the past 4-5 months. I drink one here and there, but a lot of it now is caffeine free, like Mug. It's still bad for you, I know, but I used to be a hardcore soda drinker too. I'd drink anywhere from 2-5 soda's a day... I realized how expensive that got, plus like how crappy I felt. Since I stopped, I feel just as energetic, don't have a nasty aftertaste in my mouth, and don't have to worry about killing my teeth.

Grats on cutting the addiction, thus far!! It's very hard, and I'm still pushing to drink no soda at all. I drink a lot of decaffeinated teas and water now... with an occasional soda here and there. Maybe 1-2 a week.

[zer0nix]

2 liters a day... you must look just like your icon, bubba :p

caffeine addiction IS a big thing but no one says anything about it because schools get a lot of money from the soda and energy drink pushers. anyone who wants to 'rock the boat' must come up with a solution that replaces these sponsors (and supplants the reasoning that in a capitalist society, higher educated people would simply avoid the stuff if they didn't want it -and a school is, of course, a place of learning).


I don't drink the stuff so it's all good to me. for the rest of you, this s*** shrinks and hardens your arteries, which means accelerated aging: this means wrinkles for you ladies and a limp dick for us guys. and headaches. many, many headaches. and possibly renal failure.


F*** the asprin. get out of the city and get some fresh air. what your body needs is to REGENERATE. take a trip to the grand canyon. the air is so f****** fresh there that it's impossible to be sick and standing at its precipice.


@stop the killing: I've had a caffeine overdose as well, but amazingly, mine came off of a paltry two glasses of 'yin yang tea' -which is delicious tea mixed with coffee mixed with condensed milk. felt pins and needles all over my body -particularly around the head- and i also felt like i couldn't breathe. heart felt like it was on overdrive, pumping audibly like mad. eyes felt dry, like leather balls. vision was dim, except for copious 'shooting stars' across my entire field of vision. my organs felt like they weren't getting any oxygen at all, and were shrivelling up inside my body.

the drinks were definitely not worth it.

at the hospital later that day (lawl), i discovered that i've apparently a physiological weakness to caffeine, pseudoephedrine and 'ma-huang.' i suspect that those folks who died from using *ordinary* amounts of diet pills have a similar physiological flaw.

i'm $1000 poorer but glad i learned this lesson while still alive.


@nails: omg, mug is the s***. i'm tempted to buy some now. DAMN YOU!

[Edited by the staff; please don't swear]

[stev]

It's been a few years since going through the caffeine withdrawal.

It's not fun to do at all. The best is to ween yourself down vs. the cold turkey action.

Another problem, caffeine is found in more than just soda-pop and teas.

Nate, this week isn't going to be an easy one. After that, things get better. However, just a simple turn back to a small can of cola will bring the headaches back with a vengeance. You'll need to be off of the stuff for some time to fully recover.

If you really feel energy drained and need a pickup without the caffeine, try a good red ginseng tea. Served cold is fine, warm is the best.