Why you should reconsider your relationship with caffeine. Not to cut it out completely, but to reduce the amount that you drink per day.
Caffeine is such a wonderful stimulant. I love the morning ritual with a cup of coffee too. Don’t get me started on coffee shops. I absolutely love a good coffee shop with a great vibe. It is a perfect place to get work done. To meet colleagues, friends, or a date. The perfect place to go by yourself when you are in a new city and want to people watch or just simply relax.
Even more when you are a parent. You have so many sleepless nights. A lot of energy to spend literally every hour of every day. Doing chores, cooking, cleaning, changing, playing, running around. How could you not reach for that 2nd, 3rd, or 4th cup of coffee?
Have you ever felt so on edge though? Like you have this inner fire inside of you, that any moment you feel like you could explode? It can be something someone says or does, that is all it takes. Especially after the crash that you feel when the caffeine wears off.
Or have you ever felt so fatigued, looked at the clock, but it is only 10 a.m. so you reach for that 2nd cup of coffee, yet it still does nothing for you?
That is because there are negative side effects to having so much caffeine in your body. Yes, some people are able to tolerate it and digest it better than others. Nevertheless, everyone will feel some sort of negative effect when they are on a caffeine roll.
Why? Let’s break it down.
- Our body uses Adenosine Triphosphate to create energy. The by-product is Adenosine, a central nervous system modulator which is what makes the body feel tired.
- Caffeine, which is molecularly similar to Adenosine, binds with Adenosine to block the brain from receiving tired signals. It doesn’t actually give you more energy.
- Caffeine only lasts for about 4-6 hours. Afterwards, your brain is FLOODED with adenosine, leading to the crash that people often feel.
- Coffee and caffeine, increases your blood sugar levels. Which can then lead to cortisol (stress hormone) spikes. Leading to deregulation of your immune system. Which can cause inflammation.
- Coffee and caffeine can exhaust your adrenals. Overtired adrenals is one of the main reasons for sleeping problems, irritability, depression, fatigue and weight gain.
- Scientific studies have shows that caffeine can lead to an estrogen dominance. Especially for women. Symptoms of estrogen dominance are bad PMS symptoms, brain fog, heavy periods, and cellulite.
If you are feeling any of the symptoms above, I would reconsider your relationship with caffeine. Withdrawal symptoms will happen but they should dissolve after 7-12 days. Hormones will also regulate after a short 5 days.
Personally, I am on day 27 of no caffeine.
I was feeling most all of the symptoms that I mentioned above.
The first 5 days of completely taking it out were the hardest. Extreme fatigue and feeling hopeless that I wouldn’t be able to make it all day without it.
Which is a common side effect when you stop taking caffeine. Other side effects are headaches, depression, irritability.
Here are a couple of things that worked for to get through the hard days:
- Cacao “latte”: I will post the recipe next week on 2/2/23. In the meantime, check out my Instagram or my Tiktok to find the recipe.
- Cold showers every single morning for 1-3 minutes. This will wake you right up! The shock increases oxygen intake, trigger neurological responses, heart rate and alertness.
- Naps. I asked my partner to hold space for me the first couple of days so that I could take a nap when I really needed it.
- Cryotherapy. I am super into cold therapy right now. It decreases inflammation, depression, anxiety, treats migraine headaches and so much more.
- Went to bed very early. I knew my body needed to adjust to all of the changes that were happening. I also wanted to wake up feeling well rested.
- Lots of exercise. I did more cardio than usual.
- Getting sunlight in the morning for at least 10 minutes. Without sunglasses or a hat. I wanted my circadian rhythm to be set. It also just feels so good to get a boost of Vitamin D first thing in the morning.
- Doubled up on Magnesium and Probiotics to help me stay regular with my bowel movements.
To be honest, now I do not even think about it in the morning. I hydrate even more and I added more time to my morning routine.
Will I drink coffee ever again? Probably.
Drink it like I used to, every single day? Definitely not.
I love this clean energy that I have. It feels so natural. I barely had any PMS symptoms on my last menstrual cycle. I can also fall asleep quickly now which has never been the case. I feel more aligned with my feelings and thoughts. I don’t feel that pang of anxiety if I am “stressed” about something.
It feels like a huge cleanse. A healthy cleanse.
P.S. Mold is known to be present in coffee beans. This is for a later post though.
Thanks for being here.
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See you next week,
Alejandra at Living Well Co.