time to work on the caffeine

[Zoe Girl]

I am feeling really solid on the quitting smoking. Now my brain is more sensitive to caffeine and I had a horrible night sleeping over the weekend. I am used to drinking caffeine right before bed and not having an issue. Apparently you can't do that your entire life! Eventually I want to work on sugar, we will see. So far no one has suffered bodily harm in this process of cleaning up my health.

Let's see how it goes, I had a long camp day today and people called out and I just ended up staying the whole 12 hours. I think I get one starbucks for teaching meditation group after this. Maybe tomorrow I can start.

[iris lilies]

Ah yes,how I loved those late nights sitting up drinking coffee and smoking.

Welcome me to middle age. I can't have coffee after noon or it keeps me awake.

[bae]

Coffee after 8pm makes me fall asleep, but I have odd brain chemistry.

[jp1]

I have, for many years now, been steadfast in the belief that I should only drink coffee in the morning, water after lunch, and beer or wine after 5pm. On the rare occasions that I go out for coffee in the afternoon (always work business entertainment related) I relearn why I follow this system when I can't fall asleep that night.

I used to work with someone whose brain chemistry must've been similar to bae's. One of her favorite things in life was the time spent having coffee with her husband late in the evening, after their son went to bed so they could actually have an adult conversation. Of course she also took her daily shower in the evening before going to bed, so maybe she was just a wackjob... :-)

[Chicken lady]

Are you trying to kick the caffein completely, or just limit it?

[JaneV2.0]

I've given up coffee as an experiment a couple of times--but really, I don't see the point. I have 1-2 cups every morning; a nice start to the day.

"Ah yes,how I loved those late nights sitting up drinking coffee and smoking."
I have the fondest of memories of just the same thing, often preceded by beer drinking. Those were the good times.

[Zoe Girl]

Are you trying to kick the caffein completely, or just limit it?

Cut back, and I do not drink any coffee. I have a super sensitive stomach so it is all tea (a soda on a rare occasion that I am getting a serious headache). I really love Fast Lane tea from Celestial Seasonings, more caffeine than a cup of coffee. You can only get it at the tea factory in Boulder or mail order.

I am thinking only green tea in the afternoons to start.

[Chicken lady]

Sounds like a good start. Replacing is also a great approach. I've been trying to cut mine back to coffee in the morning plus whatever chocolate I happen to eat. I quit soda at home (I will still drink it when we are out, particularly at restaurants that I know have "chemical" tasting water.). But some afternoons I need a cup of regular tea.

[Zoe Girl]

I may make the cut-off time 5:00 since my day really gets busy at 3-ish. It is good to have a nice cup of tea with creamer before it gets so busy. At restaurants I try to get iced tea, it is hard because I love the bubbly soda thing. But I can only have diet soda and that has lots of chemicals in it. I don't get sick however like I do with high fructose corn syrup. Some of the super trendy places are putting in fancy soda with sugar instead.

[ApatheticNoMore]

starbucks after teaching meditation, oh man, pretty funny, that sounds like jitters after relaxing. I wouldn't try to quit sugar right now, not because it's health food, but just not taking on too much at once (ha they even tell people to replace a cigarette with an M&M, well if one isn't prone to diabetes it's probably an improvement). Anyway one thing at a time.

But yea I'd cut back on caffeine IF it has symptoms. There is a real point to cutting back on caffeine if one is suffering from it, the body doesn't lie, and it's not without symptoms for everyone. But I've tried to go cold turkey and was tired and depressed, so one cup of tea a day is what I'm trying to do, sometimes give in and have two. Never after 2pm. Green tea in the afternoons sounds like a good strategy for you. If one is just after a nice tea flavor Roobios works and can stand up to cream/milk if that is one's thing.

Oh alcohol after 5pm seems like a horrible idea, because it also disturbs sleep (puts you to sleep but then wakes you up in the middle of the night). Alcohol should be for weekend brunches (or at least Fri/Sat nights when getting up early is not a priority).