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Ask HN: Quit caffeine? Before and after anecdotes

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Re: Ask HN: Quit caffeine? Before and after anecdotes

#101

Post by temp234 »

carom wrote: post #71

I've cut out a lot of foods permanently. Most notable are caffeine and sugar (sucrose, fructose). It will take a few tries but you're better off without it. Regarding caffeine, I would drink a lot of soda each day, like 4+ Mexican cokes. The first month is terrible. You will have an initial withdrawal, then just be in a slump. I am the type of programmer to work on side projects after work and I couldn't. I decided t…

Ha cool, I have a similar story to you but for me it was plain coffee not soft drinks, and the sugar I was getting in lots of places in my diet. It sounds like I had fewer withdrawal symptoms but it definitely took a couple months to stop wanting caffeine or sugar. Sleep that I don't sabotage with screens is amazing, it feels like that deep sleep I got when I was a little kid. I think it's definitely the bright lights keeping us awake but also the fact of being mentally active with a task or entertainment. I don't like "winding down" but I'm realizing I need to and probably once I do I'll love winding down and wish I started doing it sooner. If anyone has a wonderful soothing no-looking-at-screens bedtime routine I'd love to hear it

I still drink hot cocoa and nice water process decaf, which have some caffeine but don't seem to affect me. I still will eat a couple bites of a special dessert under social pressure

Re: Ask HN: Quit caffeine? Before and after anecdotes

#102

Post by senectus1 »

after a few weeks you wont notice a difference.

what you WILL miss though, is you can no longer push yourself when you need it by using caffeine as a crutch, and you will miss the "buzz" feeling.

I go cold turkey on caffeine regularly for months at a time. then after my body has reset I slowly let it back in by drinking tea. (best time to quit is when you're sick with the flu or a cold, then you don't really notice that you're having withdrawal symptoms and its useful to tell yourself you feel shit because of the flu/cold..)

Re: Ask HN: Quit caffeine? Before and after anecdotes

#103

Post by gnutrino »

In the past I use to drink a lot of coffee, maybe 5 cups or so a day. It didn’t use to impact me negatively, as it was ok for me to stay up late and burn the midnight oil. Now that im in my mid thirties, it finally caught up with me. Now with kids I need to be asleep by 10:30 pm and I had terrible insomnia. Also my energy levels were all over the place and I would feel depressed at times.

I cut out caffeine for the most part, and only drink one or two cups on the weekends, or vacation. My energy levels are way more consistent, I can sleep soundly at night, and my mood is way more mellow and I feel overall happier.

Re: Ask HN: Quit caffeine? Before and after anecdotes

#104

Post by [deleted] »

doktorhladnjak wrote: post #96
freedomben wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I completely agreed with you until I realized that caffeine was aggravating my anxiety. I went years not realizing this, so it's possible that for some people they're getting symptoms they haven't linked yet. Now that said, when I was younger I didn't have that problem and caffeine was a powerful tool in my toolbox for maximizing performance. Definitely glad to have it when needed.

I gave up caffeine for several months starting around October 2020. It was seriously aggravating my politics and COVID anxiety at that time. I did eventually go back to it last summer. I just like coffee and the kick that comes with it. I usually only drink one cup, sometimes two which strikes a good balance for me.

[deleted]

Re: Ask HN: Quit caffeine? Before and after anecdotes

#105

Post by pengo »

I had a bad dose of the 'flu in 2005. I could keep hydrated, but not tolerate much else. By day three I had the headache from hell, and eventually figured out it was caffeine withdrawal. I decided I didn't want to be functionally dependent on daily doses of caffeine and gave coffee and black tea away completely (I've never been one for caffeinated soft drinks).

Since then I drink green, white and herbal teas, and an occasional decaf because I do love the flavour and aroma. For me there's been no downside to stopping caffeine.

Re: Ask HN: Quit caffeine? Before and after anecdotes

#107

Post by garren »

I’ve worked with good developers that drank coffee, and others that didn’t. I’ve not seen a trend one way or the other.

Personally, I stopped drinking coffee for around 9mos while wrestling with insomnia. The insomnia I knew was stress related, but I assumed caffeine was a significant factor based on anecdotes like many of those found here. Diet, exercise, and teaching myself to better deal with stress seemed to take care of the insomnia (which lasted well after I stopped drinking coffee.)

I didn’t notice any change in problem solving, creativity, etc., and ultimately I went back to drinking it. Like others here, I enjoy the taste and the ritual. If anything, I saw a productivity boost when I started drinking it again.

I drink less caffeinated coffee these days though. It turns out that a lot of caffeine can be bad for retinal health, so if you’re very near-sighted or far-sighted, definitely consider dialing the caffeine back a bit if you drink a lot.

Re: Ask HN: Quit caffeine? Before and after anecdotes

#108

Post by garren »

carom wrote: post #71

I've cut out a lot of foods permanently. Most notable are caffeine and sugar (sucrose, fructose). It will take a few tries but you're better off without it. Regarding caffeine, I would drink a lot of soda each day, like 4+ Mexican cokes. The first month is terrible. You will have an initial withdrawal, then just be in a slump. I am the type of programmer to work on side projects after work and I couldn't. I decided t…

4+ sodas a day seems like a lot. Congrats for kicking that. I stopped drinking soda years ago, and dramatically cut my sugar intake for a while. I was surprised to see how much sugar was in, well, just about everything. Occasionally I’d indulge in a slice of pie or something and usually found it far too sweet to enjoy.

As for coffee, I don’t drink as much caffeinated coffee as I used to, but I do like the flavor. I’ll often kick back a couple cups of decaf in the late afternoon. Like you, I noticed that stopping didn’t seem to affect my sleep one way or the other. Fortunately for me, I didn’t experience any withdrawal issues, I just stopped. I was also very motivated for a few reasons, and may have been a factor.

Mathew Walker of Why We Sleep fame [0] was on a podcast [1] recently describing his caffeine and coffee abstinence experience. He made an interesting statement in support of drinking coffee as it relates the the Western (more accurately American) diet. He said that coffee is the single best, almost sole, source of antioxidants for many/most Americans. Shortly after hearing that interview I reevaluated my stance on coffee (my only source of caffeine) and went back to drinking it. I drink as much or more coffee than I did previously, but I drink significantly less caffeinated coffee. And I stay away from the “hard stuff” like espressos.

[0] https://www.amazon.com/s?k=why+we+sleep+book+matthew+walker&...

[1] https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/267...

Re: Ask HN: Quit caffeine? Before and after anecdotes

#109

Post by t0bia_s »

What about drinking coffee because of taste, not because of coffeine? Then you are pay more attention to quality, not quantity and addiction could be expensive.

I personally drink one cup of filtred (V60) coffee roasted in our local roastery and grounded right before preparing.

Re: Ask HN: Quit caffeine? Before and after anecdotes

#110

Post by austinjp »

Several years ago, I decided to quit coffee as an experiment. This was provoked by hearing from various people that they'd quit and felt better, in particular that they no longer experienced sluggishness in the mornings. I was drinking the equivalent of maybe 3 or 4 double espressos per day, and nothing else containing caffeine, no tea, no soda.

So, I quit. Maybe a mild headache for a day, and feeling a pang of regret first thing in the morning. But that passed, and I stuck with it for several months without any issues and without difficulty. Maybe 6 months, I can't recall now. Perhaps the peaks and troughs in my energy levels flattened out a little, but it was so insignificant that I didn't feel any benefit.

Then one day, I thought I'd try a coffee again. Why not? So I ordered one at a café one morning on my way into work. After a few sips I felt what I can only describe as joy. I immediately wondered why the hell had I been denying myself this wonderful experience.

I'll never quit again.

As for anxiety, yes, drinking excess coffee can increase anxiety levels for me. I remedy that by mixing decaf (oh the horror) and caffeinated coffee if I want to keep drinking but I'm wary of the jitters. I brew fresh coffee in a mucha and I mix 1 scoop each of ground caf+decaf coffee. Taste is affected, but it's still pretty good.

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