| I started drinking coffee as a freshman in college back in 2006. I forget exactly what the impetus to start was but I'm sure it had something to do with feeling generally tired and unmotivated, something I've struggled with my entire life. At that time brewing a pot of coffee and drinking 2-3 cups was an incredible buzz. I'm not sure if my actual productivity was much higher (I think it was) but I certainly FELT a lot better. Unfortunately around that time I developed a panic attack disorder. Ludicrous as it might sound to you now, I did not realize in the moment that it could have been related to coffee. I was 19 and barely in touch with my feelings and sense of self. I was essentially just bumping through life. Fast forward 17 years later and I'm still drinking coffee. Over those 17 years I have waxed and waned in my quantities and when I would drink it. But suffice it to say that on average, I've probably consumed a Venti coffee every day for 17 years. I did stop ONCE for 35 days about 7 years ago and didn't feel like I noticed any difference. Again though, I wasn't as aware of my mental state as I am now and it would have been easy for benefits to go unnoticed as I lost the buzz and energy that coffee brings. I'm now interested in trying going coffee/caffeine free for a few reasons: • Dreams. I almost never dream, and when I do, they're usually bad/anxious • Sleep quality. I wake up and usually don't feel pumped or excited for the day. To be fair, I never have even as a kid. But I'd like to wake up feeling more "awake" and excited. • Teeth. Noticed over the years my teeth have been slowly yellowing. If there's a time to intervene, it was probably 5 years ago but why not now? • General mood / anxiety. I have a generally high anxiety state but "negative affect" mood disorder. Being anxious AND depressed is kind of a terrible world to live in. Basically don't have the motivation and energy to do much, and when I do anything tend to have a sort of frenetic energy that isn't very productive. This might just be my genetics but I have a theory that at the very least, coffee might be making some of the symptoms worse. |