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Comment by juusto | Hacker News Reader

I love coffee. Even as a child when I smelled it from the kitchen and my parents were having breakfast already I wanted a sip.

Coffee has been a "side hobby" of mine for years. Different beans, grinders, you name it.

But now that I am older I can see how bad it is for me. My sweat smells different (as if I haven't showered in days), my jitters are increasing, I get very unfocused and aggitated and worst of all, mild panic attacks.

I spent few years thinking that something was really wrong with me until I noticed that coffee has a huge negative effect when I am on crunch time.

I started with teas, still not a fan, and decreasing coffee. Also moving to decaf, where are hard to enjoy because of taste.

Not sure if anyone is on the same boat.

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I quit 18 days ago and I already feel better than ever.

"Caffeine doesn't perk you up, it just keeps you from calming down."

I feel like a little child -- the days are longer, my emotions are a lot richer, when I'm nostalgic, I remember most details, not just the "gist". I'm not mentally "spinning my wheels" and running in circles anymore. It's a little harder to bring myself to do stuff that I don't really want to do, because I'm not running around, looking for stuff to do but am intentional about what I want to be doing.

Energy is unsurprisingly much more stable, it comes from exercise and whole food.

My acne and problems with digestion disappeared.

Expect to be essentially dead for all purposes for the first 7 days.

I'd recommend taking L-Tyrosine (or NALT) during withdrawal, optionally with 5-HTP, it's a natural dopamine precursor and makes the anhedonia much shorter.

I'm 20, coming (cold turkey, usually not recommended) from 2 espressos daily.

> "Caffeine doesn't perk you up, it just keeps you from calming down."

I have a slightly different experience. I stopped having regular coffee (never had much, only a daily capuccino) about 2 years ago (improved sleep, etc). Every few months now I have a coffee, and when I do it's the best day of my life. I feel invincible, I can keep going for hours without feeling tired (I also have trouble falling asleep later :P). Maybe I'm too sensitive to caffeine, but I'm amazed at how strong the effect is (which is why I try to be careful with it).

I’ve noticed the same effect; if I’ve been off the caffeine for a while and have a coffee – it’s great. But there appears to be a negative counter-effect that compounds when it becomes routine.

For me it’s different. Even a slightly stronger tea makes me anxious and seemingly decreases blood flow to my brain. I don’t know how to explain it but I can feel the veins in my head tightened up. Even a sip of tea wake me right up. I don’t understand how people gulp bunch of french press and espressos like it’s nothing and go about their day.

Ever since I quit caffeine, I'm tired every day until about 2pm.

However, my crippling anxiety is mostly gone, so that's a bonus.

I started seeing the association between caffeine, jitters and anxiety now that I am in my early thirties. Like you, I enjoyed many years of symptom free caffeine "indulgence". I've switched to enjoying decaf brewed at home with beans that have been decaffeinated using the Swiss Water Method, which removes 99.9% of the caffeine by soaking the green coffee beans in an extract of green coffee + water minus the caffeine - the caffeine diffuses out without the use of solvents! I do agree that most decaf tends to not taste the same at most cafes, because decaf beans tend to sit around longer that regular beans.. sometimes even pre-ground (the horror). I've fell in love in coffee again, and I'm looking into getting a Kafatek Monolith and a linea mini for the home, but if you are getting rid of any espresso equipment at fire sale prices, let me know ;)

Same - I've been drinking delicious decaf for a few years now. Never would have thought that we're increasing our risk of heart failure though!

FYI: water _is_ a solvent :-)

What's the problem with using CO₂ extraction ?

I love coffee too, but I don't feel like it has the effect of "pepping me up" anymore. I drink it almost as a snack, now. I have taken my intake way down, though. I used to do 6 - 9 cups a day, depending on the day. Now I'm down to 2, maybe 3.

I was always irritable, now less-so. I am not sure if that's the coffee's doing, though. A lot has changed since my nine cup a day days.

> My sweat smells different (as if I haven't showered in days), my jitters are increasing, I get very unfocused and aggitated and worst of all, mild panic attacks.

I drink 1-2 cups in the mornings only, and I haven't seen this at all. How much were you drinking?

I've noticed some of the adverse effects, too. I didn't notice any of it until I read a few stories of people who quit coffee and said they were less irritable, etc.

It's hard because I also love coffee. I, like you, never had to "acquire" a taste for it- I just liked it.

I've done stints where I'd mix half-decaf and half-regular. I should probably do that again.

I just quit completely a few days ago, and while the fatigue is overwhelming sometimes, the calm is worthwhile. Unless your job precludes it (long distance driving, piloting etc) it's probably worth a two week trial of no-caffeine.

I also think teas are a terrible substitute. The closest I came was chicory which is .. an acquired taste.

Have you tried redbush (Rooibos) tea? It scratches the itch for me .

Have you tried Rooibos? I find it just as good as black tea, great with a dash of milk and none of the caffeine.

I use coca tea, which is legal where I live (Bogota). It's much gentler and whole-body than coffee, which at least for me is very head-and-cardio focused. It doesn't provide a buzz, it just keeps me from feeling irresistibly sleepy. (I'm still almost always sleepy, at least at this 2800-meter altitude, but it's tolerable.)

I love the taste of coffee and liked the buzz when I was younger. I still love the taste but the psychological effects are way too much for me now. I didn't realize how strong the coffee I made on Monday was until it was too late and didn't really recover until today.

I had similar experiences and started cutting my coffee with decaf. I’ve gotten down to a half and half ratio now.

Will typically drink 2 cups in the morning and an espresso immediately following lunch.

I’ve noticed a big difference. I rarely get jittery unless I’ve drunk no water in the morning.

I think water is key. I drink easily 10-20 cups of coffee every day, but I add a cup of water for each cup of coffee.

Yeah i end up in the bathroom every 20 minutes, but at least this habit stops me from eating all day while working from home.

How much are you drinking? It doesn't have to be a binary-bad thing - 0-3 cups a day lets me scratch the itch of the hobby, and has never left me with the list of symptoms you've had.

I've had to limit myself to 15g of beans in the morning and 10g after lunch. (And often these days I'll have a cup of black tea at lunch instead.) I'd love to have more, because I enjoy the smell and flavor, but it disrupts my sleep too much.

(Not GP, just sharing my experience.)

I'm doing 7+7 grams. That's not much, but I like having about 50/50 coffee and oat milk so end up having almost a mug anyway, though I suppose not everyone would call it coffee any more at that point.

Have you tried supplementing L-theanine? A lot of research documents that it’s strong reduction of caffeine related anxiety, while preserving its cognitive and wakefulness benefits.

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