Thread: Caffeine Withdrawals?

Xman,

I hear you about the caffeine intake and young children. Congratulations
by the way. I have three children, the youngest being three years old.
Being jacked up on caffeine and dealing with him can be quite the combination.

John

From the caffeine database:
Drip coffee has about 145 mg of caffeine (8 oz cup @ 18 mg/oz)
Black Tea has maximum 60 mg (8 oz cup @ 7.5 mg/oz)
Green Tea has 25mg (8 oz cup @ 3.13 mg/oz)
Coca Cola Classic has 34.5 mg per 12 oz can

Coffee varies in caffeine level, lighter roast = more caffeine, darker roast = less, based on a recommended 2 tablespoons of ground coffee per 6 oz of water.

Tea stimulates alpha and beta brainwaves, while coffee only stimulates beta waves. Beta waves are what keep you alert and energized, alpha waves are relaxing and facilitate day dreaming or deep thought. Pick your stimulant for your needs.

Oh, and both coffee and tea are good sources of antioxidants, but too much consumption can lead to more negatives than the benefits of the antioxidants.

Sorry to hear you're having some negative side effects. Just step down gradually until you can enjoy the mild positive effects without wild withdrawal symptoms when you dont get enough.

Originally Posted by xman

I'm also on ginseng these days to help with my physical and nervous stamina for the sleep dep. having the 3 wk old tiny tyrant here. Ginseng and caffeine do not mix well so I have to guard my intake there myself.

X

Ah yes... The stage where the innocent little angel sometimes behaves more like Satan's little helper The first 3 months are the worst.

I think you said your wife breast feed?
Tough time. Friend of ours do the same, and it is putting a big strain on their marriage. She has to feed the baby every 3 hours, and he wouldn't burp and she had to hold him for 2 hours or everything came back...

We used bottles, and our youngest was very uncomfortable and restless until we switched to soy milk. From that day onwards she was happy, comfortable and a good sleeper.
Our friend has just discovered that her eating dairy products gave the same problem for her son. She stopped having dairy and suddenly the boy is OK. Caffeine and hot spices can also cause problems with breast feeding.

The biggest advantage of using bottles was that my wife would go to sleep at 9 PM or earlier, I would give the midnight bottle, and my wife would give the 4 AM bottle. That way each of us had a night's rest.

Anyway, I hope your kid grants you some good nights in the nearby future.
Oh and I cannot drink much black tea because it makes my stomach feel uncomfortable.

Originally Posted by Bruno

Ah yes... The stage where the innocent little angel sometimes behaves more like Satan's little helper The first 3 months are the worst.

word

Originally Posted by Bruno

I think you said your wife breast feed?
Tough time. Friend of ours do the same, and it is putting a big strain on their marriage.

The Validator and I have been a team for 12 years now so I think we'll be good, but I can sure understand the strain. Tell them to keep breathing deeply and stay calm. One of the things the little beggars need us for so much right now is to learn how to regulate their own emotions. It's a critical time to start exhibiting calming behaviour

Originally Posted by Bruno

We used bottles, and our youngest was very uncomfortable and restless until we switched to soy milk. From that day onwards she was happy, comfortable and a good sleeper.

I heard Soy was bad for their teeth. you might want to watch that.

Originally Posted by Bruno

Our friend has just discovered that her eating dairy products gave the same problem for her son. She stopped having dairy and suddenly the boy is OK. Caffeine and hot spices can also cause problems with breast feeding.

hmm ... we'll explore these ideas.

done

X

Yerba mate yes sir we drank that when iI was a kid in Argentina,cant get it in the States though ,as it is 50% coca leaves(at least the Argentine stuff) a real pick me up...we used to like to drink 5 0r six glasses before heading to the cat house on Saturday night (make sure you get your moneys worth Best Regards Gary

Originally Posted by xman

While black tea has MORE caffeine than coffee, I find the action to be a little different, gentler. Maybe it rolls in slower. I often get jittery after a few cups of light roast coffee, but a few cups of tea (I drink it fairly weak) just makes me feel comfortable. Green, Oolong, etc. will be good options to reduce the caffeine, but if you want to eliminate it you'll have to go for herbal teas or coffee substitutes. My wife was drinking a roasted barley drink brand named Oskri throughout her pregnancy and still likes it. I've had some myself and confess that it's like a coffee, but different. In the states, particularly the south, I'd imagine you could get some form of chicory to drink. I like berry teas or chamomile for late in the evening, but my standby has been yerba mate which has some caffeine, on par with green tea I believe. I'm also on ginseng these days to help with my physical and nervous stamina for the sleep dep. having the 3 wk old tiny tyrant here. Ginseng and caffeine do not mix well so I have to guard my intake there myself.

X

Caffeine! mmm. I drink a 20oz bottle of NOS energy drink everyday, about 2 cups of coffee, and I LOVE my GUNPOWDER black tea.

John,

When I was 16, I used to drink 5-6 cups of Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee a day... this was back in the 80s in Bermuda, before the coffee craze had breached our shores... my boss sent me out every week to buy 4 lbs of roasted beans, we ground them ourselves and it was *good*!

I noticed after awhile that I was getting irritable and curt with customers, more so than a teenage boy would be, and I went cold turkey with the coffee consumption. For 2 days, I thought I was going to kill someone, I felt so rotten, headaches, bad mood, just rotten. I woke up on day 3, and my mind felt clear and calm... I had to go through hell to get to that state, though.

I didn't drink coffee for a long time after that, but now that I do, I can only tolerate about 2 cups of coffee a day... I've never been able to drink as much as I did when I was 16! (but I had an XL Turbo regular with a little ice today )

Paulo