anyone given up caffeine?

[toile]

My hubby and I are giving up caffeine for some different health reasons. I'm extremely sensitive to it etc..

We thankfully had no headaches for 4 days now but we are craving BAD foods all the time and we are SLEEPY mid day.
We also aren't.......well......... regular from this.... LOL.

I'm wondering if this is all temporary stuff?
Or will I stay sleepy and gain weight from all these cravings?

Thanks if anyone has lived through this and can offer advice

[MoonMommy]

Have you given it up 100% or will you still eat chocolate? If chocolate is still up for grabs, maybe you could eat a small piece of dark chocolate or a few chocolate chips when the craving hits and see if that helps a bit. Not too many though. I like to put a few in a small dish (maybe like 1/8 of a cup or less) and then eat that. Usually helps with the cravings.

[MommyBliss]

I am and it's so stinking hard. I'm over the headaches part, it's just the being sleepy all the time that is kinda hard, but worth it in the end for good health.

[madhen]

I had to go off of caffeine, alcohol, chocolate and cheese once, for six months. I am a major coffee drinker, and I did have the crushing headaches as well as the cravings. I found drinking hot green tea (or chamomile, peppermint, anything with no caffeine) "fooled" my body into thinking it was getting coffee. It didn't stop the cravings, but it settled them a bit.

[HandyMom]

I switched to decaf. It's not completely caffeine free but it helped me get over that hump and now I drink more water. I never did buy or drink much pop and when I did I bought caffeine free. I never had any headaches but I was a little more tired. It does get better.

[Bethany]

I can't stop drinking coffee. I would cease to exist!!

[cheles2kids]

I switched to decaf. It's not completely caffeine free but it helped me get over that hump and now I drink more water. It does get better.

This is how I did it too, last year.
I've never been too much of a caffiene addict though, but I did miss it in the beginning.

I'd say it took me about 2 months or so to completely rid it out of my system and then I haven't missed it since.

My thing lately has been decaffienated Chai Tea, even for breakfast.
I still make a pitcher of decaffienated iced tea to keep in the fridge, but between me & my daughter, it takes us about 3 days or so before it's gone.
Sometimes I actually end up having to pour some of it out when it's time to make a another batch. (I'm thinking a smaller pitcher ))
Water is usually my go-to drink anymore.

As for the super sleepy part, look at what time of day this is happening. Most people have a "down time" mid-afternoon, which for me is between 1:00-2:30 pm. What has helped me through this, believe it or not, is eating some type of protein.
So maybe a small snack could replace the mid-afternoon slump?
But stay away from the carbs during this time, it'll only make you sleepier.

Good luck to you both!

[Greebo]

Nnnnnnooooooo IiiIiiiI'''mmmmm nnnooooottttt gggiiiivvvviiinnnngggg iiiiitttttttttt uppppppupppppupppp. Wwwwwhhhhhyyyyyhyyyyy wwwwwwoouuuooouuuulllllldddddd iIIiiiiIIIII???

[MoonMommy]

I used to be totally caffeine free. I am a coffee addict now however and I think I drink about 2-3 big mugs a day. I went off of it due to migraines, and now I am back on it due to migraines (caffeine is supposed to help a bit) and exhaustion (can I blame the children for that?). I take meds for my migraines that make pop taste yucky, so my only caffeine is from chocolate and coffee. At this point, I can't give it up either. Due to children, hubby, and the two cats, I still am not getting a good nights sleep and until the youngest goes to school full time, there is no way I can get a nap during the day.

If I could rig a coffee IV into my system I just might. A nice slow drip.

[cheriede]

It's work in progress for me. I became a vegetarian about 7-8 weeks ago and I would have to say giving up meat is easier for me than trying to give up caffeine. I have found that I do tend to go in spurts and I'll do alright for several weeks. Next thing you know, I'm back drinking coffee or soft drinks and I will go for days on end. Then I usually end up on Percocet because I'm in so much pain. One would think that having pain associated from caffeine consumption would be enough to deter anyone from consuming anything with caffeine in it. Nope...still hasn't happened here. I really wish I had some advice to offer. I do hope you have continued success with the elimination of caffeine from your diet.

[ZenTherapy]

I'm trying too, it makes me agitated. It's hard to give up on the coffee made with moka (in Italy!), it's so good. I try to have only some with milk once a day. I feel immediately better without much caffeine in my body.

But I wouldn't recommend decaf, it's bad for your health since it's chemically treated!

[quiltergirl]

I gave up caffeine after an auto accident to help with pain control issues. I wasn't a coffee drinker and only drank a little tea so it wasn't that hard for me.

But recently I started drinking green tea because I had heard good things about it health wise -- high in anti-oxidents, etc. But green tea is not herbal tea. It is not caffeine free. After about a week I wasn't feeling very well -- couldn't sleep, heart was racing, feeling achy all over. When I finally figured it out I stopped the tea things went back to normal -- DUH.

So I guess I can give you the consolation that once you go through the withdrawl staying off may become easier because you get used to living without all the bad effects of the caffeine and really don't want to go back. At least that has been my experience.

[KKCondrey]

A long long time ago I gave up "dark" soda's and would only drink sweet tea, sprite or 7-up with lemon or SunDrop (more caffeine than dark soda's but so good....lol) I didn't drink Coke for about 3-4 years, and the first time I had it after giving it up for so long I hated it, but eventually (and unfortunatly) got to where I liked it again.

I tried the "No Caffeine" thing when I first got pregnant with Paige, and that was the only day and a half I was sick while pregnant with her. Since they say you can still drink it just don't go nuts I do it. Plus I get migraines and the caffeine helps (especially since pregnant women are only suppose to take Tylenol....hopefully the 3 bottles of excedrine laying around the house will still be good in March....lol).

I try to wait til mid morning or Lunch before having my first bottle of Coke, but if I wake up with a headache I grab a coke, cheerwine or Sundrop and have that first thing before heading to work. Then to try to keep the headache away at night, I have another soda right before bed. Caffeine has never caused me to have problems sleeping.

So right now I limit myself which is a good thing and I may try to stick with that once this baby come too. We will see how that goes.

[guest002]

I went off caffeine soda and switched to decaf coffee. It was due to my neurologist recommendation due to daily migraines. It was part of a bridge therapy that I went on as I was having daily rebound migraines. It was tough for the 1st 2 weeks but overall I feel better now.

[toile]

Well it's been 8 days. I lasted Sunday to Sunday.
I have to say that the last 2 days I felt way less sleepy and the wild sugar cravings stopped.
Diet Dew was my vice, and coffee maybe once a week.

I am happy to report that insomnia is gone, anxiety is gone (which was a daily occurrence after caffeine), my heart doesnt race.
No more restless sleep or waking up for no reason.

I did this because my gyn doc reccomended it and my husbands heart doctor reccomended it for him.

My only concern so far is that caffiene was a mild appetite suppressant so now I'm getting back on track eating wise.
I ate BAD stuff this last week and can't wear my clothes now :O

The hardest thing of all has been what to drink?
What are you caffeine free folks drinking now?