[–] Matter_and_Form ago
Several times incidentally over the years. I've never noticed any withdrawal effects, though I also suppose I wasn't intentionally avoiding all possible sources of caffeine, though I'm sure I went without caffeine for at least days at a time.
Similarly, I don't use caffeine intentionally on the weekend.
That being said, I use relatively large doses of caffeine during the work week for performance reasons. I have a job that requires both high mental performance and the ability to remember many exact details. Doing this to the degree needed seems to necessitate the use of caffeine. While it is certainly possible to be passable without caffeine (and I do so if I happen to run out of coffee, etc), being my best does require it. My degree of mental clarity and efficiency of memory is measurably higher when using caffeine. Unless you suffer health problems due to caffeine use (tachycardia, etc), and you don't have to worry about dehydration or heat stress in your job, I would seriously consider its use or continued use at work.
I used to drink a pot every morning, for decades. Black and strong(like I like my women), no sugar. I used to get up early just so I had time to drink the full pot.
First I switched to yerba mate, and stayed with that for 4-5 years. Then about a year after the cost jacked way up because it got popular among health fadsters(fuck you Dr. Oz), I switched to green tea, which lowered the caffeine even more.
Now, I usually have a little tea in the morning, but the rest of the time it's strictly hibiscus/herb tea. Never any sodas, which I used to also drink a gallon-ish of per day.
Net caffeine consumption is about 0.1% of what it used to be.
The only withdrawal issue I had when I switched from coffee to yerba mate was that I had to find the threshold high enough to induce that convenient morning dump.
[–] GoodGodKirk ago
Don't know why, but I can drink 3 to 6 cups a day while at work, but don't drink on the weekends.
I bet if I stopped smoking cigarettes, it'd kick in hardcore. So...pick up smoking?
I stopped drinking all non-water beverages for a year. First month sucked, second month was full of cravings, and after that it was just little temptations every now and then.
Crazy thing is, that was way harder for me than quitting smoking cigs for good. Tobacco withdrawal just made me angry for about a week, with maybe 3-4 hours of sleep a night, light cravings for a while, and then I forgot all about them.
I dont think I could quit both for good though, even after that full year of being clean from all stimulants, I was still far less functional, despite feeling great. Ive decided a lifetime of caffiene use is worth the few years it'll take off my life. I guerentee Ill get more done with the time I have, but then again I wasnt abusing the stuff. Im sure everyone is different.
I had a 12-pack of diet mt. dew every day on top of energy drinks, and coffee. When I tried to quit, it took weeks of night sweats, sudden shivers, nausea, et al. to get back to normal.
In retrospect, I should have weaned myself off over a period of a few weeks.
[–] Lag-wagon ago
Like most drugs... you are probably already addicted. So, don't quit... reduce. Until you can quit.
If you drink 9 cups of coffee a day, drink 8 for a couple then 7 and so on. Until you are at one cup a day. Then replace that with water.
If you quit you will get headaches so very painful and that could last for days. Depending on how addicted you are.