Why does coffee make me sleepy instead of active? I’m an 18 year old female and I’ve been drinking coffee since I was 13 or so. Does this mean I’m tolerant or something?
The caffeine in coffee works as a stimulant primarily by blocking a neuromodulator called adenosine. In a normal waking cycle, adenosine gradually accumulates at certain synapses in the brain and in doing so will contribute to increasing drowsiness. But caffeine acts as an adenosine antagonist, blocking the sites to which it binds and preventing it from working — the result is a feeling of increased alertness and energy which begins within a few minutes of consumption and continues for several hours.However, the body will tend to produce more adenosine to compensate for the fact that adenosine doesn't seem to be working under the influence of caffeine; this means that once the caffeine wears off, increased drowsiness is likely to result. This 'vicious cycle' is responsible for the addictive quality of caffeine, and withdrawal for a very heavy and regular caffeine user can be most unpleasant and even medically dangerous in some cases.I am aware of no clear-cut pharmacological reason that caffeine in and of itself should make a person feel sleepy rather than wakeful, but I can think of several murky possibilities:The coffee you are drinking may not be very "strong," and is perhaps weakly brewed with a low caffeine content. Try ordering an Americano with two shots of espresso and drinking it quickly on an empty stomach; if that makes you sleepy, I'd be concerned about your planet of origin!Your coffee may be heavily sweetened, and the drowsying effects of the associated sugar crash may be stronger than the opposite effects of the caffeine.There is some evidence that stimulants affect persons with ADD/ADHD much differently than others, though this distinction is mainly applied to a family of stimulant drugs which are dissimilar to caffeine, and your reaction to caffeine should not be taken as a marker for such disorders.Caffeine does seem to affect different people in different ways — but caffeine does not chemically induce drowsiness as a primary effect and would never be used in such a way by a physician, for example, so it is probable that something quite funny is going on if you find that even large doses of caffeine routinely make you sleepy.
Are you really sensitive to caffeine? Where is the Pisces in your chart?
No, I'm not very sensitive to it. I once drank two cups of coffee and then went to sleep right after. It doesn't have a very big effect when it comes to waking me up, although it can help a little. I do get addicted to it though. I was drinking 3, 4 and 5 cans of Dr. Pepper a day, at one point. I've mostly been staying away from coffee and sodas, for the past few months. Pisces Midheaven
How do I stop my caffeine addiction?
Well, this may seem like a little problem, but it can be kind of serious. I had to quit my excessive coffee-in-the-morning routine quickly when I started having heart palpitations. There are two ways I might try going about this: 1. Quit cold turkey on a weekend. If you're having trouble getting through the day, or the caffeine withdrawl is giving you headaches, lie down, take a nap. If you need sleep, do what you can to get it. It's healthy for your body to get the rest you need. Use the weekend to get your body rested and relaxed, and drink something like a non-caffeinated herbal tea in the morning to start your day. 2. Just switch to decaffeinated coffee. Decaf has about 1/3 of the caffeine of regular coffee. The small amount of caffeine should be enough to keep you from getting withdrawl headaches, and you can still have your morning coffee routine. Either way, a little caffeine is NOT bad for you; and the antioxidants in coffee and tea are a small bonus healthwise. It's just in excess that it is a bad thing.
What is the one thing that gives you a good sleep everyday?
If you have problems going to sleep, you can try the following before you seek professional sleep aid:take melatonin try 3 mg to help you go to sleep.turn off all of the electronics and dim the lights 2 hours before you plan to go to bed.do some relaxation breathing practice such as yin yoga to help your body relax and wind down ( 10 Min Beginner Yoga Stretch Routine (Great for Flexibility & Relaxation) )take some herbal tea such as camomile to help you fall asleepmasturbate to induce orgasm so you get serotonin in your body to further help you relax before you go to sleep in bedtry not to workout after 2pm because for some people work out too late in the day can cause insomniatry not to take any caffeine after 12pm. Hopefully this helps.
Should I start drinking coffee?
There are a lot of benefits to drinking coffee. I usually have 2 cups a day. These benefits include:High antioxidant contentImprovement of mental function (when used properly)Greater energyTaste (once you get used to it)Improvement of workout effectivenessRegarding social benefits--in my experience, it doesn't really matter socially if you drink coffee or not. I used to be part of a religion that completely banned the consumption of coffee, but I never really even needed to mention this to my friends. I would just drink something else if we went somewhere that served coffee. The only negative I experienced when not drinking coffee was when I studied abroad in Costa Rica, a famous coffee producing-country. Regarding the negatives:Addiction is not really a serious problem unless you take your habit to unnecessary levels (i.e., more than 1-2 cups a day); I recently took a 2-week vacation during which I drank no coffee, but experienced no withdrawal symptomsBad breath can be alleviated by not drinking with milk and sugar (significant contributions to bad breath and teeth, due to the encouragement of the growth of sugar-loving bacteria) and mints The money problem is largely alleviated by making the majority of your coffee at home, instead of paying ridiculous amounts for StarbucksYou don't need it for energy if you are healthy, but it will add to the energy (and focus) you already have I will add these caveats: If you have headache/migraine or heart problems, developing a caffeine habit is probably not such a good idea. Also, using coffee to compensate for insufficient sleep is only partially effective, and can lead to long-term problems. Also, drinking coffee late in the afternoon will have an adverse effect on sleep quality. Finally, your choices are not limited to no coffee or daily coffee consumption. If you don't want to drink it daily, you can enjoy an occasional cup with friends without any addictive side effects. You may want to check out an unconventional recipe for coffee that substantially enhances mood and mental function: http://www.bulletproofexec.com/h...
How to stop/control/overcome Sleep during Day!!?
You may be crashing from all the coffee you are drinking. You need to get into a better schedule. Go to bed at a certain time, until a certain time (even weekends, you can give yourself 2 more hours on the weekend, each day), and avoid caffeine at night. When you wake up, avoid it as well. Maybe try some tea or hot chocolate if you want something when you get up or get to the office. Maybe exercise can help you too. I have gotten the same problem, pretty often actually. I can sleep 5 hours, (your body needs 4 to function), and just be passing out all day,whenever I get the chance. This is dangerous so I started getting myself on a better schedule. After school/work I'd come home and relax for an hour or two, then go walk the dog, go running, clean up the house, something to get me moving, awake, and just busy for a while. I think maybe you just need to engage further in activities to avoid being bored and dozing off.
Have you ever tried to give up the caffeine habit? What withdrawal side effects did you notice?
My caffeine intake is through my coffee which I brew every morning. The smell of hot brewing coffee fills the house with a fresh aroma and it is my second alarm for my brain to wake up after I switched my mobile alarm off. My day starts with coffee and I really do feel the energy after I have my coffee.I have never really tried to consciously withdraw but there have been times when I couldn’t get “coffee” for like a week because of travelling (I am not a big fan of those instant coffee packs, it’s as good as no coffee for me). I had all the usual withdrawal symptoms during that week like headache, tiredness, irritation, sometimes nausea. I was literally at peace when I got back and had my freshly brewed coffee. I used to have two coffees a day but I have tried to cut down to one now and it hasn’t affected me much. But I have to drink my morning coffee or otherwise I get all those withdrawal symptoms again. It’s been almost two decades since I started drinking coffee and I guess it’s difficult to really stop that habit, even slowly.
Why do I get sleepy after drinking coffee, tea, or other caffeinated drinks?
Caffeine is a drug and needs to be metabolized to be excreted. This process is done mainly by our liver with the assistance of an enzyme called cytochrome P450 1A2 or “CYP1A2”. Since this specific enzyme has various inhibitors or inducers that can affect the production and efficiency of this process, there are many variables that may be a cause of your fatigue or anxiety.For example, if you go to a party and eat a grilled burger with a side of broccoli, are diabetic and take a dose of insulin, smoke while you’re there (not that I’m recommending, just giving an example), your effects of the caffeine may be less as these are all inducers of CYP1A2 meaning you’ll process the caffeine more efficiently.If you have the same amount of caffeine as the example above, but happen to be on cipro (nasty drug and I don’t recommend, but let’s just say your Dr. prescribed this for a UTI), while you are also taking oral contraceptives, and have self prescribed yourself some St. John’s Wort for viral or mood support. Since these are all inhibitors of CYP1A2, you may notice caffeine has an exaggerated effect on you.Caffeine may also produce different effects if you consume it on an empty stomach vs. with enough protein. Adrenal health is another factor and if you are depleted, running stressed out on “empty”, and not getting sufficient sleep, you may be experiencing some adrenal fatigue, which caffeine can aggravate and cause symptoms of fatigue and anxiety.Green tea tends to have a less harmful effect on people even though it has caffeine if you enjoy a caffeinated beverage, but are having negative effects.Here is an interesting article that may give you more insight too.Drug and Food Interactions with Caffeine