Why I Quit Coffee After 13 Years (Caffeine Withdrawal, Benefits & What's Next?)
Summary
TLDRIn this video, Leah shares her personal journey of overcoming a 13-year caffeine addiction. She discusses how caffeine was integrated into her daily life since high school, its emotional and physical effects, and her decision to quit. Leah describes her withdrawal symptoms, including depression and anxiety, and how she eventually adjusted to a caffeine-free lifestyle, experiencing improved sleep, productivity, and emotional well-being. She concludes by encouraging viewers to reflect on their own dependencies and the importance of not letting substances control their lives.
Takeaways
- 🌱 Leah shares her personal journey of overcoming a caffeine addiction.
- 🏫 She started consuming caffeine in high school, which gradually became a daily habit.
- ☕ Leah's caffeine consumption included coffee, matcha, and caffeinated teas.
- 🚫 She decided to quit caffeine due to its negative impact on her mental health and spiritual well-being.
- 🤯 Leah experienced physical symptoms like migraines and emotional symptoms like depression during withdrawal.
- 🔄 It took her about two weeks to start feeling better after quitting caffeine.
- 🌟 She noticed improvements in her sleep, productivity, and emotional stability after giving up caffeine.
- 🍵 Leah tried to reintroduce caffeine after 30 days but realized she no longer desired it.
- 💪 She encourages others to evaluate their relationship with caffeine and consider the benefits of reducing or eliminating it.
- 🥤 Leah now prefers healthier, caffeine-free alternatives like water and fresh squeezed juice.
Q & A
What was the initial reason Leah started drinking caffeine?
-Leah started drinking caffeine in high school when her best friend's dad would make her a cup of coffee every morning, which she didn't drink, so Leah would have it.
How did Leah's caffeine consumption evolve over time?
-Leah's caffeine consumption evolved from drinking it occasionally in high school to making it a regular part of her life in college and beyond, eventually owning an espresso machine to make lattes at home.
Why did Leah decide to stop consuming caffeine?
-Leah decided to stop consuming caffeine because she didn't like the strong hold it had on her and she wanted to break free from the addiction and emotional dependency.
What was Leah's experience during the first few days of caffeine withdrawal?
-During the first few days of caffeine withdrawal, Leah experienced migraines and felt depressed, questioning her identity without caffeine.
What physical and mental benefits did Leah notice after giving up caffeine?
-After giving up caffeine, Leah noticed improved productivity, better sleep, more energy, and less reliance on a substance to feel better emotionally.
How long did Leah commit to being caffeine-free before allowing herself to have it occasionally?
-Leah committed to being caffeine-free for 30 days before allowing herself to have it once or twice a week.
What was Leah's reaction when she tried caffeine again after completing her 30-day break?
-After completing her 30-day break, Leah tried caffeine again but found that she no longer desired it and even felt that it left an unpleasant taste in her mouth.
How did Leah's relationship with food change after quitting caffeine?
-Leah's relationship with food changed as she began eating more and gaining weight after quitting caffeine, which made her reevaluate her priorities regarding nourishment and health.
What spiritual perspective does Leah share regarding her caffeine addiction?
-Leah shares a spiritual perspective that nothing, including caffeine, should be an idol or have a strong grip on her life, which was a motivating factor in her decision to quit.
What advice does Leah give to those who might be struggling with a similar addiction?
-Leah advises those struggling with addiction to take inventory of their lives, challenge themselves to understand their desires, and push against their cravings to break free.
Outlines
🌱 Caffeine Addiction Realization
Leah shares her personal journey of realizing she no longer desires caffeine after being addicted for 13 years. She started consuming caffeine in high school and continued through college and into her adult life. Leah discusses how caffeine became a part of her daily routine and identity, and how she noticed her behaviors were becoming obsessive, even dangerous, in pursuit of caffeine.
🚫 Quitting Caffeine Cold Turkey
Leah decides to quit caffeine cold turkey, despite advice to wean off gradually. She experiences migraines and emotional struggles such as depression and anxiety during withdrawal. Leah grapples with the identity she formed around caffeine and the realization that it had become an idol in her life. She also touches on the physical and emotional benefits she noticed after quitting, such as improved sleep and productivity.
🔄 Overcoming Caffeine Cravings
Leah talks about her process of overcoming caffeine cravings and the psychological aspects of addiction. She initially planned to reintroduce caffeine into her life after 30 days but found that her desires had changed. She noticed improvements in her energy levels, sleep quality, and emotional well-being without caffeine. Leah also discusses the role of caffeine as an appetite suppressant and her changing relationship with food.
💪 Finalizing the Break from Caffeine
Leah shares her decision to permanently break away from caffeine after reaching her 30-day goal. She tried caffeine again but realized she no longer needed it and chose to continue living without it. She reflects on the time and money saved by not frequenting coffee shops and the freedom she feels from not being addicted to caffeine. Leah concludes by encouraging viewers to examine their own habits and addictions.
📚 Reflecting on Caffeine's Impact
In the final paragraph, Leah reflects on what she learned about caffeine's impact on her life and the importance of not letting substances or food become idols. She recalls a college class on substance abuse where caffeine was discussed and how she was resistant to the idea of it being addictive at the time. Leah emphasizes the reality of addiction and the need for self-inventory to understand and overcome personal dependencies.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Caffeine Addiction
💡Withdrawal Symptoms
💡Caffeine Cravings
💡Emotional Dependency
💡Productivity
💡Cortisol
💡Spiritual Standpoint
💡Physical Health
💡Idolization
💡Substance Abuse
💡Self-Awareness
Highlights
Leah shares her personal journey of overcoming caffeine addiction.
Caffeine was a part of Leah's life since high school, starting with instant coffee.
In college, Leah continued the habit, often drinking coffee in mugs and lattes during internships.
Leah acknowledges caffeine as a socially acceptable drug that she consumed for 13 years.
The decision to quit caffeine was driven by a desire for better health and spiritual reasons.
Leah experienced physical symptoms like migraines and emotional symptoms like depression during withdrawal.
Caffeine withdrawal led to a period of questioning personal identity without the substance.
Leah found that caffeine was intertwined with her life events and daily routines.
After a month of abstinence, Leah noticed improved productivity and better sleep.
Leah's emotional dependency on caffeine was stronger than she initially realized.
The process of breaking free from caffeine involved challenging her emotional attachment.
Leah set a goal to be caffeine-free for 30 days and gradually lost her desire for it.
After completing the 30-day challenge, Leah tried caffeine again but found she no longer craved it.
Leah's new perspective on caffeine led her to see it as unnecessary and even detrimental to her health.
The journey to overcome caffeine addiction has reshaped Leah's relationship with food and drink.
Leah's story serves as an inspiration for others struggling with addiction and the desire for change.
Leah reflects on the importance of not making substances or food an idol in one's life.
The video concludes with Leah's realization that addiction is real and can be overcome.
Transcripts
and in that moment i really noticed i
don't need this my desire for it is gone
like it was like i'm trying to fit a
square into a circle hole
[Music]
hey guys welcome back to my channel if
you're new here welcome to my channel my
name is leah thank you for clicking on
today's video today i'm just coming to
y'all with a quick story of how i've
been able to move past
a caffeine addiction and i'm gonna just
share with y'all kind of like how i
started with caffeine
you know what my process looked like
getting past it and you know where i'm
at now so yeah i just wanted to share
this with y'all because it's been a
really big adjustment to my life if
y'all follow me for any amount of time
you know like coffee is my thing or was
my thing
matcha all the caffeine give me all the
caffeine so to be completely caffeine
free now has been crazy so since i've
made it a little ways i wanted to share
with y'all where i'm at so i started
drinking caffeine when i was in high
school at the time my best friend
every morning her her dad would make her
a cup of coffee so it was kind of like
instant coffee with a lot of like cream
and sugar and she didn't drink it and he
would make it for her every morning so
she would just give it to me in the
hallway it all started one day she's
like leah do you want this coffee and
i'm like
sure
and that's where the love for caffeine
started and i will say this i've never
been one to drink coffee black but
yeah for me to get started with like
caffeine with cream and sugar and all
the additives it was a quick
thing that i started to like so in high
school i never went out of my way for
coffee but she would bring it to me
pretty regularly and it might have just
been like my last year in high school it
wasn't like since my freshman year but
at a certain point that's when i was
introduced to it and then when i was in
college i remember drinking coffee as
well
like taking it with me in a mug kind of
the same approach like instant coffee
with cream um and then when i started
interning in the summers i started doing
duncan and that's something that i would
go get on my lunch break and yeah it
just became a part of my life so i was
introduced to coffee as a teenager in
high school and continued to drink it
all throughout college and then also
past college so i'm 28 and
yeah that's a long time so i probably
started drinking coffee when i was 15
and i stopped drinking it at 28. so that
is 13 years of consistent caffeine
consumption
and the crazy thing about coffee is that
it is something that i feel like a lot
of people don't really think twice about
um in caffeine in general you know it's
one of those it's actually a drug
but it's very socially acceptable it's
something that people
you know build their their days around
like i can't do this until i get my
coffee i can't
don't talk to me until i get my coffee
you know like just very
built-in and if it was with any other
substance like
don't talk to me until i get my alcohol
in the morning or whatever the case may
be
you know people will probably be raising
eyebrows but caffeine is something that
is just accepted in our culture
there's coffee shops everywhere it's
just a part of the life so i fell into
that that pattern that habit that group
of people
who had coffee regularly i never did
like more than one to two cups a day
but you know i know there's people who
do five six seven plus cups and i wasn't
on that end of the caffeine spectrum um
but yeah your girl was having it as much
as i wanted it so fast forward to like
my current age 28 i
would have coffee
pretty regularly at a certain point i
bought a espresso machine so i was
making lattes at home
and um just it was a part of my life
prior to that i would always go to
duncan or go out and get coffee or try
to make it at home or make coffee
protein smoothies or whatever i could
really think of i also did a lot of
matcha as well it's been a part of my
life and i was at a point where i was
having it maybe once or twice a day but
not often skipping days if you would ask
me like two months ago why i drank
coffee i would say it's because of the
taste i don't need the caffeine it's
just because of the taste so that's how
i felt about it and i just enjoyed it so
i would do much and i would do coffee
and i would do lattes and all that stuff
i would say over the past several months
i
noticed that my behaviors were becoming
a little too much like so for example
there was like a snow storm you know
everyone's saying don't go on the roads
don't do this and i'm like eh i want to
go to duncan call them to see if they're
open and i'm going so it's like my
behaviors were becoming that of like
someone who's addicted to something like
why even though it's not safe for me to
drive in this blizzard right now am i
going to get an iced coffee so i have a
lot of questions for myself but you know
yeah so that's where i was at so the
reason why i wanted to stop drinking
caffeine and stop drinking coffee
regularly and matcha and caffeinated
teas
is because i don't like
a substance or anything really having a
strong hold on me if you're a follower
of mine you know i'm a christian so from
a spiritual standpoint you know why
why does this substance have such a grip
on me if we're gonna be honest it's not
that good you know so why am i feeling
this way so i wanted to stop drinking
coffee and initially i was like i'm
gonna cut it out forever um and then
also like i know that it's not good for
your hormones and it can be bad for
cortisol and all that so i had enough
reason to be like you know what i don't
want to drink it anymore so i decided i
was going to stop oh and i forgot to
mention like in the past i would maybe
stop drinking coffee here and there but
never for very long never more than a
few weeks
and i might have stopped drinking coffee
at a certain point but i would drink
teas like i would never just be like
fully no caffeine you know and when i
was in college i stopped drinking it for
a little bit
and i was getting migraine so i was
taking excedrin and then i realized
excedrin has caffeine in it so yeah i
don't i've never just stopped and never
looked back so anyways i decided to make
the change i decided i'm gonna go cold
turkey
and um
there's so much stuff online that's like
don't go cold turkey wean yourself off
but for somebody like me like
i could finesse the situation like yeah
i'ma weave myself off for the next month
and then just never stop you know so i
was like no i need to go cold turkey it
is possible and i'm about to do it so
the first day i have migraines um and it
wasn't unbearable like i still was able
to go about my day
just kind of like not feeling the best
in the head
second day i also had a migraine
um the third day
probably was like why did i choose to do
this
what is the reason why why did i decide
to do this it's not making sense the
math ain't math and why am i doing this
it's not that big of a deal like the
rationalizing set in and i would say
at a certain point within that first
week i started to feel depressed i
literally was like who am i without
caffeine who am i without this like
it's was so ingrained to who i was as a
person especially since i started in my
like formative teen years it was a part
of my identity like
so much of my life revolved around like
i'm going to the mall let me go get a
coffee or i'm going here let me stop and
do this it was weaved in and intertwined
with my life so to take it out i felt
odd i felt like bizarre like what is
life and that's when i started looking
up online
like what are the symptoms of caffeine
withdrawal and one of them can be
anxiety depression i've experienced
depression in the past but i really
don't deal with it currently like i
might have days where i'm sad or
whatever but like not like that like i
was like what is the point of my life if
i don't have these things and then it's
just like wow like this is really it
really has a grip on me i was so down
like i can't even put into words i
couldn't think of anything else i
couldn't think of
like i went out to get breakfast with my
husband that day and i'm eating my
favorite meal you know pancake sausage
and i'm like
this is great
but what is life this is awesome
but it ain't hidden for me like or i
would think like this is a point in my
day where i would go get starbucks or i
would go do this like what do i have to
look forward to like that's where my
mind went and it's a really scary place
because i thought of myself as the sort
of person who didn't need caffeine i
just liked the taste i just liked the
experience so i think it was a
withdrawal from the actual substance
itself but then the emotional attachment
like if i was having a bad day i would
get a drink having a good day oh go
celebrate get a drink like
i remember getting a job offer fresh out
of college and like
celebrating by going to starbucks or be
like oh i deserve it yeah like it was
intertwined with my life so
that was very hard
i would say it took me
until the end of the second week to
really get past that like
god bless my husband because i was just
talking about all day like you know
let's say we're watching the show and
i'm just like
this is really great but i just can't
believe how sad i feel or did it like i
was just really going through it but at
a certain point it did break
and um i essentially told myself i
wasn't gonna drink it for like 30 days
so like four weeks i wasn't gonna have
it um halfway through i started making
up all these different
uh ideas of other things i can do like
okay maybe i'll just
make it two weeks and then i can have it
once a week or maybe after three weeks i
was just really trying to rationalize
with myself and make it fit like
anything i could do to get back to it
and you know that was very hard for me
so it was very very very much an
addiction and emotional dependency so i
continued going to the gym in the
mornings continued trying to eat healthy
and
at a certain point i was able to really
break free from it like i was having
like maybe some i had a tea that has
like zero caffeine in it and it's like
decaf sometimes i would have that i used
to have like herbal teas
and um what was it like passion fruit
iced tea like things with no caffeine
and like at a certain point i really
stopped having the interest for coffee
but there was a time during my process
that i said okay at 30 days i'm going to
go back
and i'm gonna have a drink once a week
and that's that was my thing and that
helped me to not feel so depressed at a
certain point when i was like i can have
it once a week when i'm done with all of
this and i won't be addicted to it and i
won't go through this and won't go
through that and that kind of helped me
to make it through
but over time my desires really did
change i saw positive qualities coming
about myself from not being on caffeine
like for example let's say it's the
beginning of the day i go to the gym
come home get ready i would feel like i
need my coffee and then i can get
started when you take that out the way
you really have no other option but to
just get started with the day like my
productivity was so much
better i wasn't procrastinating waiting
to have this moment with this drink
ain't no drink
get to work you know like do what you
have to do and that's kind of was
something that i noticed it made me more
productive i was sleeping so much better
whereas in the past i might wake up more
during the night but now i'm like going
to sleep staying asleep and i'm waking
up rested waking up ready to hit the
ground running because we wake up around
like six so i wake up rested and ready
to go my dreams were crazy they were
like so vivid so you know you can do
your own research about caffeine and the
way it actually impacts the body but it
really does impact the mind it can wreak
havoc on your cortisol and it can cause
you to be stressed
in a perpetual state of stress because
it's hard for your body to process it
it's a drug at the end of the day
and getting off of it yielded a lot of
benefits like do i want to get back on
the substance and then have compromised
sleep i didn't stop drinking caffeine
because i wanted to have better sleep
having better sleep was a byproduct of
cutting out caffeine having more energy
you know not looking to
something to give me a boost in the
middle of the day but rather getting
enough sleep eating more adequately and
having more energy that's actually
sustained and not relying on anything to
have to give me that so that was one of
the biggest pros and then also like if
i'm struggling emotionally you know just
dealing with it and not and not having
something to fall back on um and not
having that crutch so that was a huge
benefit i feel like it's also helped me
emotionally as well because
i'm not chasing after something to make
me feel better and i'm just able to just
kind of process and everything as well
so i would definitely recommend like
doing some research on the impact that
caffeine has on your brain because
getting off of it was was very hard and
like i said from a spiritual perspective
like nothing needs to be an idol nothing
needs to be above god and it was getting
to the point where it's like i can't
pretend like this is okay even though
the world around us
makes it seem as though
this is okay feeding for something early
in the morning to get your day started
that's not what the type of life i
wanted to live even though i lived it
for so long so ultimately i made it to
my 30 days and i was like at that point
where i'm like okay i want to have it on
occasion so i went to starbucks and i
told myself i could have it once to two
times a week but not back to back
because i didn't want to get addicted so
not friday and saturday maybe like
wednesday or friday or whatever like
that's what i had came to in my mind so
i finished the 30 days and i'm like
woohoo
and i went to starbucks and um i got a
matcha and i took some sips and it just
like left a film on my tongue of like
sugar
i didn't like it so i probably had like
a couple zips and i threw it in the
trash i was like okay whatever i'll try
another day i didn't count that because
i didn't drink the whole drink i had
like two sips so then the next day my
husband and i went to philly and we went
to a boba shop we were just standing
there and the smell of all like the
sugars and stuff was like it made me
feel like nauseous so i was like okay no
i'm not doing it so then i think it was
sunday the next day because i never had
a drink i had a couple sips of a matcha
on friday threw it out didn't count
saturday didn't get anything sunday i'm
like okay i'm gonna try a coffee so i
went to dunkin got my typical order of
what i used to get and i will say this
it tasted good i had a couple sips but i
decided
i don't want to have to deal
with the mental
process of getting back on a substance i
don't want to feel like loopy or odd
from having coffee when i haven't had it
for so long and in that moment i really
noticed i don't need this my desire for
it is gone like it was like i'm trying
to fit a square into a circle hole
because during my time away from the
drinks i was like looking forward to
getting back to it but by the time i was
able to get back to it i realized that
my desires have changed so i had to make
the choice keep trying to make this fit
and ultimately wake up that desire and
that addiction again
um or go with the natural inclination of
my body to not want it
so i took like i said a few steps of the
coffee i'm like this tastes good but the
mental choice to not want to go down
that route so i threw it in the trash
and y'all i have not had anything since
and that was probably like a week and a
half ago so i'm past the 30 day mark
that i set
and i'm right now in the second month
but at this point i'm not really
counting anymore
i'm really honoring the new desires and
i'm grateful that god has given me new
desires to just not want it like and
another thing about caffeine is like
it's an appetite suppressant so
when i stopped drinking it i was eating
more and my weight started going up and
you know in the past whenever i wanted
to stop drinking it that would always
make me be like nope i'm getting back on
coffee because i can keep my weight
lower and all this different stuff this
whole process has made me really
challenge my relationship with food
with you know drinks and
kind of reshape my life
so
at this point i eat more food but it's
important to eat food and nourish your
body so it's like
it just had to go so ultimately i'm done
with it and that's where i'm at my
desires for caffeine are gone like i had
a drink and it tasted so good but it was
like four what like what is the purpose
like if you really aren't depending on
the substance what is the purpose of the
drink you can easily get something else
that doesn't have it in there so it's
like if you're having coffee and matchas
and bobas or whatever every day or so
often
and you think kind of like how i thought
like
it's not i don't have an issue with
caffeine like i just like the taste
then
why do you want it so bad when there's
options that don't
have caffeine
like other drinks other things you can
do you know so i just want to kind of
share my experience because i've made it
beyond where i thought i could
like in those moments where i was so
depressed and so down and like so dismal
i never would have thought i could get
to this point where i really
passed starbucks past duncan i'm like
i'm good like if i want it i could have
it but i don't want it so i'm not going
to have it i'm not forcing myself to
have it like that that pattern that
stronghold that addiction is broken so
why would i invite that back into my
life i'm not telling y'all what to do
obviously i'm just sharing my story with
you and um it's been very interesting
very interesting
um and now like the other day we were
out and about and that's when i would
thrive and i'm like ooh let's do this
let's do that now i'm like i am thirsty
can we pull over and i can get some
water like how many times was i thirsty
but i was reaching for the dehydrating
coffee like your girl was probably super
parched so now i'm really past it and
i'm very grateful so like if i want to
treat i might go get like a fresh
squeezed juice and that's actually
refreshing and it actually does
something for me you know rather than
like oh i'ma go get this
coffee and cream and all this like
from a logical standpoint it's not doing
anything for me like obviously people
say oh there's benefits to coffee
there's benefits to green tea but you
can also get those benefits from eating
nutritious foods
like
i don't know the thing with an addiction
is that you can always make an excuse
for it and i just noticed that within
myself and i'm just too self-aware to
have that experience and to pretend like
i'm not having it like
i'm feeding i'm driving the middle of a
snowstorm when i have no business being
out here because this is so good that
i'm willing to risk my life like that'll
make no sense if you're like me and you
watch like lifestyle content on youtube
coffee's always so integrated into
everything it's like morning routine
include coffee morning routine include
um matcha or vlog going to get this
going to get that but you know i've had
to make that break for myself and like
i've said i've been sleeping better i
just feel better in my body and also
feels good to know that i'm not making
anything an idol i'm extremely more
productive because i'm not waiting
on something to get me going like
just get going you know that's kind of
how i've been with myself and then also
i have a lot more free time because i
cannot tell you like how much time i
used to waste driving to these places
and get in line and it's just like why
am i here like when i went to get that
matcha after i was done with my 30 days
it took me like 10 minutes to get there
10 minutes to get back the line of
starbucks was like 20 minutes i'm like
this is about to be about an hour
that i'm spending
and for what so yeah that's where i'm at
today and i wanted to kind of share that
with y'all because if you're struggling
with any sort of like addiction or
you're really trying to break free from
something really be empowered to push
against your flesh because at the end of
the day our flesh wants what it wants
but god is ultimately in control you
have control over what you do and what
you don't do and there's no substance or
no food or drink that we should really
put at that level in our lives where our
day is surrounded around that and our
joy is surrounded around that like when
i was going through the emotional
detachment it really showed me how much
of an idol caffeine was in my life
and i'll leave y'all with this when i
was in college i remember be taking a
class about substance abuse and misuse
and there was a chapter on caffeine and
i remember the professor talking about
it that day and i was so internally
resistant to what he was saying like
why are you mentioning this in the same
category as as nicotine and this and
that
but it really is an addictive substance
and i was resistant to it then and
there's a reason because i was addicted
to it then so yeah addiction is real and
you can be addicted to anything so i
think it's important to just continue to
take inventory of yourself your idols
your desires and and really um challenge
yourself to understand why why am i
doing this why can i not stop doing this
and
what is it going to take for me to be
able to break free from it anyways i
hope that y'all enjoyed this video let
me know down below are you a caffeine
drinker is it your thing honestly if i
could go back to high school when my
friend offered me the coffee i probably
would have just said no thanks
then this probably would have never
happened okay um because my parents
don't drink coffee anyways i hope they
enjoyed this video give it a thumbs up
if you did be sure to subscribe and i
look forward to seeing you all in the
next video bye
[Music]
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