Giving up Caffeine

I take adrenal support rather than caffeine and find I have equal energy all day long...even working and homeschooling 3 kids and chasing after a 1 year old.

You can do this! I gave it up years ago because I have fibrocystic breasts and caffeine really causes the lumps to flare up (and that causes pain).

Do it gradually. Tea actually does not contain nearly as much caffeine as coffee and two cups of tea a day doesn't have that much -- but you do it and the Pepsi EVERY day. Frankly I'd get rid of the diet Pepsi -- not only does it have caffeine, it has nasty fake-sweetener chemicals none of us needs. Maybe start by cutting out the Pepsis but continuing two cups of tea a day for a while so you don't suffer headaches (classic caffeine-withdrawal symptom). Meanwhile, drink a lot more water; caffeine and tannins (in teas) are diuretics, which make your body expel more water, so you need to hydrate, plus water will help fill your stomach with the liquids you were previously getting from Pepsi and tea.

Don't go cold turkey or you will probably go right back to caffeine drinks due to headaches and tiredness.

Gradually switch to one caffeinated tea a day and one decaf. Green tea is much lower in caffeine, pretty negligible in fact, but some folks like it and others don't at all. (I love it. If you try it, get a very good brand like Tazo Green Tips and never, ever use boiling water--only very hot--and steep for no longer than two minutes or it will be bitter and overboiled.)

The tea after lunch may not be the source of the tiredness -- Are you eating enough at lunch so your blood sugar is at a good level? Do you have lunches early or late? The tiredness issue may be related to other things since tea is fairly low in caffeine.

I'm sure the pros and cons are out there, but i just wanted to wish you good luck.

I did the same and found that even dropping one soda per day gave me a slight headache for a couple days at the same time i normally had my soda. It's not severe - a couple exceedrin (which has caffeine) and again - only the first few days.

Just want to give you a heads up. :) Good luck! I feel a ton better without it.

good for you!
while a little caffeine isn't bad and can even be good, the amount most of us consume is NOT good (says S. as she sips her weekend morning coffee.)
i used to drink at least 2 cups of coffee every morning, and usually another in the afternoon, plus diet sodas. when i did the master cleanse several years ago i went cold turkey, expecting a bit of a headache and maybe some nausea. OMG, it was a nightmare. a headache so bad i could barely open my eyes, persistent vomiting, a terrible malaise. i thought i was going to die, and one of the hardest things i've ever done in my life was to persist with the cleanse. it was over in 24 hours, but it was brutal.
that was enough to convince me that i had to get off the addiction, although i have not given up caffeine altogether. i allow myself to have coffee on the weekends when the ol' man is home, and occasionally during the week if i have to get up early for something, but most mornings i have a glass of water followed by a cup of tea. in the afternoons when david gets home we have a cup of tea together. we're down to one glass of diet soda per day (with dinner), and while i do indulge in an occasional fancy coffee treat, our go-to drink is now 99% of the time water.
i don't think there are any big cons to giving up caffeine. it does have some anti-oxidants but you can get 'em elsewhere. the main reason i don't quit it altogether is because a) it's a ritual i enjoy with my husband, like our afternoon tea, and he is not willing at all to give up caffeine, and b) on those mornings when i have to get up early and be sharp (mainly on days i teach) i really do love that magical whoosh of energy and clarity it gives. i never noticed it as much before i cut back. and while it's invigorating, it also shows me clearly what a drug it really is.
khairete
S.

Try it and see what happens. Caffeine affects different people differently. For some, caffeine is beneficial, for others it's not. I would bet though that it is what or how much you are having for lunch that is making you tired, not the tea. Or, that is just your normal daily body rhythem.

Best thing I ever did 8 years ago....

dont' get me wrong I have the occasional I mean very occasional caffiene...helps me out a ton with I have a migraine headache but were talking one or two full cans of pop a month and not in one sitting. Oh and of course chocolate.

I get the jitters now if I drink caffeine

I kind of gradually gave up caffeine about 3 years ago. I figured out that the highs and lows just weren't worth it. I'd rather be a little tired in the morning then crashing later. Plus, I didn't want to "need" it and I was getting to that point. I don't think it's healthy to "need" any sort of food. Caffeine and sweets make my migraines worse too.

There are tons of herbal teas out there now that more and more people are going caffeine free. Other drinks, be sure it actually says No Caffeine...otherwise there is some in there. Some soda that you may think is caffeine free, really isn't. Like Barq's root beer and there's an orange soda too. Both are ones a lot of parents think are OK for kids. Also, you might lose some weight from quitting the diet Pepsi. Just heard more on TV about how diet soda tricks our body into holding onto weight.

You might get withdrawls. My friend gave up caffeine and she got terrible headaches for weeks until her body adjusted.

I gave up regular coffee when I was pregnant and switch to one cup of decaf in the morning (half a cupt) Decaf actually has caffiene in it just not as much. I'd get totally away from the soda. Horrible stuff for you. Is it regular black tea your having after lunch and does it have milk in it? Alot of factors. Actually when you feel tired in the afternoon, yes a cup of coffee is great but also just getting up and walking around the building etc helps wake up the system. You should not stay still after lunch. Im not saying go excercise but go walk around.

Best of luck on that! There are decaf teas and sodas so it shouldn't be a hard transition. Perhaps you drink regular tea in the morning and then decaf the rest of the day! :)

I personally found I wake up "more awake" since giving up morning caffeine. Which really surprised me. Now I only use caffeine medicinally when I feel I headache coming on.

Not sure the pro's & con's, but I can't keep up with my 5 kids& hubby if I don't have my morning coffee. About 2-3 cups - after noon I don't really drink much caffeine... just in the morning. Which is strange cause I really never drank it before last Nov., but a lot has changed since then.