Anyone ever gone through caffeine withdrawl? How long does it last?

[applegrove]

A day? Weeks?

[hlthe2b]

1. The headaches can last for days--more than a week for some; the craving much longer.

It depends on how much you consumed and how long you consumed that amount.

[applegrove]

2. I have not decided if i am going to permanently quit coke. Drank only

decaf tonight and i have a headache. I will have a cup of caffeinated coffee tomorrow to wean myself off the diet coke.

[hlthe2b]

4. I think cold turkey cessation is going to be worse than tapering off as you are doing.

The issue is such that many hospitals and surgery centers will (at request) infuse small amounts of caffeine in IV fluids (unless contraindicated) in post-surgical recovery.

[applegrove]

6. Wow. Did not know that about hospitals. Yes i'm not trying to go off caffeine.

Just coke. And i'm trying to sleep earlier so why the decaf. I'll taper. No needless suffering.

[csziggy]

26. First thing to stop doing is having anything with caffeine after noon or so.

Which is what I need to go back to.

For me, if I have anything (other than chocolate) that has caffeine in it after lunchtime, I have trouble getting to sleep. Which is saying something since I seldom got to sleep before 2 AM.

I sort of forcibly got off coffee after a surgery. I couldn't hold anything down for four days. Once I got home I just didn't go back to coffee. Now I have one cup of Earl Gray tea in the morning, one cup of a mint/black tea blend with lunch. If I have a craving for something other than plain water after that, I have a variety of herbal teas that have no caffeine in them to satisfy my craving for flavored water.

At least that was my schedule - recently I have been sleeping very late, so my second cup of caffeine tea has moved back to about 3. I need to stop that and if I don't eat breakfast until 11, I just don't get that second one, just a herbal tea.

If you like fizzy drinks, there are plenty of low/no calorie drinks without caffeine in all sorts of flavors.

[applegrove]

27. All good suggestions.

[hlthe2b]

5. On the diet coke, I haven't had one in years, but I still crave it (and not because of the caffeine)

Artificial sweeteners also can have an addictive or at least craving-inducing effect.

[applegrove]

8. Oh no. It is diet coke i am trying to quit.

[hlthe2b]

9. I drink unsweetened iced tea. Mostly Moroccan green mint because it imparts a natural sweetness

But by not adding sweetening, it helps with the Diet Coke withdrawal.

I note that during periods when I take a break from a relatively moderate carb diet and indulge a bit, including some sweet offerings, that I likewise get a craving for Diet Coke again. Artificially-sweetened or sugar, it triggers the same response.

[LizBeth]

16. Getting off D Dr pepper. I brew a flavored tea, pour half a glass then rest water and ice.

Saves on money, flavored, and much much lighter than the heavy syrup. I have a DDP in fridge not and three days still half full. 20 oz. I buy one every 6 months or so and doesn't do it for me. This is a lifetime first with Dcoke, then Fresca, then DDp

[applegrove]

17. Good idea. I tried it once with David's Teas and it was good. A great way to

get flavour. Thanks.

[LizBeth]

19. I didn't want to get hooked on another product that was going to be 2-5 dollars a day.

[Ocelot II]

15. I immediately switched to iced tea some years ago when I read that

diet Coke and other diet soft drinks could cause diabetes; I didn't switch on account of caffeine, which is also in iced tea. There isn't as much caffeine in iced tea as there is in diet soft drinks, and you can get non-caffeinated tea if it's a problem. It would be a good idea to ditch the diet Coke.

[applegrove]

18. Yes. I will see how creative i can get. I have a ton of tea. No reason why i can't ice it.

[LizBeth]

20. Do it for a little bit then it will be really hard to drink a soda. They will feel so heavy.

[applegrove]

21. Thanks.

[Tbear]

3. It's not just caffeine

With Coke there are possible sugar withdrawals as well.

[applegrove]

7. Diet coke. I know i said coke but i meant diet coke.

[Irish_Dem]

10. Headache for a couple of days.

That is all.

[genxlib]

11. A week is about right

Give or take

I gave it up for a surgery 2 years ago and I had headaches for 3-4 days then felt a little slow after that.

The good news is that I made it permanent and never went back. I don’t miss it at all. The biggest problem I have is trying to find non caffeinated options out in public for things like iced tea. At home, I have found that Tetley decaf tea is surprisingly good.

Recommend the taper off more than the cold turkey.

[soothsayer]

12. Really strong caffeine addicts also get big underarm pain

For a week or two. Glands I guess.

But you have to really have a big caffeine habit to get that.

[CentralMass]

13. A couple of days ( for me anyway). I get headaches.

[malaise]

22. My caffeine withdrawal will begin

at death. I love coffee and have no plan of giving it up. I drink it between 5.00am (one cup before I walk) and then have another three or four cups all before noon. I never drink coffee after 12.00noon.

[applegrove]

23. I am used to drinking diet coke from 3 to midnight. Then i can't fall asleep at a reasonable time.

So I'm going to wean myself of excessive diet coke and try and drink coffee or tea instead. Baby steps.

[malaise]

24. That's the trick

No caffeine after 12 noon

I drank Pepsi in my youth - now I may have one every five years

[herding cats]

30. Same here. I'll be dead when I give up my "Mimi's go-go juice." 😂

My choice is coffee and I drain my full 6 cup pot before noon each day. After that I'm done.

[NNadir]

25. I had headaches for about a month. I fell off the wagon.

Twice I've been told by physicians that, it's bad for me at the amount I drink. One doctor told me as much just last week.

I now have a hard a fast rule that the limit is two cups, and only if I complete drinking them before noon, preferably before 11 am. It's been that way now for 20 years or so. I used to drink two pots a day.

But the reality is, I'm a caffeine junkie; I will be unable to quit cold turkey.

Hopefully you're better than I am.

[applegrove]

29. Oh i am a caffeine junkie too. I will take baby steps. Must get off sugars too.

[Aristus]

28. I never made it past fifteen minutes...

[haele]

31. Two to three days.

Second day is worse.
Had five 12oz cup of strong tea + five caffeinated cans of soda habit there for a while. Just cutting down to one and two was hell starting around noon the first day, lasting to about noon the third day. Headaches and wretching feeling in the tummy.
And I was good about not giving up and grabbing the Excedrin (25 g of caffeine)

Good luck.

Haele