I drink two or three cups of coffee every day, and sometimes the third cup is from Starbucks (with an add shot) - but sometimes it'll be a cup of black tea. I've been noticing lately that if I don't go for that third cup, coffee or tea, that I get cranky and irritible (normal for some, I realize) - but I'm not sure if this signifies a physical or psychological dependence on caffeine...thoughts or similar experiences...?

Caffeine never used to bother me, I was used to drinking bold, dark coffees,
but now I've noticed a change for me,
strong caffeine makes me agitated and alters my mood.
It's definitely because I'm not able to handle the caffeine.

There was one woman I was speaking to, she mentioned that it makes her very tired rather than awake.

Another friend of mine needs it too, otherwise she becomes snappy and has a headache.

So caffeine and caffeine withdraw really does affect the person's mood.

eaglebear4839 said:

I am a serious asshole at work if I don't have my 18 ounce cup of coffee... ok, maybe not serious asshole, but suffice to say that I'll be pleasant as long as no one messes with me before I get my Joe.....for example:

I have never had coffee,but I used to drink 2-3 20oz bottles of soda,and it was like my day had not started until I had a soda. I now only have soda on the weekends,and even then I have limited my intake,because I could really feel myself wanting to get back into that habit again. Kinda of like a alcoholic,but with the soda.
[Edited 2/1/09 15:23pm]

eaglebear4839 said:

it's likely. if i'm remembering correctly, a person can become dependent on caffeine while only regularly consuming one cup a day.
if i don't have at least two cups of coffee a day, i get awful headaches, which can't possibly impact my mood positively.

Strong coffee is actually quite efffective against headaches because it sort of opens or widens your blood vessels in your brain. Thing is, if you drink it too often then you become dependent on it. Then, without your cup of coffee, the vessels don´t widen as much as they do with caffeine and you reach the point where you simply NEED coffee. A few days without coffee will help you get rid of that addiction and you can enjoy your coffee and its health benefits again.
Coffee is said to prevent Alzheimer and cures headaches when enjoyed in moderation.
Three cups a day sounds pretty normal to me, especially considering that the coffee you drink is comparatively weak.

Caffeine is a psychoactive stimulant drug. Too much of it can never be good for the human body.

http://en.wikipedia.org/w...ne#Overuse

Caffeine..is evil! Makes me sooo sick!

eaglebear4839 said:

That's a classic withdrawal symptom.

Yes, you're addicted.

But caffeine addiction is relatively easy to beat, all things considered. Simply stop having the last cup every day and within a week or so you won't get cranky anymore. When you DO get cranky, recognize it's cause of the withdrawal, take a few deep breaths, apologize to someone if necessary ( ) and move on.

Once you're over giving up the last cup, start cutting down altogether.

KoolEaze said:

I've heard that it's really good for diabetes prevention too.

http://www.diabetes.org/d...s-risk.jsp

I have a strong addiction to caffeine. I have been drinking coffee regularly for 12 years. When I do not have coffee by a certain time, I will get headaches.

My coffee of choice will always be Dunkin Donuts, but now that I am in Ottawa I have adapted to Tim Hortons.

CarrieMpls said:

The other thing you can do is to still have the cup of black tea - but decaffeinate it. That way...you might get at least a little placebo bump off it.

Decaffeinating tea is easy. Just pour boiling water over the bag, as usual (assuming you're using tea bags). Let it steep for one minute, then throw out what's brewed so far and start again with the same bag and new water.

Most of the caffeine in tea is released within the first minute.

Genesia said:

Excellent tip!