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Poll
How do you get your fix?
Coffee-based beverage 27%
Carbonated beverage 27%
Pills/Mints/Caffeinated Water 5%
Intravenously 16%
Don't touch the stuff 22%

Votes: 18

 The Caffeine Fix

 Author:  Topic:  Posted:
Jan 24, 2002
 Comments:
I get my disdain for drugs from my parents. As children of smokers and alcoholics, they are very strictly against tobacco and alcohol. While caffeine was not forbidden, it was generally avoided in the house. We would drink normal cola in restaurants, but caffeine-free soda was what we kept in our refrigerator.

Now I find myself in an institution famous for its tendency to turn students into stimulant-addicted zombies.

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I have always seen the need for caffeine in the morning as a sign of weakness. This is not to say I haven't had problems in the past. My college cafeteria had free refills, and I became physically addicted to Mello Yello. I was drinking about 80 ounces a day and was waking up with a can of Dr. Pepper every morning. If I did not get a fix before 10am, I would get a severe headache.

That Lent, I went cold turkey. Afterwards, I took my consumption down to reasonable levels, and no longer needed a drug to wake up in the morning.

I have had jobs in various office settings, and have been amazed by the amount of stimulant consumption that occurs. Some people need 4 cups of coffee to function. My Dad would often complain about these people. He is the type that is ready and rearing to go at 7:45am. He was always annoyed by people that were not mentally functional before 9am. I vowed not to become one of these people.

Fast forward to today. I am now spending up to 8 hours a day in lectures. I have been trying to stay off the morning caffeine. I usually have some Dr. Pepper at lunch, but never in the morning. With breakfast, I drink something healthy like water or grape juice. But today, it became too much to bear. I couldn't keep my eyes open. At 9am, I drank some Barq's (With Bite, and rather little caffeine) Root Beer. I felt alert almost instantly.

So it has happened. I see the long spiral back into caffeine dependence beginning. In not too long I will be a slave to disgusting coffee and hacker mints.


Sympathies (none / 0) (#1)
by hauntedattics on Thu Jan 24th, 2002 at 09:05:07 AM PST
Sorry to hear of your substance problems. As someone whose health issues don't allow me to lean on the caffeine crutch anymore, I've found that getting enough sleep really pays off these days. Well, that and being married to a morning person much like your father.

Unfortunately, your choice of professions is not one that lends itself to being caffeine-weaned. That was pretty much how my friend got through med school...well, that and giving himself saline IVs after nights of heavy drinking.

Have you tried tea? It's much better for you and the doses are smaller.




Tea (none / 0) (#3)
by First Incision on Thu Jan 24th, 2002 at 12:22:15 PM PST
I enjoy tea (both iced and hot from time to time). I don't know if the random link in my entry is accurate, but if so, tea has more caffeine than Mountain Dew.
_
_
Do you suffer from late-night hacking? Ask your doctor about Protonix.

Yes, but... (none / 0) (#4)
by hauntedattics on Thu Jan 24th, 2002 at 12:37:13 PM PST
check out green tea. It's got much less caffeine than black and has some something in it which is supposed to be beneficial to your health. (Bioflavinoids? Anti-oxidants? Retsyn?)

The relevant authorities will probably bring out some study in a few years that indicates that green tea causes colon cancer in lab animals, but in the meantime, go nuts!



Green stuff (none / 0) (#5)
by First Incision on Thu Jan 24th, 2002 at 05:12:14 PM PST
I do like green tea, a lot. Whenever I accompany my friends to a highfalutin pretentious coffee shop, that is what I ususally get.

Yeah, there is supposed to be something healthy about it. I can't remember, and am not in the mood to look it.
_
_
Do you suffer from late-night hacking? Ask your doctor about Protonix.

 
are you sure... (none / 0) (#2)
by derek3000 on Thu Jan 24th, 2002 at 11:03:47 AM PST
it's not in your head?

Some people, like me, aren't even sensitive to caffeine. I once tried Red Bull, and I didn't feel any different. It just seems like one of those things that could get blown out of proportion if you think about it too much, or maybe a bit like a placebo.




----------------
"Feel me when I bring it!" --Gay Jamie

 
When I want caffeination, I drink tea, cola, or... (5.00 / 1) (#6)
by luisa on Fri Jan 25th, 2002 at 07:40:32 PM PST
cocoa (if I feel like going through the involved process homemade cocoa entails.) Once in a great while I will partake of the concoction known as Starbucks bottled Frappucino (regular and choco flavors only, of course), but mostly I stick to cola or tea. The cola is Coca-Cola, because all others taste horrid or are simply wrong. Teas of choice are usually something with an orange, lemon or apple flavoring.

Many moons ago I worshipt at the altar of espresso and vivarin, but they're not worth the hours of nausea and other deleterious effects. I've had choco covered coffee beans, which are ok, but never tried those silly caffeine mint things, or caffeinated water/gum. Yes, putting caffeine in water is morally corrupt. As I type this, I am in the middle of drinking cola. Later I may have a pot of orange-spice tea. Hasta.


 

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