Caffeine causes stress

Caffeine causes stress and other health issues. The health council states that one in every 5 Belgians takes in too much caffeine in a day. Sources of caffeine are coffee, as well as chocolate, cola, and other caffeine-containing drinks. That is why the health council wants producers to reduce the amount of caffeine in their products.

Caffeine stimulates adrenaline system

Caffeine causes stress because this substance stimulates the adrenaline system in our body. Because of this, our heart starts to beat faster, with heart palpitations and nervousness as a consequence. Caffeine also gets our muscles to tense up, causing muscle tension to develop in the form of headache, back ache, shoulder ache, or even, eventually, tendon overload. Then, your orthopedic can give you a shot, or your osteopath can loosen your muscles, but if you do not do anything else, chances are that you will relapse.

Treatment of caffeine addiction

You can first of all try to cut back by yourself when it comes to your daily dose. You will notice that, during the first two weeks, you might experience many withdrawal symptoms:  headache, tired, feeling empty inside, depressed feeling, irritable when it comes to your surroundings, easily upset, a dull, empty feeling inside your head, concentration issues, and so on. After about two weeks, these symptoms will get better. For most people, day 4 and 5 are the most difficult ones. So if you are afraid to not do well at work, it would be best to start on, for example, a Thursday, so that you can deal with the difficult days at home during the weekend. Sports can help you to suffer a little less from your withdrawal symptoms. In case this does not work, you can get help from your doctor or therapist.

Online self-help program for caffeine addiction

Caffeine is a source of stress as well as a result of stress. As a result thereof, we notice that many people who stop their caffeine use without following a stress reducing program, will also easily relapse again. To avoid this risk, it is good to follow a program which helps you to deal with your stress in a better way. The online self-help program 15 Minutes 4 Me has good results. In a scientific study, we saw that the average participant had a stress reduction of 77% after one month.

Stress test to measure your stress

To measure how your stress is right now or how it evolves, we developed a free self-test consisting of 21 simple questions. Take this test now and measure your current level of stress.

Paul Koeck, MD