Anyone else have problems after caffeine consumption?

[Chrissy88]

Hi everyone,

It is well documented that too much caffeine is a big no-no for those with a panic disorder as it can trigger attacks, but i'm just wondering if anyone else is affected to the same extent that I am. I'm finding that even just after half a small bottle of coke I often start to feel really jittery and ill, as though a panic attack is about to come on. I wouldn't have thought there would be enough caffeine in around 300ml of coke to have this effect on me. I now avoid caffeine all together as to avoid this. I was just very much curious as to how caffeine effects the rest of you who get panic attacks, and how much you can consume before it affects you.

[Sunshine77]

Hi Chrissy,

Yes absolutely caffeine has affected me enormously. Over the last few weeks I've gradually weaned myself onto decaff. I didn't even drink that much of the stuff to begin with although in the weeks leading up to my meltdown I was running on Red Bull and fags, which I am convinced contributed to it.

At the moment anything more than a small mug of instant coffee is making me worse. At the suggestion of a friend I've started drinking a glass of a multi-vitamin effervescent supplement called Berocca (not sure if you have it in Oz?) which has a similar pick-up effect to caffeine but without any nasties. It's now my alternative to my morning coffee.

[luvlifensmile]

i have a TERRIBLE reaction to caffeine consumption....1 swallow of coffee and almost instantly i can feel the effects...i used to love getting up in the morning and have a regular cup of tea...now i have to drink decaf tea...sodas are also out of the question...once i was out for breakfast and ordered a decaf tea and the waitress brought me a regular one instead...and i didn't realize until i was halfway through it...broke out into a severe panic attack and had to take a xanax

[BobbyDog]

I am very sensitive to caffeine as well. If I have two cups of caffeinated coffee I start to feel extremely anxious and it can start off a panic attack. Not too bad with tea, I can just about cope with that.

[Mark_P]

I used to have problems with anxiety with caffeine, so I've cut it out and going to see what happens. I think even tea is a big no no to be honest. Herbal tea is the only way forward lol.

[BikerMatt]

Yes it affects me badly. I have drunk decaf tea and coffee for a long time now. Also cant eat foods with msg.

[purplepie]

Hi all. yeah me to, I only drink de caf coffee, couple of teas are ok and the odd can of coke, but thats all. Caffiene just makes my heart pound. x

[iamlove]

Yes caffeine of any amount really sets me off so i keep away from it completely now, also foods with msg are a big no no.

[Arnie365]

Yes. I used to love coffee and drank really strong espressos no problem at all but after my anxiety started following my first panic attack, one cup of coffee would set me off again. I don't drink any caffeine at all now. I drink herbal tea and red bush tea which are caffeine free.

[Chrissy88]

Thanks for the replies everyone, nice to know i'm not alone in this. Sunshine77-Yes we do have Berocca in Australia, though i've never tried it. I'm lucky in that I actually don't like coffee, just the occasional soft drink, so avoiding caffeine hasn't been that difficult.

[Mystic Sea]

Yes Caffeine is a bad one for me too. However, so is alcohol and fatty foods. Excercise and keeping fit is the best to make me feel better and I should do it more often but the hard thing is to keep it up. When I take my dog out for a walk I normally walk for about 1 1/2 hours round the common at a fast pace and its amazing how it uplifts you. It doesn't cure but it does certainly helps!
Mystic

[bringupasquid]

I'm another on on the decaf hot drinks here. A strong coffee will nearly always trigger a panic attack for me.

[Tessar]

I'm ok with coffee providing I don't have too much in one go, so if I spread it out over the day I am ok. But I rarely have caffeine after tea time. Actually chocolate during the evening will keep me awake more than coffee or coke.
The other side effect, other than what I'd call a caffeine head (when I feel like I'm hyper on drugs or have got the DT's) is that it gives me a bad ache in my bowel, not very nice but it often happens to me at the weekend when I don't seem to get my eating habits as well disciplined as I do during the week. So it's down to me having coffee on top of a worse diet I think as it never seems to get like that on weekdays.