Caffeine Coffee Addiction out of control

Hi, have you sought treatment for your neuropathy degenerative disc sciatica? From what I read nonsurgical medical management may include medications to relieve pain (NSAIDs, analgesics) and muscles spasm (muscle relaxants), cortisone injection around the spinal cord (epidural injection), physical therapy (heat, exercises, massage, ultrasound, electrical stimulation), chiropractic manipulation and rest (not strict bed rest, but avoiding re-injury). Surgery may be necessary if you have unrelenting pain, severe impairment of function, or incontinence (which can indicate spinal cord irritation).

I too was once addicted to the caffeine in soda, which is why I wanted to respond to you. I drank at least four cans a day, which affected my sleep. I thought about Pepsi all the time. I gradually tapered off and quit all together over the course of a month or so. Each time I was tempted to drink a soda I read a piece of paper I kept in my wallet about the effects soda was having on my bones and health. Thankfully I stopped. Only once about five years later after my first husband died did I relapse and drank 7up for a few months to cope, but I stopped again for good. Now I drink cucumber water I make myself, water and some milk.

I am sure you know that the caffeine in coffee, like soda, is a drug. Caffeine is a stimulant found in many types of pain and cold medicine as well as in foods and drinks. Coffee (250 mL or 1 cup) has anywhere from 40 to 180 mg of caffeine. From what I read long-term effects of more than 600 mg of caffeine may include chronic insomnia, constant anxiety, depression, and stomach problems. It can also cause high blood pressure or make high blood pressure worse. I remember what happen to me too that as your body gets used to caffeine, it needs more and more of it to get the same effect because I had developed a tolerance. As the amount of caffeine goes up, so does the risk of side effects. You can become mildly dependent on caffeine from regularly drinking 350 mg (about 2 to 4 cups of coffee) a day and feel like you can not function without it. Drinking more than 3 cups a day may increase the risk of bone fractures (especially in the hips) as we get older. (This information comes from the Poison & Drug Information Service, Alberta (Canada) Health Services site on the topic Caffeine.)

Please consider speaking with your doctor about how to manage your pain and a good way to slowly decrease your levels of caffeine. If you suddenly stop drinking coffee, you might have withdrawal symptoms within 12 to 24 hours like headaches, problems sleeping, feeling irritable, tired, and depressed, lack of energy, feeling down, and trouble focusing or concentrating. So like I did, please step down from caffeine gradually. Most symptoms will go away within a few days.

I hope some of this was helpful and wish you all the best with improving your health.

If caffeine doesn’t affect your sleep or make you anxious but helps your aches and pain my advice would be to keep drinking it. Much better than some prescriptions the docs will throw at you.