One Month of Caffeine Withdrawal
It is harder than you think.
I really don’t like to be addicted. It creates all sorts of problems, and it makes you dependent on a particular substance or a thing (or a person?) and thus enslaved. So about a month ago, I decided to stop caffeine which was much more than guilty pleasure for most of my adult life.
My usual dose was about four dl of black tea first thing in the morning, followed by a second flush of the same leaves. Sometimes I would take a boost in the afternoon, which was the first thing I cut (already about three months ago).
Then I gradually lowered the amount of tea leaves and replaced them with decaffeinated substitutes (yes, they exist). At first, I thought I was fine, but that was only because I wasn’t paying attention.
Little did I know, I unleashed all my inner demons and deprived myself of the same tool I used to fight them off. I entered a severe emotional crisis during which I thought my life was literally coming to an end. All of my optimism was gone, doom and gloom were all that remained. I reflected on all of my “lost years” without any appreciation for the lessons they taught me or the good times I had. It was terrible.
But even on good days, I wasn’t myself. I could still work the necessary chores, but that was it. No drive to read…
