Caffeine is the most popular and abused drug around the world. The brain changes the way it sends its signals because of the effects of caffeine. You should know when you cut off or decrease your caffeine intake, there will be consequences. You might have already found this out if you have ever tried eliminating caffeine from your diet. However, if you are just starting to consider a life without caffeine, you should learn more about withdrawal symptoms and other caffeine-related facts.

Headaches

Headaches are the most common and irritating withdrawal symptoms. Someone may get headaches when they try to quit their caffeine habit. Most of the time the headaches can be quite harsh. They can make it hard to handle simple everyday chores. The cause of these types of headaches is the caffeine shrinking the blood vessels in your brain. In most cases, when a person stops consuming caffeine, they experience an increase in the blood flow velocity to their brain, according to a study. The study used EKG and ultrasounds to monitor people who quit using caffeine.

There are ways you can ease the severity of headaches that you may experience when you quit using the most abused drug in the world. Some of the ways you can get headache relief include the following:

• You can take over the counter pain medication – Remember to take it exactly as stated on the packaging. It is important to remember some pain medicines have caffeine in them. So, be careful to purchase one without caffeine or you will be sabotaging your own efforts of being caffeine free.

• You can use peppermint oil to massage your temples – This often relieves pain and stress.

• You should drink plenty of water – It will keep your brain hydrated and often reduces headache pain.

• You should get rest, even take naps if necessary – This might also help relieve your pain.

• You could consider cutting back on caffeine instead of going cold turkey – You might get less severe headaches by choosing to cut back little by little, and not just giving it up all at once.

Depression and Anxiety

Caffeine withdrawal may cause you to be moody. You might develop some form of depression or anxiety during your goal to eliminate it from your life. This withdrawal symptom varies from person to person. Sometimes a person needs to get clinical intervention to help them with their mood and feelings when they stop using this type of drug. Caffeine alters chemicals in the brain. Due to this fact, you will likely experience some changes in your mood. It is known that stopping caffeine causes the brain’s serotonin levels to be decreased and dropped. When this happens, you might have trouble sleeping. That can make your detox goal much harder to achieve. You should consult your doctor if you have a history of depression before giving up caffeine.

In some cases, people can’t control their depression when they stop using caffeine and need the assistance of a professional. However, there are some ways you might be able to relieve your symptoms including the following:

• Daily exercise – Exercising causes endorphins to release in your brain which can elevate your mood.

• Lessen Caffeine – You should reduce using little by little, not all at once.

• Meditate – This can help you relax and de-stress which might help you feel happier, less moody, and less depressed.

• Talk to a professional – If you have tried to get a grip on your depression and still feel yourself feeling depressed or anxious, the best thing to do is to talk with a professional.

Irritability and Anxiety

Caffeine is a stimulant. It changes the way our brains function and operates. It can cause a person’s blood pressure, stress hormones, and heart rate to increase. This is especially true if the person intakes large doses of it. Caffeine is an abused drug that can cause mild, moderate, or severe withdrawal symptoms. When you give up on caffeine, you might face anxiety or irritability. This is because caffeine boosts the dopamine levels in your brain. There are a few ways you can handle the anxiety you might feel from stopping caffeine. Some of these include the following:

• Cut back slowly – Don’t quit cold turkey. Cut back slowly when you decide to quit your caffeine addiction.

• Practice mediation – This might help you relax, which in turn might help your anxiety issues.

• Deep breathing – Try deep breathing. It will help you feel calmer, which may help you feel less anxious.

• Yoga – Many people do yoga to help them with anxiety. It can help you feel peaceful and decrease your anxiety.

Constipation

Once you decide to give up caffeine, you might have issues with your bowels. Constipation is a common withdrawal symptom of this abused drug. Many people face this after they try to overcome their caffeine addiction. The reason you may feel constipated is that caffeine stimulates your bowel movements. When you stop ingesting it, your body has to handle this task on its own, causing constipation. The good news is that there are a few ways you can relieve this symptom. Some of these ways include the following:

• Increase fiber – This might help you with regularity.

• Water – Drinking more water can help break down the fiber and ease constipation.

• Exercise – This can aid you in keeping bowel movements regular.

• Laxative – You can get over the counter laxative to help relieve constipation as well.