This is What Happened When I Gave Up Caffeine

I distinctly remember my mom placing a limit on how many sodas my siblings and I could have when we were kids. We were each permitted one soda per day for every day of the weekend (which she generously ceded to include Friday). Eventually, though, I started sneaking more and more throughout the week and finally convinced my mom through sheer rebellion that my caffeine addiction could not be curbed.

I am nearly 22 years old now and have been drinking 3-4 sodas per day, every day of the week, for over 10 years. That’s incredible, and not in a good way. When I was 14, I developed a couple of anxiety disorders that only worsened with my caffeine exposure. It wasn’t until a few months ago that I decided I had put my body through enough. I could either 1) resolve my anxiety issues or, more likely, 2) give up soda.

Since I still don’t really know what causes my panic attacks, it seemed a simpler task to take on the latter. And I did. I have not had more than a sip or two of Pepsi for the last two and a half months. How does it feel? Well, quite honestly, not that different. But I did notice a few dramatic shifts in my sleep schedule, weight, and (close your ears, boys!) menstrual cycle.

After about a week or two of no caffeine, I was having some of the best nights of sleep ever. I mean, dead to the world, drop like a rock kind of sleep. I hadn’t slept that long or that well since I was a kid. My sleep schedule shifted back to being a minimum of 8 hours a night when it had formerly been about 5-6. But then, for a month or so after those first couple of weeks, I experienced these insanely vivid dreams.

Every night, I would spend what felt like a lifetime in my own head dreaming the craziest narratives. When I awoke, I would invariably be exhausted. This must have been some sort of cycle because, after that stage, I went back to sleeping really well for another two weeks. At present, I have come full circle and returned to the vivid-dream phase, yet again waking each morning restless and drained. By my count, I have about another two weeks left until I’ll get to have a full night’s sleep again, and I’m counting down the seconds.

Another thing I’m counting down is my weight. Since I gave up caffeine, I have gone from weighing 135 pounds to nearly 125. That’s a HUGE margin for me. However, even with that ten pound difference, I didn’t notice any particular change in my actual physique. For instance, my waist doesn’t look noticeably smaller and I haven’t suddenly developed the body of Gisele Bündchen (dang it!). Maybe if I gave up carbs, I could make that happen, but I put my relationship with bread above all others, so that’s highly unlikely. As far as energy goes, I can’t say I feel any more motivated or inspired to work out or get fit now that I’ve given up soda. I’ve always led a pretty sedentary life and that hasn’t changed much with the drop in carbonated beverages.

If anything, my energy levels have actually gone down more with the lack of caffeine pumping through my veins. I try to accommodate for that loss by drinking more water but, even then, I still don’t feel a measurable difference. However, that could also be partly attributed to my fluctuating sleeping habits and overall exhaustion.

Last but not least, there has been a momentous shift in my menstrual cycle. For context, I have never had a regular period. Sometimes I’d get it a week late, sometimes two weeks early - it really just depended on Mother Nature’s mood on that given month. But now that I’ve gone over two months without any soda, my period has actually leveled off. I keep a note on my calendar to remind me when I should expect an appearance from Aunt Flow (even though she’s rarely on time) and these past few weeks have shown me getting my period nearly to the day of when my cycle is anticipated to start. Now, it’s only been two months so this could easily be my body adjusting for the lack of caffeine (or sleep), but I’m not kidding when I tell you that I’ve NEVER had a regular period, so having two in a row is pretty new to me.

While I don’t particularly enjoy the physical roller coaster associated with my caffeine withdrawal, there have been quite a few positives to the process. I didn’t aim to lose weight, but I can’t complain that I did! And I’m also not afraid to admit that I am thoroughly enjoying this newfound predictability in my menstruation.

There have been other smaller side effects (occasional migraines, heart palpitations, etc.) that have slowly subsided over the past few weeks while my body has become acquainted with its new homeostasis. I’ve chosen to mention only the biggest differences I’ve seen thus far based on their importance to me personally. Of course, everyone is different and we can’t all be expected to react to this kind of withdrawal in the same way. Whatever the case, expect the unexpected and don’t be freaked out if something happens that you were totally not anticipating. Sometimes that can be pleasant! For example, I was entirely prepared to have mind-numbing headaches nonstop after giving up soda but was surprised to find that I very rarely had any, although the ones I did have were pretty severe.

So you may be asking, “Would you recommend this course of action for someone else?” and my answer is yes, definitely. Even though I don’t necessarily feel like my life has changed dramatically or my energy levels have skyrocketed, I do know that I was not treating my body well by feeding it that much sugar and caffeine day in and day out. I’m aware that I’ve made a significant life choice that will greatly impact my physiology - whether I feel it or not - and that’s really all I could hope for.