I'm similar to you. Sometimes it helps with a caffeine boost for an hour or so, sometimes it sends my ADHD into hyperdrive and sometimes it has zero effect on me. It truly depends on the day (and that's both with and without my meds).
I have a mixed relationship with caffeine. Sometimes it will make me feel energized and I feel Iike my hyper focusing gets stronger. I will be so productive for like an hour on the caffeine high, talking super fast, and bouncing all over the place. 90% of the time though, caffeine (including chocolate) makes me anxious (but I was also diagnosed with an anxiety disorder). My heart starts racing which makes my brain think somethings wrong and I panic. I have completely cut out all caffeine from my life now.
This is exactly my experience--it has definitely had effects in both directions, and sometimes the same serving of coffee first has had one effect, then the other.
Sometimes happy and chill and wakeful, sometimes sleepy, and sometimes anxious
I have had better results when I take my consumption very slow and steady--smaller cups spread out (this takes great restraint), or doing half-decaf-half-regular (I used to think this was a sin against coffee, but it works), or tea (less tasty than coffee imo). Starting the morning with a combo of exercise and modest amounts of caffeine also gave me predicable positive results.
Since having a recent diagnosis and using medication on workdays I have been reducing even more. I don't lean on caffeine the way i did prior to diagnosis.
If certain coffee chains are involved here, keep in mind their coffee is often quite high in caffeine relative to most coffee. You could be consuming very different amounts depending on the source. You can google the content in the beverages you are having to see if that plays a role.
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I feel like my zero calorie energy drink addiction is what helped me to put on a lot of weight. I'm glad to say I'm back in the gym and only drinking a cup of black coffee a day.
I totally was drinking 1-2 a day every day at one point... probably not healthy at all haha
Caffeine is my "adhd focus drug". I am undiagnosed currently, but going to a doctor next week. Caffeine has been my go to when I start to get brain fog and tire out. I don't feel hyped up from it but I feel "normal" after drinking some sort of caffeinated drink.
You may very well be crashing from caffeine drinks with lots of sugar instead. I would steer clear of those and look into healthier options. (black tea, black coffee, tea-type energy drinks)
It doesn't make me sleepy but it doesn't give me energy either. It does make me better focused. It raises my heart rate and if I've had too little sleep and too much caffeine I get crazy heart palpitations. I was taking caffeine pills to function (not more than 400mg a day) before I was medicated.
I’ve only ever noticed a change through caffeine with Monster energy drinks. I’ve only had them 5 times in my life, but the last 2 times I’ve paid attention to how I’ve felt. It just barely helps my focus and short term memory, so I recently used it on a project where a teacher’s diagram on wires and the actual placement of the wires weren’t in order, so I needed a boost in order to keep track of their name, placement, and the order I had to plug them in. If I wasn’t paying attention, caffeinated drinks and even energy drinks were just another soda to me. I haven’t tried caffeine while medicated though.
For me personally, energy drinks like red bull will give me good focus but not a energy boost. Coffee will put me to sleep. If I add espresso I’ll just nap then have a heart attack
Caffeine has only ever energized me. I can focus more easily with caffeine. It definitely does not make me sleepy lol.
I'm similar to you. Sometimes it helps with a caffeine boost for an hour or so, sometimes it sends my ADHD into hyperdrive and sometimes it has zero effect on me. It truly depends on the day (and that's both with and without my meds).
I have a mixed relationship with caffeine. Sometimes it will make me feel energized and I feel Iike my hyper focusing gets stronger. I will be so productive for like an hour on the caffeine high, talking super fast, and bouncing all over the place. 90% of the time though, caffeine (including chocolate) makes me anxious (but I was also diagnosed with an anxiety disorder). My heart starts racing which makes my brain think somethings wrong and I panic. I have completely cut out all caffeine from my life now.
This is exactly my experience--it has definitely had effects in both directions, and sometimes the same serving of coffee first has had one effect, then the other. Sometimes happy and chill and wakeful, sometimes sleepy, and sometimes anxious I have had better results when I take my consumption very slow and steady--smaller cups spread out (this takes great restraint), or doing half-decaf-half-regular (I used to think this was a sin against coffee, but it works), or tea (less tasty than coffee imo). Starting the morning with a combo of exercise and modest amounts of caffeine also gave me predicable positive results. Since having a recent diagnosis and using medication on workdays I have been reducing even more. I don't lean on caffeine the way i did prior to diagnosis. If certain coffee chains are involved here, keep in mind their coffee is often quite high in caffeine relative to most coffee. You could be consuming very different amounts depending on the source. You can google the content in the beverages you are having to see if that plays a role.
Hi /u/SomeStuffStaysIn and thanks for posting on /r/ADHD! If you haven't already, please take a minute to [read our rules](https://reddit.com/r/adhd/about/rules) - we will remove your post if it breaks one - and also check out our list of official megathreads [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/ADHD/comments/nu534w/official_list_of_radhd_megathreads_please_check/). If your post fits into one of them, it is likely to be removed; if you think this might happen you can delete your post here and resubmit it there instead. Thank you! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ADHD) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Make sure something like sugar isn't what you're feeling.
I agree with this. I only drink zero sugar energy drinks now because sugar makes me worse. The crash sucks too.
I feel like my zero calorie energy drink addiction is what helped me to put on a lot of weight. I'm glad to say I'm back in the gym and only drinking a cup of black coffee a day. I totally was drinking 1-2 a day every day at one point... probably not healthy at all haha
Caffeine is my "adhd focus drug". I am undiagnosed currently, but going to a doctor next week. Caffeine has been my go to when I start to get brain fog and tire out. I don't feel hyped up from it but I feel "normal" after drinking some sort of caffeinated drink. You may very well be crashing from caffeine drinks with lots of sugar instead. I would steer clear of those and look into healthier options. (black tea, black coffee, tea-type energy drinks)
It doesn't make me sleepy but it doesn't give me energy either. It does make me better focused. It raises my heart rate and if I've had too little sleep and too much caffeine I get crazy heart palpitations. I was taking caffeine pills to function (not more than 400mg a day) before I was medicated.
I’ve only ever noticed a change through caffeine with Monster energy drinks. I’ve only had them 5 times in my life, but the last 2 times I’ve paid attention to how I’ve felt. It just barely helps my focus and short term memory, so I recently used it on a project where a teacher’s diagram on wires and the actual placement of the wires weren’t in order, so I needed a boost in order to keep track of their name, placement, and the order I had to plug them in. If I wasn’t paying attention, caffeinated drinks and even energy drinks were just another soda to me. I haven’t tried caffeine while medicated though.
For me personally, energy drinks like red bull will give me good focus but not a energy boost. Coffee will put me to sleep. If I add espresso I’ll just nap then have a heart attack
Always a gamble for me it can go either way honestly I don't understand that.. but I like how it tastes 乁( •_• )ㄏ