Caffeine withdrawal headache?

Manuel

I need help!
I drink about 4 cups of ground coffee in work every day, have done for months. Lately I decided to cut down, so to start I skipped the afternoon cup, and drank about 2 litres of water in the afternoon instead.

Since I started this new regime, I now develop a blinding headache every morning. It starts around 9 and builds up to a crescendo by mid-morning.

The odd thing is, I'm still drinking my coffee in the morning!

The only thing that has really chaged is the two litres of water in the afternoon replacing the one cup of coffee.

Can anybody shed any light on what feels like withdrawal even though I haven't stopped drinking coffee. My head is splitting!

(Of course it could be completely unrelated to coffee ...............)

Khannie

2 litres extra per day is a lot. How much liquid (in total) are you drinking per day?

As a start, I'd say drop the 2 litres in the afternoon down to 1 and see if that makes any difference.

L31mr0d

Maybe cut down the quantity per day, but continue to drink the coffee when you usually would.

i.e. drink 4 smaller cups of coffee per day.

Manuel

Thanks folks.
I just think it's weird. I wouldn't have thought water - even too much of it - could be in any way bad for you .....

The only change in my "diet" over the last week or two has been a straight swap - one cup of coffee in the afternoon replaced by two litres of water. And now my system seems to cry out for caffeine in the morning as if this 2 litres of water has created some imbalance .... I would have drank no water during the day previously ....

I'll try to cut out the coffee completely in the hope that the headaches go away ..... probably better in the long run

Khannie

Manuel wrote: »

I'll try to cut out the coffee completely

MY GOD MAN! There's no need for rashness like that.

Try spreading your water out over the day. 2 litres of water + 3 mugs of coffee is a perfectly reasonable amount of liquid to take in a day. Any more than a total of 3 litres and I'd suggest possibly adding some salt to your diet (if you're not doing so already and depending on other factors like exercise levels, diet, etc.). Low sodium levels (which can be caused by drinking a lot of water) can cause headaches too.

JPA

Replacing a cup of coffee with 2 litres of water seems really unbalanced.
I'm not saying it contributes to a headache but it doesn't seem like a decent swap.

Try spreading out the coffee more over the day, smaller cups and that and drink the water throughout the day.

Manuel

That sounds like good advice, thanks.
I was using the water as a substitute really, so I would just take regular sips from a large bottle and found it suprisingly effective as a replacement throughout the afternoon. Next thing I knew I had gone through 2 litres of the stuff.

The headache arrived again this morning, a little bit later, and then I had a cup of coffee followed by two half-cups later in the day. I feel a bit stupid talking about this because the amount is so small. Maybe I was drinking more coffee than I thought .....

I realise this is not terribly interesting, but I think I'll have to try cold turkey for a couple of days to see if it gets rid of the headache completely. if that doesn't work I'm off to the doc!

copacetic

It's at least a billion times more likely it is caffeine withdrawal headache than anything to do with drinking more water... however the timing is a bit off, you sure you haven't started skipping a morning snack or something as well?

Sparks

I'm not sure if it constitutes medical advice (which there's a site-wide ban on), but personally, when I quit coffee cold-turkey from 8 espressos/day, I had a week of crankiness, headaches, general unhappiness and cravings. More than that would worry me enough.

If you're phasing out the coffee though, I wouldn't just gut one part of the day and leave the rest intact, I'd reduce the amount of coffee drunk more evenly. Literally put away your current mug and replace it with one half the size - then drink the same number of cups at the same times.

Clinker

Even though my wife only drinks 2-3 cups of coffee a day (plus about 1 cup of tea) she gets caffeine withdrawal headaches and nausea if she doesn't get any coffee by midday. About a year ago she had to forego coffee for a number of days. She says she was over the withdrawal symptoms after two days. She went straight back on the coffee as soon as it was allowed, though!

ch2008

I have a coffee routine and always have a coffee at specific points, once first thing around 7am and then another at 11.30am and a third around 3pm. I find that headaches start to appear not only if I drink less coffee but also when I drink the same amount BUT at different times. Its like I'm in a routine and any deviation from that results in headaches.

May I also add that I usually dont drink that much coffee. 3xshots/day or 3x4oz filters.

Zapho

Yeah, headaches are definately a symptom of caffine withdrawl, but I couldn't imagine that
it would last all that long. Some of the advice on this thread looks pretty sound though,
like spreading your water in-take out over the day and what not.

Keep us posted on how the headaches progress. At the moment, you've essentially discouraged me from trying to cut down :P

seamus

Yep, used to get this myself. I'd normally have two cups of coffee in work before midday but on a Saturday, I'd be in bed usually till midday. I'd get up and by 2/3 o'clock I'd have a headache which would last until 8 or 9. Used to **** up my Saturdays royally.

I've switched to decaff now at home and in work - the only real coffee I have is first thing in the morning and I don't get the headaches on Saturdays anymore.

Black Swan

I've averaged 2 cups of strong coffee a day for the past 3 years. If I go cold turkey and don't have a cup for a couple days, I'll have a caffeine withdrawal headache. But if I cut it back to just one cup, no problem.

Manuel

Thanks for all the replies. Some interesting case studies in there.

I had my last cup of coffee at 11.00 yesterday morning. By 11 today my head was fairly splitting, but it's eased off a bit by now. I'm just going to continue to abstain until the headache is completely gone, just to confirm the cause for myself. I honestly didn't think I was drinking enough to have withdrawal symptoms, but it seems that others have had the same experience.

I don't plan to give up completely though! Hopefully next week I can return to a mild intake of milder coffee .....

Mr Magnolia

From personal experience I think the withdrawal symptoms can vary depending on various circumstances. I know that may read as vague but sometimes I suffer and sometimes I don't. Like anything you eat or drink it's all about moderation. The best way to avoid the symptoms is to just keep drinking it though :pac:

itsallaboutme!!

i get the same withdrawals from tea!

like others have said i have a bit of a routine, a cup with breakfast another by about midday another before 5pm and then maybe another before 9pm. i would usually only get a headache if i skipped the morning or afternoon cup the evening one would not normally bother me that one just habit really!!!

IsThatSo?

I get a withdrawal headache from caffeine and pains and aches all over, kind of flu like. For me it can take up to a week before I clear them all, but I have a serious caffeine habit

Hope all goes well OP

JPA

Question to the OP. Do you take sugar in your coffee?

Manuel

JPA wrote: »

Question to the OP. Do you take sugar in your coffee?

No.

48 hours now without coffee. I seem to be in the clear now, with the headache very faint.

Looking back, I think my problem was that I was drinking too much strong coffee in the morning - 3 and sometimes 4 cups between 10.15 and 1.00 - and then none or practically none after that.

My headache first developed around 9 in the morning, so I guess the burst of intake from 10.00 to 1.00 followed by almost 24 hours without was causing the withdrawal. The fact that I continued to drink coffee in the morning, although in smaller quantities, seems to have prolonged the headaches for almost two weeks. It looks like the headache should be gone completely now by the weekend ...

So next week I'll dip my toe in the water again and make sure I limit my morning intake to 1 or maybe 2 cups and keep drinking the water. I have no real desire for coffee in the afternoon.

Thanks for all the feedback. Life without headaches is good, but life without coffee? Never!

-lala-

Caffeine withdrawal headaches do go away. Sometimes it takes longer than others, but if you really want to cut down your coffee intake, just persist with it and the headaches will go eventually.

Manuel

I seem to be headache-free now, after enduring two weeks of them while I reduced my coffee intake. I went without coffee for about 3 days, and now I've started to drink two half-cups of coffee over the morning, and I've introduced myself to decaf tea in the evening. Tastes ok to me to be honest ....

So I miss my extra few cups of coffee in the morning, but it appears that drinking 3 or 4 cups of strong coffee in the morning followed by no coffee at all until the next morning was my problem. Intake imbalance, if you will .....