No More Coffee :(

mimmo124

Last week I got some bad news....I am to stop drinking coffee.

My doctor told me i need to stop drinking coffee to lower my heart rate. He suggested green tea, which as calming as it is, it doesnt really cut the mustard in the mornings.

The first three days of not drinking coffee was sheer hell. The headaches and dizzyness were terrible, especially at work, because withing 16 seconds all my troubles would be cured from just one ristretto.

Any of you tried to give up your beloved? believe me it was the hardest thing i have had to do 😛

regards
Mimmo

[deleted]

Obviously that means you need to find a new doctor. Commiserations nonetheless. Patrick

FreshCoffee2

Hey Mimmo, this is not necessarily a bad thing and many in the industry have been through it. It puts a realistic perspective on the kind of comments you get from some quarters about how they like their coffee strong or with a kick, double strength this, double strength that etc etc, blah blah blah. Strength and frequency of intake of coffee it is not something one brags about any more when your heart is beating itself erratically all over and around the inside of your chest ad infinitum. So take "heart" in the very true cliches about espresso and / or coffee such as "less is more", "drink less of them but make them good" etc. Maybe after you have purged your system, and with the approval of your medicos, you will be able to try coming back to coffee very slowly. Goodluck, FC.

[deleted]

Mimmo, That's terrible. May I ask, how much coffee were you drinking per day? Green tea is fine after a nice asian dinner but as a substitute for coffee? Yuck! Normally I wouldn't suggest it, as I've always thought "What's the point?" but what about decaf? I believe there are some good roasters of decaf out there, although I've never tried the stuff. At least you'll be getting the coffee taste(!?). All the best in your quest. Spjarli

mimmo124

Thankyou all for your comiserations. To answer a few questions: I was only drinking around three "shots" of espresso each day, one as a ristretto and the others as flat white coffees. Ok there was the occasional day when I had a few too many like six but that was quite rare. My plan is to not have any for a few months to see what improvements i get, and then will gradually introduce coffee back into my system, but only one per day. regards Dom

dcbc

70 cups in a day will kill you, so the way I see it anything shy of 60 is safe! Get rid of your doctor.

[deleted]

Damn, I drink (not for braggin rights) about 2 espressos before I leave for work, then often a double ristretto, and then maybe a cup of plunger coffee at work - normally that's it for the day, but it seems to be a fair bit based on what you say. Patrick

FreshCoffee2

Mimmo, a'facia du'cavolo! (correct spelling someone?) Here's a plan. Dad had the same problem recently. He was off coffee (for him that's espresso only, he's from the "old country") for about 3 weeks and then he tried one. No good, the ticker raced off again. He stayed off for a about a further 3 weeks or so and came back to good quality decaff, one per day to see what would happen. All was ok. He did the decaff thing for a few weeks, maybe a month with no ill effect, and then went back to real coffee at the rate of first one, then maybe two at the most espressos a day with no further problem. Less is more, he makes sure each one is made with the utmost care. FC.

[deleted]

The other option is to replace the espresso with whisky or vodka. After a few months, your doctor will tell you that the coffee wasn't too bad... ;D (sorry, shouldn't joke about health issues). Best wishes for the 'therapy' Related supplementary question for those in the know: Does a coffee made with a longer brew time (eg drip or plunger) contain more caffeine than an espresso (unless the barista has poured it over about 60 secs)? If so, what is the amount - is it twice as much, or only about 10% as much? Cheers Patrick

over_extracted

Dont worry there, the good all japanese have developed the first coffee plant that gives coffee beans (its fruit) with 80% less caffeine than normal plants (Arabica)so in a few years we can have a good cup without the supercharge in it.good luck OE ;D