Caffeine Withdrawal
After having been punished with gruelling headaches and weakness for my lack of preparation of easing caffeine before fasts, I’ve now come up with a few ways of dealing with the issue. I normally fast on Yom Kippur and after a few long term fasts in the past (more than four days), I found drinking black coffee (the one thing I continue to consume in long fasts) to be intolerable.
So, what do I do? My first two attempts didn’t involve much preparation.
First, this is a warning and do not try this at home. I am not a doctor in any sense and it’s likely that for some people with underlying conditions, playing with caffeine can lead to serious heart and neurological issues. With that warning, just after my son was born, I was hooked on caffeine to make it through the day when I was up at night for feedings. Still fasting on Yom Kippur, I created a caffeine patch by grinding up an over the counter caffeine pill, mixing it with vaseline, and glooping it on an adhesive bandage on my shoulder, like a nicotine patch. I wasn’t able to find caffeine patches easily, so essentially created one.
The result, likely a placebo, was that my usual caffeine headache was lighter.
On other fast days where ingestion of anything isn’t as offensive, I consumed the equivalent of caffeine of my coffee. Not a good idea. Sure, I didn’t get a caffeine headache but I sure did get ancy. Again, maybe placebo, but the feeling of the caffeine was much different. I didn’t feel great consuming these pills. It made me feel like the character Jesse Spano in Saved By The Bell where in one episode she becomes addicted to them.
My last method was the most boring and I’ve done it now several times when I have some foresight. 10 days before a fast, I start buying decaf coffee. I then start at six cups and reduce down to one and then none. I’ll go through caffeine withdrawal and get headaches when I’m down to one cup of coffee, but they are by no means extreme. This time was the same except I had a great benefit. I was too tired by 11 PM to do anything so ended up sleeping for at least seven hours. How awful!
My takeaway… short cuts work for short periods and usually have unintended consequences. Most times, it’s patience and preparation that get us not only the intended the results, but usually provide an additional upside.
