Have You Tried Caffeine Pills?

No, I've never tried caffeine pills - or Red Bull or any other energy drinks.
I can have one cup of coffee in the morning - and my bladder is pretty sensitive to it at my age - and if I have any more than that it'll keep me up for days.
My basic feeling is - if you NEED the caffeine to get you going - you aren't getting enough deep sleep to be truly rested.
Sleep is important.
Make it a priority.

Can you try something totally different such as healthy sugars like fresh fruit, or even a walk around the block - especially in the early afternoon?

I know this isn't the question you asked, but I think reliance on caffeine is unhealthy.

Why don't you just try exercise, eating right and drinking a lot of water.

You do realize that putting something like this in your body is not helping your body?

EXAMPLE: My daughter has recently been diagnosed with SVT which is a sudden irregular heartbeat which has put her in the ER 3 times since January and this summer she is having a heart ablation to attempt to control the attacks. Her issue is genetic and we believe brought on due to the stress of my husband dying suddenly in October and the pressure she puts on herself to maintain a 4.0GPA this 3rd year of college

BUT.....

The first thing Dr's asked her was if she was drinking energy drinks, taking caffeine pills, etc. She does not and never has. However, the Dr's said there is a huge uprise of young adults now being treated with heart issues due to taking the stimulants to get energy and such. These young adults are also facing surgery to correct the issues from taking stimulants sas caffeine in high doses.

Think carefully about what they do to your heart before you start popping energy meds.

I don't know, those pills are STRONG, I remember trying them when I was in my early twenties and they made my heart race so fast I never tried them again. Scary.
Eating well, being active and drinking lots of water will make you feel better, too much sitting, heavy food and sugar is what makes most people tired and sluggish during the day. I suggest if you still need a little pick me up you try to find a tea you like, there are so many, and they come in so many flavors and strengths you're bound to find something.

I hate caffeine pills. I used No-Doz in high school when I was working after school and trying to do homework. Those things eat your stomach up. I'd far rather have a cup of something real, caffeinated-- it's much easier on the stomach.

I tried them once in college. Never again. I was violently ill, could not sit still, and had constant needs to use the bathroom. I was trembling and my body temperature and palpitations went up and down until the effect wore off, luckily. About 5 years ago, a friend convinced me to buy one of those powders for exercising at the gym that was supposed to speed up my metabolism and get me to shed the pounds. He said it was safe and even said he had co-workers who took it too. I took it twice before I felt like I was having a heart attack and extreme nausea. Considering I did not have this issue before during my workouts, I knew it was something in that powder. Sure enough, caffeine was one of the first ingredients. High amounts of caffeine don't go well with my body. Your body may be different, but I would be careful based on my story and several others below and yes, it can have potentially harmful effects on your stomach in the long term.

It's a drug. A drug you can become addicted to. Why not eat food that is good for energy or something in the afternoon.

In the last few months I've driven my granddaughter to school. Getting up and out of the house wakes me up. I like coffee so I switched to decaffeinated coffee and feel fine. When I run out of energy in the afternoon, I go for a walk and feel invigorated. Exercise is much better for us than caffeine.

I drink seltzer water, which I flavor with juice. Much better than soda pop.

I plan to live a long healthy life. Seems like my friends are dropping out of life by 80. I'm 73 and going strong. They lived much of their lives in unhealthy ways. Eating and drinking in a healthy way, walking many days, is worth living an active life as I age. I suggest setting healthy goals will make giving up caffeine and sodas most of the time is worth doing.

I do drink some caffeinated coffee. Sodas are a treat. Moderation helps.

My daughter, as a teen, overdosed on caffeine pills. They can be dangerous.

They can be addictive & harmful for your stomach. It's a quick way to get an ulcer! Stick with coffee or hot tea. Oh and yes sleep is a great idea.

They can be dangerous since they are unregulated. Caffeine is a drug, afterall. No need to start a bad/potentially dangerous habit.

Try eating an apple and wash it down with a glass or bottle of water. It will perk you right up.

Good thing to stay away from caffeine powder, it has been banned for sale by the FDA though I still found it sold online. If you are looking for low dose, you could try the Crystal Light Energy or Focus powders. They have about 40 to 60 mg caffeine and you might like them over soda. And if you prefer the fizz of soda, you could add it to seltzer or mineral water rather than plain water.

Didn't you see what happened to Jessie on Saved By the Bell when she got addicted to caffeine pills? Yikes.

But seriously, how much soda are you drinking in the morning? Isn't there much less caffeine in soda than there would be in coffee or tea? I imagine you will have a harder time with the psychological withdrawal than the actual caffeine withdrawal. What about drinking flavored sparkling water in the mornings, to fool yourself into thinking you are getting that "fizzy" start to your day. Then I second the 'light cups of tea" idea to get you through the first week or so when you might get a caffeine headache.

I wouldn't. There's no regulation in this area, and you have zero idea what you're getting. The applies to a lot of supplements especially if there is no patent - did you see the news reports on GNC and Whole Foods for selling things which, when tested, had totally different amounts of vitamins or minerals, and sometimes none of the advertised ingredient at all.

As most athletes know, caffeine causes problems, including dehydration and, in some cases, heart rhythm problems. The dehydration is a big problem anyway, and it's made worse when people are suffering from sleep deprivation. Then there's the crash afterwards. The energy drinks are even worse - just way too much and impossible to control. Ask paramedics/EMTs how many people they are picking up who are overdoing those.

If you can't get going in the morning without a shot of caffeine, you're overtired and undernourished and possibly dehydrated. Everything slows down. You have to cut down screen time in the evening, have a dark/cool bedroom, and get more hours than you probably are. You know soda is bad for you but I think you need to go through the withdrawal and get it over with. You can expect a headache for a couple of weeks but push through it - that's the addiction part of this that makes you so dependent.

I work in food science with top people in the nutrition and epigenetics fields, and I only use products that are tested and whose ingredients are quarantined and pre-tested as well as tested after production. Most have patents (an accomplishment which most companies aren't willing to go through the testing/analysis, research, and expense to obtain) as well as the FDA Good Manufacturing Practices designation. Using real science and not cutting corners with cheap caffeine makes more sense for focus, increased blood flow to the brain, and stress reduction. That's the only way to go.

You can find power beans by Jelly Belly in REI and some Big 5's. A lot of cyclist or marathoners use them when they need a boost. You can get them caffeinated or no caffein. There are also other types of power boosters that they squeeze from a packet in their mouth. I worked a race once and they had me pass them out as needed.

My younger daughter takes/eats Juice Plus. It is food based protein and vitamin's. I read online they also carry an organic form of this at Costco. Online, they say JP is over priced. Anyway, I started her on the the milk shakes with almond milk in November. She no longer uses her inhaler every time when she skates. She has reduced the amount of cow's milk and perhaps that has made the difference. I have started her on the JP capsules and am not sure if that has helped or not, I noticed changes with the powdered shakes. She seems to be energized and hard working when she drinks the shakes or when she has fresh fruit smoothie. I have also changed her eating schedule and taken away all chips and crackers. I usually make her a high protein sandwich with a variety of fresh fruits. For dinner, a bean/rice bowl or meat and greens. This has all seemed to bring down her weight. As well, she no longer has sugars after 4:00 PM. Today was a good example of her energy. She is working toward a tryout in one more week which is a level higher than she was in last season. She knows to have any shot at this she has to work hard and increase her speed. I made her a shake and added a packet of Justin's Maple Almond butter. She worked out with 3 other guys who were around 16. Her coach kept looking at me out of the corner of his eye and walked by to say she was kicking their butts. She is 10. Also keep in mind, my daughter is a little on the hyper side and we are probably at our best blend of rest, activity, and diet.

Like everything, she gets tired of the shakes and starts refusing them. She goes through phases of no shakes. She went from about 2 months of no inhaler to needing it from time to time. Today she needed it during her morning skate and did not need it for her afternoon workout.

You may want to look at your diet to see if you are doing the old crash and burn or if perhaps you are eating too late at night. You have to order JP through a vendor and I am not sure if you would be able to contact the company to find someone in your area that sells it. It is an order/shipment program, so I am not able to purchase it at a store. You just have to make sure it has a food source as opposed to just the vitamin label. If you can get enough fruit/vegetable/protein mix out of your daily diet, then that should bring you plenty of energy. As for JP, I wish I could help you, but I don't sell it, I just buy it.

Make some changes and update us. I love that fact that I was able to see the results with my little one.

I took caffeine pills a couple of month in my early twenties. I had worked 24/7 on some projects. My mom invited me for a weekend trip. She really was mad at me not organizing my schedule better, eat healthier, doing some excercic but instead taking the coffeine pills. However, it is easy to get into a bad habit. Just do not start it and find out alternatives. For me it is black tea with milk.
Good luck finding the right thing for you.

i am not a coffee or tea drinker. and when i stopped drinking soda i had to do something for the caffeine withdrawel headaches. so i made tea, with honey, sugar and lemon. i would drink it hot or iced. and only when needed. only took about 2 weeks for me to not need it at all. now i will have a smigeon of tea or coffee if i feel a headache comming on.
i would also check out energy drinks like Lift-Off from Herbalife and i know Market America has something similar. as does Arbonne with their fizz sticks. (i don't sell any of these so you will ahve to find a rep near you to get them) i have tried them and know they do give you energy

I occasionally use No-Doz and haven't been harmed by it. I used it a lot more while in school and wasn't harmed by it.