I know I should probably avoid pop (soda), teas, coffees and anything with caffeine to help reduce my anxiety. I should also avoid pop to help lose weight. However, I do like to have those drinks. It seems like when I drink caffeine, it doesn't always make me anxious. I could drink a few cups of a caffeinated drink without it bothering me. Other times, it makes me really anxious with just a little bit. Does anyone else have this happen?
Yes this happens to me. I think its about how close you are to overwhelmed, but its so impossible to know how you will react. A good rule of thumb is to decrease your caffeine to one serving in the morning only until you get a better hold on the anxiety. Once you start to feel more leveled you can work your way back up and start having more. As with all things anxiety its completely specific to you. So listen to your body :-)
Standard answer any doctor will give you is NO caffeine ever. You can look up a list of foods to avoid for anxiety online...let me tell you it varies depending on who you ask but you know your body better than anyone and you know if you get symptoms when you eat or drink certain things. I've been suffering with anxiety for over 20 years now and I know all the things I should avoid but sometimes that mocha frappe calls my name and then I pay for it later. I would suggest keeping a food journal and writing down anytime you have an attack or have symptoms and what you were eating or drinking during that time. Might help you to figure out what triggers you have. Also you have to be careful with things that you wouldn't think of with caffeine, like chocolate. Apparently it does pretty much the same thing or so I've been told. Good luck to you.
Not to be too disagreable to the last post but I am a firm believer that giving into anxiety makes it stronger. So if you begin to worry caffeine will bother you, it will. Now obviously its a minor thing and it is not vital that you have it so if it bugs you just get rid of it. But if youre like me and dont want anxiety robbing you of something you love, try to find a way to make it work.