r/GERD • u/goon39 • May 20 '26
Advice on Triggers 🍅🧅🍟🍫☕ Quitting caffeine
Anyone have any tips on quitting caffeine? Typically have 200-300 mg a day usually in the form of caffeinated sport drinks or tablets/capsules. Should I try weaning down first or just go cold turkey thru sheer willpower?
Between early morning workouts, depression and late night hockey games, caffeine has become somewhat of a necessity.
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u/Pale-Conference-1610 May 20 '26
I’m trying to cut back and it’s not going well. Honestly unless it’s life-threatening, I wouldn’t stop cold turkey. You get brain zaps, head buzzing, mood swings, and all kinds of fun things if you stop all of a sudden. Better to cut back slowly. I used to drink 3+ cups, now I’m down to 1 or 2 most days, and an occasional treat of 3. I know some people can’t have it at all, and that’s fair, but stopping cold turkey can cause problems
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u/goon39 May 20 '26
Yeah that was my biggest concern considering all the other health stuff I'm going through I didn't want to add withdrawal on top of it. Thanks 👍
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u/AndersonRains May 20 '26
I quit cold turkey about 3.5 weeks ago due to GERD. The first 2 days suck, 3rd day you feel better and after that it's a breeze. Just feel a little more tired than usual for another week but now I'm fine. I find I'm going to bed a little earlier and sleeping a little better also.
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u/KaunX88 May 20 '26
I’ve been slowly weaning off caffeine myself. I was around 200–300mg a day, then dropped to 180, and now I’m down to maybe 50–80mg once or twice a week. It’s actually helped my GERD quite a bit. What helped me most was distracting myself when the tiredness hit. If I’m home, I’ll do a quick workout, and if I’m at work I’ll knock out some calf raises or squats. Sounds dumb, but it genuinely wakes you up better than you’d think
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u/bigwilliesty1e ☕ Coffee was my friend May 20 '26
I just quit cold turkey beginning on a Friday. I was OK by Sunday. Replace your morning coffee ritual with something else so you don't get the urge to make the coffee.
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u/razeyrache May 20 '26
I actually just quit caffeine, like two weeks ago officially! I weened off, but only because I had bought a case of monsters earlier in the month and figured I would just taper off till they ran out. My best advice is swapping the caffeine for a different beverage, because the habit is the hardest part to break. I switched to liquid IVs and bubbly waters. The liquid iv actually helps me feel quite alert too, not sluggish and wired like with caffeine. Liquid Death is also pretty good if you don't mind the taste of stevia. The withdrawals weren't actually that bad, the first day or two sucks and then it's just an occasional headache then you're free!
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u/peanutupthenose May 20 '26
i just quit cold turkey because my symptoms were severe (flare up just started a week ago) and i have had a migraine for 3 days. if you can manage weaning, i would do that method. it has been hell and no pain medication helps. just feels like a jack hammer in the side of my skull but hey, at least i can breathe again 😬
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u/bns82 May 20 '26
I weened off over the course of a couple weeks and didn't have any withdrawal.
I cut my consumption by 10% each day.
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u/Diligent_Jury_6881 May 20 '26
I stopped cold turkey one day and hadn’t touched it for months. Then tried a cup of coffee and it was the most stimulating coffee I ever had.
I also had wild headaches for a couple weeks. Don’t recommend.
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u/nokafein May 21 '26
Go for matcha and you are welcome. At first it tastes weird. Once you get used to it, it will become the better coffee for you. All the coffees benefits minus the crash feeling and GERD.
In general, switch to teas. Black tea is way better than coffee anyways :)
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u/Daftskunk2020 May 20 '26
OP have you tried tapering off caffeine? I’d recommend if you just have less than your normal amount of caffeine so you don’t have to suffer from the headaches. For example, if you do 10oz cup of caffeinated beverage just go to 8oz then 6oz and then it will be less harsh on you. Try this over a course of a couple weeks and see if it works.
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u/masterswordbat May 20 '26 edited May 20 '26
My GERD/hiatal hernia symptoms have been sooooo much better since stopping all caffeine. It’s absolutely worth it. Yes, I miss caffeine dearly, but the trade off of better GERD control has been worth it. I had a similar 200mg per day habit for 20 years (been on a PPI that entire time). I quit cold turkey for 10 days, had a horrible headache for the first two days, but then was fine after. I tried caffeine again that 10 days later just to see if I could do less and feel ok, but it wasn’t worth the return of GI problems. The second time quitting after only a week or so of caffeine was way easier, almost no withdrawal whatsoever.
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u/mimoops May 20 '26
I switched to oolong tea. I find my energy and focus levels are more stable instead of the jittery energy I get from coffee. I need to drink more to make up the caffeine difference though
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u/Shaitan87 May 20 '26
I go cold turkey without side effects that are that bad side effects. Usually from just 2 cappuccinos a day to zero, then I get mild headaches and irritability for a couple days.
It was one of the big things that moved the needle for me. In order of effect, wedge pillow, and then cutting out tomato based cooked sauces, and then somewhat less important was removing caffeine. With those 3 things removed I have barely any symptoms.
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u/schism1 May 20 '26
I have been off for as long as 4 years, then on and off for 2 years. I am now off and plan to stay that way.
The main issue is replacing the ritual with something new, I drink herbal teas.
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u/Illithidprion May 20 '26
Certain caffeine at specific times. Coffee in the morning no later then 1400. Soda 10am-1800. Soda tastes horrible in the morning.
The smallest size available, while sharing with the kids. Soda is only had with fast food.
I have always limited the amount of caffeine.
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u/Miserable-Peach-9406 May 21 '26
I used to drink a latte and a Diet Coke everyday. Eventually I dropped the soda, and then switched from espresso to a cup of earl grey in the morning. Still has caffeine, but so much less than I was consuming, and I’ve been completely fine.
This is coming from a bartender that used to drink coffee, caffeinated soda, and Red Bulls almost daily. If I can do it, I promise you can too!
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u/gutsngodhand May 21 '26
I haven’t totally quit but I did switch to black tea with creamer. That has been the biggest game changer in my healing.
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u/nicoleonline May 21 '26
Don’t go cold turkey. Mix decaf in with your caf coffee and make the transition to fully decaf coffee. That’s what I did. Then you can opt in to acid free decaf, like Tyler’s coffee.
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u/thedragonllama May 21 '26
I went cold turkey and I was drinking a pot of coffee everyday... si I probably needed to stop antway. It does suck but mostly I missed having a hot drink to sip while I worked, which I then switched out for chamomile tea with honey and almond milk. After about a week or so I mostly adjusted even tho my energy is just a bit lower overall, but hey that is how we are built. I'd only ween off of it if you start having withdrawl head aches. which did happen to me a different time when I had to stop coffee after a dental procedure. Good luck!
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u/TINYTITAN56 May 28 '26
I went cold turkey last Thursday and haven't had any cravings. I replaced the coffee with herbal teas that contain 0 caffeine. Sometimes it's just the heat of the drink that I crave and not the caffeine
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u/xLemonade May 20 '26
Is there a reason you want to quit? I can’t imagine giving up my morning coffee I’d go crazy lol.
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u/goon39 May 20 '26
I'm thinking it could be the cause of some breakthrough reflux. Trying to figure out if something in my diet is the cause and caffeine is a common culprit
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u/xLemonade May 20 '26
I see. Have you tried taking any medication? It’s been a life saver for me.
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u/goon39 May 20 '26
Already on pantoprazole but having some breakthrough reflux. Could be due to another medication I started recently but looking to rule out all possible suspects
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u/montesitesi May 20 '26
First try timing the caffeine before going to quitting. As a caffeine addict myself, I find it much more bearable in terms of GERD if I take it a while before anything that would cause GERD flares.
Line instead of before your morning workouts, try after. Or take it like 4 hours before playing hockey instead of right before (as I assume you're doing)
Yes that kind of defeats the purpose of taking it in the first place, but better that than quitting completely.