I’d like to present myself as a plus-plus result to this same phenomenon. I’ve became sensitized to coffee and had to drop it completely, because the results started becoming calamitous. I have celiac disease, have some sort of intolerance to milk, even lactose free, and have strong hay fever in the late summer. An overreactive immune system, in short.
By sensitization I do not mean an exceptionally strong stimulant effect, but the sort of sensitization that develops upon repeated chronic exposure to a specific pollutant, often familiar to industrial workers. Some examples are the dust of many exotic woods, many harsh chemicals and other stuff.
When I consume coffee, I get the normal stimulating effects in about 20 minutes. Roughly an hour after imbibing the negatives start developing: - My energy levels crash, my joints, especially my in shoulders, knees and elbows start aching and lose flexibility. I get pulled into a hunched, tense posture. My feet sometimes get painful cramps - I become distressed, panicky and lose the ability to lead effective trains of thought. - Work and other accidents happen at an alarming rate. - Often I crash so hard I have to lie down to sleep, which usually lasts from the afternoon to the next morning, when I absolutely have to wake up for work.
Any kind of coffee causes these symptoms, from cheap instant nescafés through quality capsules to freshly ground roasted beans. I once got violent diarrhea and got knocked out for about 20 hours from an especially strong little cup of artisan coffee from a hipster coffee shop. My friends who drank the same had no ill effects.
I’m definitely not sensitized to caffeine. I can consume tea, chocolate, caffeine pills, even the “big bad” monster energy drinks without getting any symptoms. Too much caffeine definitely has it’s negatives, but so does sugar, ever more so. For this reason I found sugar free energy drinks better instead of tea, which I drink only with sugar.
It took a noticeably long time to convince myself to drop coffee completely, even once symptoms were obvious. I acquired a good taste for it, consumed it by the mugful for many years without problems and the symptoms developed very slowly over the years. When I’m tired and my willpower is weak, I still rarely find myself acractically accepting a cup if offered and there are no alternatives. I have an addiction to stimulants, clearly.
Other people’s disbelief of this reaction also made it much more difficult than it had to be. They act very sure of themselves, as if their beliefs are more applicable than my own direct somatic and mental experience. Having in mind the Typical Mind Fallacy and the Dunning-Kruger effect helps protect against this, but I found a simple “No thanks”, strictly without explanation, the wisest answer.
This report ballooned out quite much, but I hope it will be beneficial to others who find themselves in the same boat.
TL;DR: It’s rare, but one can insidiously slowly develop an inflammatory reaction to some other component in coffee other than caffeine.
I’d like to present myself as a plus-plus result to this same phenomenon. I’ve became sensitized to coffee and had to drop it completely, because the results started becoming calamitous.
I have celiac disease, have some sort of intolerance to milk, even lactose free, and have strong hay fever in the late summer. An overreactive immune system, in short.
By sensitization I do not mean an exceptionally strong stimulant effect, but the sort of sensitization that develops upon repeated chronic exposure to a specific pollutant, often familiar to industrial workers. Some examples are the dust of many exotic woods, many harsh chemicals and other stuff.
When I consume coffee, I get the normal stimulating effects in about 20 minutes. Roughly an hour after imbibing the negatives start developing:
- My energy levels crash, my joints, especially my in shoulders, knees and elbows start aching and lose flexibility. I get pulled into a hunched, tense posture. My feet sometimes get painful cramps
- I become distressed, panicky and lose the ability to lead effective trains of thought.
- Work and other accidents happen at an alarming rate.
- Often I crash so hard I have to lie down to sleep, which usually lasts from the afternoon to the next morning, when I absolutely have to wake up for work.
Any kind of coffee causes these symptoms, from cheap instant nescafés through quality capsules to freshly ground roasted beans. I once got violent diarrhea and got knocked out for about 20 hours from an especially strong little cup of artisan coffee from a hipster coffee shop. My friends who drank the same had no ill effects.
I’m definitely not sensitized to caffeine. I can consume tea, chocolate, caffeine pills, even the “big bad” monster energy drinks without getting any symptoms. Too much caffeine definitely has it’s negatives, but so does sugar, ever more so. For this reason I found sugar free energy drinks better instead of tea, which I drink only with sugar.
It took a noticeably long time to convince myself to drop coffee completely, even once symptoms were obvious. I acquired a good taste for it, consumed it by the mugful for many years without problems and the symptoms developed very slowly over the years.
When I’m tired and my willpower is weak, I still rarely find myself acractically accepting a cup if offered and there are no alternatives. I have an addiction to stimulants, clearly.
Other people’s disbelief of this reaction also made it much more difficult than it had to be. They act very sure of themselves, as if their beliefs are more applicable than my own direct somatic and mental experience. Having in mind the Typical Mind Fallacy and the Dunning-Kruger effect helps protect against this, but I found a simple “No thanks”, strictly without explanation, the wisest answer.
This report ballooned out quite much, but I hope it will be beneficial to others who find themselves in the same boat.
TL;DR: It’s rare, but one can insidiously slowly develop an inflammatory reaction to some other component in coffee other than caffeine.