If you’ve had more than 250 mg of caffeine (two to three cups of brewed coffee) and experienced five or more of the following symptoms, says the guide, you’ve probably been caffeine-buzzed: restlessness, nervousness, excitement, insomnia, flushed face, diuresis (having to pee a lot), gastrointestinal disturbance, muscle twitching, rambling flow of thought and speech, tachycardia or cardiac arrhythmia, periods of inexhaustibility or psychomotor agitation (unintentional motion, say, rapidly bouncing one leg).
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This disorder, as it’s described in both the older DSM-IV and new DSM-5, falls under the heading “Caffeine-Related Disorders,” but in DSM-5, that section includes a new entry: caffeine withdrawal. According to DSM-5, symptoms of caffeine withdrawal include fatigue, headache and difficulty focusing.
“Caffeine is a drug, a mild stimulant, which is used by almost everybody on a daily basis,” said Dr. Charles O’Brien, who chairs the Substance-Related Disorder Work Group for DSM-5 (via New York Post). “But it does have a letdown afterwards. If you drink a lot of coffee, at least two or three [236 ml] cups at a time, there will be a rebound or withdrawal effect.”
I used to notice I'd get headaches on weekends; particularly Saturdays. After having had several cups daily all the work week, on Saturday I would just have one, and by late afternoon my head would hurt. Eventually I even figured out by myself that a cup of coffee would fix it.
Anyone who’s binged on caffeine then stopped, cold turkey, knows the withdrawal symptoms are anything but make-believe — the headaches alone can be excruciating. The question some are asking is whether it belongs in a guide devoted to mental disorders (or, for that matter, whether caffeine intoxication does).
Turning everything into a minor mental illness is in and of itself, a mental disease.
Yup, been there, done that. Try Mormon Tea instead...
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