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caffeine has become such a daily part of our lives, we usually don’t think twice about pouring a second cup. we have even conned ourselves into believing that that second and third cup (and fourth and fifth) is necessary to keep blasting through the day on high.

what you may not realize is that coffee is contributing to that chronic stress that constant stimulation is feeding. it pushes you further into the sympathetic nervous system and leads to the dreaded maladaptive resource allocation where the body is putting energy into surviving and not towards critical systems like your immune system and brain plasticity.

although coffee can be a wonderful thing, finding alternatives will benefit your stress levels and overall physiological processes in the long run — leading to a healthier you.

at the beginning of the day, you naturally haven’t used up as much energy. when the caffeine finally frees up the adenosine receptors late morning, you aren’t going to feel totally burnt out as there is only a small build-up of adenosine in the brain.

you reach for a second cup to give you a boost. the crash comes around 3 pm and your adenosine count is looking quite a bit larger than at the last check-in. the exhaustion hits all at once and you’re toast.

this is an important note for keeping our sleep-wake cycle in mind when it comes to caffeine. if we aren’t careful, those extra cups can throw a real wrench in our sleep plans.

caffeine also releases a neurotransmitter called dopamine, which is responsible for the sensations of reward, motivation and euphoria. when caffeine is ingested, dopamine is released in the brain’s prefrontal cortex. this area of the brain is where functions such as thinking, planning and judgement take place — the recently evolved high-order brain functions.

dopamine’s effect on this area of the brain results in higher productivity levels and a heightened mood. along with dopamine levels, heart rate shoots up, an increase of adrenaline and cortisol (the stress hormone) is released, attention and memory become sharper, and even our vision is enhanced.

do these symptoms sound familiar?

the reason these physiological reactions to coffee sound so familiar is because caffeine is a stimulant that can push your body into fight or flight mode. while sometimes effective, when you are already experiencing this mode from chronic stress, the brain and body begin to suffer. as your body constantly accelerates the use of your energy reserves via commands from the sympathetic nervous system, the caffeine crashes that you feel start to become more frequent and intense.

as a result, the brain starts to create more adenosine receptors in response to the caffeine hijack, creating a segway into tolerance and the need for more coffee to get the same energetic effect. sleep becomes a distant thought and our highly-important systems (immune, tissue repair, memory) truly suffer without this crucial rest, repair and rejuvenate time.

if this all sounds like a vicious cycle, you’re right. extreme exhaustion and stress have you reaching for that same cup of caffeine in the morning to feel more awake, and we start the circus all over again.

the solution? cutting back on the reliance.

having a cup of coffee, or your caffeine of choice in the morning is absolutely fine. keep it before noon and the body will be able to regulate towards the end of the day, creating time to activate the parasympathetic nervous system or ‘rest and digest’ mode. cutting out caffeine altogether is the golden castle in the sky.

finding an alternative to coffee/caffeine or cutting down can seem daunting, but if you experience high levels of stress (and other symptoms, as most do) it’s important to listen to your body.

it may take a bit of time, but awareness and proactivity will overall create a higher functioning body and brain. and you’ll be the one to benefit.