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Original poster

Coffee before bed

79 replies

Incognitomum11 · 18/05/2022 22:26

Ok, lighthearted but I’m suddenly curious.

since my teens (50 now) I’ve had coffee all day up until bedtime, often just before sleep to chill…
recently I got to talking with friends and several wondered if I have ADHD because caffeine isn’t meant to relax you…

I always assumed the “I can’t drink coffee after such and such time or I can’t sleep” were hugely exaggerated and a bit silly but maybe I’m the weird one…?

I guess I’m wondering if this is your reality as well rather than wether I should or shouldn’t have coffee before bed. 😉

OP posts:
cookiemonster2468 · 19/05/2022 07:22

It's a big leap to assume you have ADHD because of this. Do you have other symptoms?

Caffeine tolerance builds up over time and if you have always drunk this much coffee, your body is probably just used to it compared to other people who drink less.

ClinkeyMonkey · 19/05/2022 07:26

So interesting how different we all are! Like a couple of posters upthread, I don't notice any difference when I drink caffeine, no matter what time of day it is. No buzz and no effect on my sleep, which is generally poor anyway. I have tried avoiding caffeine in the evenings. In fact, I've tried avoiding any sort of liquid in the evenings, but I still have restless sleep and need to get up for a wee! While I don't notice any difference, I do get a headache when I miss my morning cup of tea, so my body clearly feels its absence.

Vikinga · 19/05/2022 07:26

I have adhd and don't feel any different whether or not I have coffee but only drink coffee in the mornings. I think it will affect my sleep but I have coke sometimes and that doesn't affect my sleep. Wouldn't feel like drinking coffee in the evenings though.

actiongirl1978 · 19/05/2022 07:27

DH has a coffee each night before bed and I drink decaf but I drink it all day and I drink ground espresso so cumulatively it does have caffeine in.

I also have dark chocolate with it.

I put my head on the pillow and sleep in nano seconds.

TitoMojito · 19/05/2022 07:27

I don't drink coffee but if I have energy drinks any time after about 6pm I'll be awake all night so caffeine definitely keeps me up! Same with those cold and flu tablets with the caffeine in

ClinkeyMonkey · 19/05/2022 07:28

Should have said, I very strongly suspect I have ADHD, but at 55 don't think I'll pursue a diagnosis.

actiongirl1978 · 19/05/2022 07:29

Re the dark chocolate, i eat 85% and I get heart palpitations if I have too much but they don't stop me sleeping, I just have dreams about plane and train crashes 😮

queenMab99 · 19/05/2022 07:49

I can and do drink coffee before bed, nothing ever stops me sleeping. I have only had valium twice in my life, when in hospital and realised it makes me horribly alert and jumpy, I just assume I am the opposite of normal🤔

CecilyP · 19/05/2022 07:56

I’m not a big coffee drinker - I prefer tea, but if I fancy a cup of coffee before bed, I’ll have one and it has no effect whatsoever on my ability to get to sleep.

Fairislefandango · 19/05/2022 08:09

If you google it, there are plenty of articles confirming that caffeine is tolerated and processed differently by different people. Some people's bodies process the caffeine far, far more quickly than others. With some people it is still affecting them hours and hours later. My dd is the same as me - coffee and dark chocolate make her jittery, and sometimes upset her stomach.

BrandNewBicep · 19/05/2022 08:14

In my younger days I always had a coffee at bedtime. Now I can't have any caffeine after lunch time at the latest. One coffee and I feel like I can take on the world, anymore, it throws me into a really depressive/teary mess. Its a shame as it is my favourite drink.

Peanutwaffles · 19/05/2022 08:17

My husband can have coffee and then sleep. I can't even have a decaff tea in the afternoon without struggling to sleep as it still has a tiny amount of caffeine in. People just respond differently to caffeine.

AbsoluteShambles · 19/05/2022 08:33

I’m the same. Doesn’t make me sleep worse at all. Possibly helps me sleep better but thats a complicated and boring story…

I do have ADHD though so I’m a bad benchmark.

Problemmo · 19/05/2022 08:58

Some people are more caffeine sensitive than others I guess. It’s perfectly usual to drink coffee after dinner in many countries. I can’t drink caffeine after around 2-3pm because I won’t sleep.

LoveItOrListIt · 19/05/2022 09:06

I used to be able to drink caffeine right before bed with no impact on my ability to sleep, but as I tried to cut down my caffeine intake, I got to the point where I can only really drink it in the morning now without it impacting my sleep. So moral of the story is, if you want to keep drinking coffee before bed, don’t try to stop because once you have you’ll struggle!

zingally · 19/05/2022 09:16

I'm okay with instant coffee up to about 6-7pm. But coffee shop coffee is an absolute no-go for me after about 4pm.

CrunchyCarrot · 19/05/2022 09:16

Caffeine doesn't stimulate me but it does act as a diuretic, so if I have it close to bed time I will need to get up three, yes three, times to have a big wee before I can get to sleep! I don't drink it anymore now due to histamine intolerance, but if I did it would be limited to morning/afternoon only.

crossstitchingnana · 19/05/2022 14:45

Some people are super-sensitive to caffeine, for some it has no effect whatsoever and there's the rest of us who are somewhere in the middle. I guess OP you are in the first group.

10HailMarys · 19/05/2022 15:42

I'm not really a coffee drinker but I drink tea all day, every day and often take a cup of tea up to bed with me.

I've never been a good sleeper, and lots of people told me I should give up caffeine and that I'd fall asleep so much more easily if I wasn't drinking tea all day/evening. So I stopped having caffeine completely for several months.

It did not make one jot of positive difference. I found it just as hard to sleep as I always did, only with the added negative of being more sluggish during the day. So I got back on the proper tea and I'm a lot happier now.

moomintrolls · 19/05/2022 18:23

I drink coffee in the morning, about 5 to get me going. Then I'm done for coffee unless I need a pick-me-up later in the day for a certain activity. Otherwise I'm winding down from about 1pm and switch to tea.

If I drank it more I feel it would diminish the effects of the caffeine hit in the morning and we can't afford to risk that!

Baby3at40 · 19/05/2022 18:38

I didn't realise anyone had coffee before bed until I met a guy in my 20's and his parents were great chefs who put on really nice meals for us and their friends etc.

We were staying over theirs and his dad made an amazing 3 course meal and we had a few glasses of wine but nothing heavy at all. It was getting late and his dad said does anyone want some coffee? To which the guy I was with and his mum said yes please!

They were lovely people so I could openly ask why we were having coffee just before bed? When the food and wine made us pleasantly sleepy so we'd probably have a great night sleep.

They'd never thought of it like that before and it blew their mind as they always had coffee before bed! It blows my mind that it blew their minds 🤣

IstayedForTheFeminism · 19/05/2022 18:40

Coffee doesn't affect my sleep either. Unless I have milky coffee (ie hot milk, no water) which makes me sleepy.

I strongly suspect I have ADHD.

Original poster
Incognitomum11 · 19/05/2022 18:43

@girlmom21 its been that way from the start though so not immunity build up.

@dementedpixie i used to be like this but I bought that level exercise help that you play video games in your mobile with and now sleep through… highly recommend even though costly

OP posts:
maddy68 · 19/05/2022 18:47

Always have a coffee to go to bed with always have

Need2P · 19/05/2022 18:57

Coffee used to keep me awake if I had one in the evening (I drink espressos) but now it actually makes me sleepy.