Caffeine. Is it actually that damaging??

[Sophist]

I know I've said it elsewhere on Gestalt about 17 kajillion times, but caffeine never seems to have an obvious effect on me. --Which on the one hand I don't mind, but if I have to pull an all-nighter, I've gotta be able to do it on my own initiative rather than with help. Which is why I very rarely pull an all-nighter or am even able to stay up particularly late to study. I normally just chuck it in, go to bed, and wake up early to study.

[ozymandias]

I gave up on allnighters early in college. It seemed to have the opposite affect from what I wanted. Going to class sleepy and lethargic makes for bad learning. Your right, better to go to bed and wake up early to study with a fresh mind, then bludgeon a tired mind into cramming more info when it's already heading to shut down mode.

Speaking of which, I start my refresher course next monday. And it's an hour drive from my home to the college, so I'll have to get up earlier than I normally do. I am not a morning person, but, it's time to get back to work after 5 years. Also haven't had a class room experience in a long time.

[Sophist]

Good luck!

[ozymandias]

Thanks!

[Aspen]

I gave up on allnighters early in college. It seemed to have the opposite affect from what I wanted. Going to class sleepy and lethargic makes for bad learning. Your right, better to go to bed and wake up early to study with a fresh mind, then bludgeon a tired mind into cramming more info when it's already heading to shut down mode.

Speaking of which, I start my refresher course next monday. And it's an hour drive from my home to the college, so I'll have to get up earlier than I normally do. I am not a morning person, but, it's time to get back to work after 5 years. Also haven't had a class room experience in a long time.

Is that a refresher course for nursing?

Good luck.

[ozymandias]

Yes, I've been out of the profession for about 5 years now. I'd like a bit of practice to reacquaint myself with lung sounds and other assessment signs.

[JoseyK]

Actually my doctor recently diagnosed me with prehypertension. I've been trying to eat healthy and exercise to keep it down but I'm curious if it's the caffeine I have every day that is causing my blood pressure to be slightly elevated? I stopped drinking soft drinks but I do have a lot of coffee in the morning. I know coffee is good for my asthma but is it bad for my blood pressure? I'm currently looking at health insurance plans and I don't want to have high blood pressure on my medical records.

[ozymandias]

It can be. Stimulants do elevate BP's. Best to somehow moderate by tapering off gradually. You can still have coffee, but at a lesser amount. How much do you drink??

[Aspen]

Actually my doctor recently diagnosed me with prehypertension. I've been trying to eat healthy and exercise to keep it down but I'm curious if it's the caffeine I have every day that is causing my blood pressure to be slightly elevated? I stopped drinking soft drinks but I do have a lot of coffee in the morning. I know coffee is good for my asthma but is it bad for my blood pressure?

If you are sensitive to caffeine, I wonder if it possibly could be contributing to your problem where you wake up several times a night even when your daughter sleeps through the night?

How high was your blood pressure?

[JoseyK]

I drink about 6-8 cups of coffee in the morning. That's all the caffeine I have all day but it is a lot. My blood pressure is about 135 over 90.

[goddessoflubbock]

I just read a study that said there is no link between caffeine and bp. I've always drank a lot of caffeine and never had bp issues. It also doesn't affect my sleep but I sleep weird anyway

[Aspen]

I drink about 6-8 cups of coffee in the morning. That's all the caffeine I have all day but it is a lot. My blood pressure is about 135 over 90.

6-8 cups a day does sound like a lot, though. I wonder if it could stay in your system in the evening and affect your sleep?

[ozymandias]

caffeine is usually metabolized by the body fairly quickly. It depends upon how late that last drink of coffee is.

[Aspen]

caffeine is usually metabolized by the body fairly quickly. It depends upon how late that last drink of coffee is.

OK. Thanks for the information, Ozy.

[ozymandias]

It's funny, but, in the early days of understanding ADD/ADHD, coffee was prescribed for kids who had the condition. I worked at a summer camp in 1974 and we had a young teen camper who had a doctor's order saying it was ok for him to drink coffee. When I discovered caffeine, (tea and caffeine pills), it was a revelation to say the least. Unfortunately, not being drug savvy, I would take the pills late in the day and would have trouble getting to sleep. Now that I'm on ritalin, the duration is longer lasting 4 hours or so as opposed to 2 hours or less with caffeine. Since starting on ritalin, I drink far less tea and no longer use any pills like exedrin which contain large amounts of caffeine.

During my caffeine pill days, I did occasionally experience racing heart beat due to taking the pills too close together. Fortunately, that was a learning experience that I learned from!