[Research] caffeine as an alternative to benzos

[mylo]

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10379625

if i'm reading this correctly, repeated dosing of xanthines, including caffeine exert anxiolytic effects comparable to that of diazepam.

long term caffeine use can also POTENTIATE diazepam.

i'm pretty sure this applies to most benzos as well. i'm just spreading this interesting article around a few websites for all to consider.

this is my first day trying this "treatment". 200 mg in the morning, 200 mg in the early afternoon. tomorrow i'll start taking it every 5 hours. when i develop enough tolerance i'll even take it before bed.

haven't read much on its effects on epilepsy though, but for those of you all who suffer anxiety hear and are unresponsive to benzos like me, might want to give it a shot?

 

[mylo]

as for what i experienced today: anxiety upon the first dose, 5 hours later the second dose made me feel calm and productive, but this may just be me.

 

[epileric]

I would be more aware of how you feel & not worry about the study too much.

First of all, the study is 14 years old, secondly it's done on mice and that fact alone makes it very preliminary since how mice react is not always how humans react, but also the abstract omits telling you how many mice were studied. Many preliminary studies have been done on somewhat insignificant numbers of animals just to see if something was worth researching more deeply.

Also, just because something reacts a certain way with valium doesn't mean that it necessarily applies to all benzos.

 

[CathyAnn31]

I'm not really sure about benzos and the like, but caffeine can be effective for some people with ADHD.

On the flip side, for some people with epilepsy, caffeine can be a trigger.

 

[mylo]

i thought caffeine was the only stimulant to raise seizure threshold?

and not sure, but i've been anxiety free all day

 

[CathyAnn31]

That's fantastic Mylo.

 

[mylo]

still following the dosing, but i went from every 5 hours to 2-3 times daily because i was becoming very anti-social and snappy/irritable.

still consuming 400-600 mg. NO anxiety whatsoever. taking my rivotril only when i'm stressed from now on, although i have to admit i've been craving it.

apparently long term caffeine consumption increases GABA receptor density (increasing seizure threshold, and decreasing anxiety). kind of ironic. benzo's made me more anxious in the long run (probably due to GABA down-regulation) while caffeine, an anxiogenic makes me calm after just 2 days of frequent dosing.

the brain is so complicated...

my poison is my anti-venom.

 

[mylo]

this makes sense... it can potentiate a benzo because it increases the number of binding sites in order to compensate for the GABA inhibition... it may even over-compensate as it usually does in response to medications.

long term use of any drug also alters gene expressions in receptors, so this may also contribute.

i feel like a guinea pig, but i have not much else to lose so...

 

[mylo]

well i've been consuming about 400 mg in two doses every day since i started this thread and all i noticed is that my anxiety is only lessened in the "coming up" of the caffeine and the peak, but once it starts wearing off i become depressed and anxious again, so it has me on an annoying roller coaster.

i'm kicking it tomorrow. here comes the massive migraines.. good thing i still have some some leftover 2 mg rivotril wafers...