Posted by grapebubblegum on May 31, 2001, at 8:46:15
In reply to Re: ATTN: CAM W. » good4u, posted by Cam W. on May 31, 2001, at 8:12:07
Sorry to bust into this thread and divert the topic a bit, but when I see you, I like to pick your brain. Now, I am very curious about the omnipresent drug, caffeine.
It is widely held that caffeine can worsen panic disorder blah blah blah. Paradoxically, my worst episodes of recurrent panic attacks happened when I was for some reason on a caffeine abstinence kick. My dad was considered bipolar, and he told me that he sometimes drank 8 cups of coffee per day.
I crave caffeine and feel that I need it so I don't have that "slow and foggy head" and so that I can handle stimulus without being very irritated by it.
My pdoc told me this about caffeine: contrary to popular belief, people don't take it because it makes them "hyper"; rather they like it because it causes a negative feedback loop in something or other neurotransmittor that I can't remember... noradrenaline? Nor something? Sorry, I'm sorely lacking in neurotransmittor knowledge.
She said that rather than exciting the brain, the desired effect people crave from caffeine is that it reduces diffuse activity that makes people unable to focus. Therefore, people can focus and concentrate better, as witnessed by the proven effect that people do better on cognitive tests after taking caffeine. So, to wrap up my point, I find it interesting that someone with anxiety problems (me, although I consider panic attacks different from anxiety) feels much better on a stimulant like caffeine. Also, my 5 year old son who supposedly has bipolar disorder just like my dad did, seemed to do better with a can of mountain dew every morning (I tried this before taking him to the doctor for real meds) and of course we have all heard that kids with "ADHD" can sometimes benefit from a little caffeine in the morning before trying the big guns of ritalin and adderal, etc.
I touched on a lot of topics but my basic question is: can you shed some light on what caffeine really does and how it does more than just "pep you up" as is the public perception? What was my doc trying to say about caffeine interfering with the uptake of some neurotransmittor in the back of the brain and thus producing a calming effect?
I hope we are not all frustrating you by asking you harder and harder questions; we just see you as our window into better understanding, and we accept that you don't know it ALL, so as always, thanks for your time and trouble.
poster:grapebubblegum
thread:64805
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010530/msgs/64866.html