Heart / Stress

Caffeine - Good, Bad, Relative?

It's something many of us take for granted everyday. A morning, mid-morning, mid-afternoon, or early evening caffeine break. Some studies say caffeine is good, some say bad. (Who funds these studies anyway?) I'll say, it's all relative to what is one's goal for a given time period, and life in general. Caffeine to me isn't good, isn't bad, it just is something we consume that has individually positive and negative benefits. What I once thought was "good" for me, I began to realize was not "good or necessary." The more I learned about how to be healthy, in the long term, both physically and mentally, the more 'negative' it became to me.

If you are a regular caffeine consumer and you try going without it for a couple of days, you will (most likely) get a terrible headache, become jittery, and more nervous. The headache will (often) go away in a few days, or less. But, because of this caffeine withdrawal period, you might automatically think - caffeine is "good." 'You may avoid physical mental pain in the short-term, but what about the long-term?

Caffeine isn't just from drinks, but also some foods and medicine. If you get through the headache, a question you might want to ask then is --- what is a headache? Is our brain (and heart) trying to tell us something?

Here is an interesting documentary on the history of coffee.

Pain Relief

Did you know caffeine is used as a PAIN-RELIEVER?

Controlling Pain with Caffeine (World of Caffeine) --- Why is Caffeine in My Pain Reliever (My Family Doctor)

What kind of PAIN is it masking? .....unpleasant / undesirable thoughts / feelings (a.k.a tension / stress). This is also related to PHYSICAL PAIN.

Did you know that our mind stores emotions / feelings separate from our memories? If you think back to an older event that was once fearful or traumatic, you may realize that this event or situation is no longer painful, or barely so. This pain removal happened because our mind has healed it, but the "unscary / less scary memory" is still there for us to reference - and that too may eventually be forgotten if not important. I mention this to illustrate that it is possible to maintain our memory but get rid of these "negative feelings." Once I realized that our mind worked this way (by observation), I was able to develop techniques to purge these undesirable thoughts / feelings much quicker than normal.

Everyday our mind & bodies are getting rid of negative feelings, but by suppressing our minds with caffeine, we end up accumulating more and more. Some might call these negative feelings -- emotional baggage. Our ability to suppress these feelings declines with age as we lose the ability to maintain our willpower due to an overall weakening of our physical health.

By suppressing emotional pain in the short-term we increase stress levels and aging on the inside and outside faster. We weaken our immune system, get more headaches, and become more susceptible to various MALadies (MAL = bad). It also makes us less joyful. If you want less emotional baggage, cutting out caffeine is a step in the right direction. There are various strategies for doing this, some more healthy than others. If you would like some tips on doing this don't hesitate to contact me.

Hard Working Hearts

I used to drink a lot of coke / soda pop, hot / ice tea, and (iced) coffee. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to take a photo with the barista at an American Juan Valdez Cafe, a chain that is all over Colombia. Since this photo though, I've completely eliminated any instinctual desire for caffeine or desire for their non-caffeined equivalents such as herbal tea or decaf coffee. I've almost completely eliminated any desire to eat chocolate too -- another source of caffeine. Eliminating chocolate has been harder than coffee / tea for me. Caffeine used to make me happy (as in the photo), until I realized that, we can't get something for nothing. Happiness is a temporary feeling that comes and goes, I have sought out a deeper, lasting contentment / joy.

Caffeine energy drinks 'intensify heart contractions' (BBC)
If caffeine intensifies heart contractions, does that mean our heart is working harder? Maybe caffeine is necessary in the short term for some goal, but is that good in the long term?

Leading Causes of Death in the USA (Centers for Disease Control)
Heart disease is the leading cause of death. What about suffering? People suffer from HEARTache, HEART attacks, HEARTburn, chest (HEART) pain... Conventional medicine supplies stents, pink liquids, and various colored pills to alleviate one's suffering. But what if we could get to the source of the suffering and eliminate it? Maybe all these maladies are signs -- that we should pay more attention to what affects our hearts! "All that glitters is not gold" I like to say sometimes.

Fresh Perspectives

By eliminating --- internal stress / tension / pressure --- everything gets easier in life. I used to need chiropractic adjustments and massages, but not any more. There were times I took medicine for back pain. My face has gotten younger due to the removal of stress. If one's goal is to last a long time like a tortoise (In the Galapagos photo), and be healthy on the inside and outside, then addressing BOTH the heart and mind is important. Too often, we focus on only one aspect at a time. We may fix one problem, but cause another because we don't understand the interconnectedness of all the factors that affect our health.

With this internal freedom from repressed stress, I've gained a fresh perspective on everything. And this quote that I've cherished in the past becomes more true everyday....