Overstimulation fueled by caffeine. Quitting it was the best decision for focus and creativity. My findings - caffeine is an illusion of energy and productivity.

I work as a startup CTO, been in the software industry for 10+ years now. My work requires great attention to detail + creativity + calmness (I have only recently found that calmness is the most important piece of the formula).

I quit caffeine last month and it's been 42 days now off caffeine - no dark chocolate (or cakes with it), no green/black tea, no coffee.

Prior to quitting, I have tapered down for 2 months from 2-3 cups of coffee / day to 1 coffee cup + 1 green tea cup / day. Taper-down process was extremely helpful before preparing the cold turkey season.

Zero caff trip - Week 1 (W1) was pretty tough; after the first few days I've decided to start exercising early in the morning, collecting all the morning energy into a semi-intense cardio and weight-lifting session. This helped the withdrawal significantly. Also - I took ZMA before sleep (3-4 caps) and Ginkgo Biloba (60mg) 2x per day (morning & after lunch).

Let me tell you - I've been on caffeine for 10+ years now (since I was 17-18, mostly black & green teas back then) and, allow me to emphasize - YOU HAVE NO F****ING IDEA how deep and blissful your sleep will become.

Cognitive benefits have been incredible - extreme patience with tough problems & decisions, amazing focus, no more sporadic jumping from task to task in the afternoon (when the caff crash comes), calm, no-panic-mode mindset, better short-term and significantly better long-term memory (thank you, Sleep).

Also, as a strange benefit - I need less sleep now, can wake up at 5 or 6AM easily if I go to bed at 10 or 11PM. I get up from bed immediately and feel refreshed.

I feel my caffeine addiction made me a different person:

- always wired-in; unable to really notice the surroundings or other people's emotions / feelings (you need that when working with people)
- always looking for the next bullshit thing to make me feel busy & productive
- anxious whenever facing difficult problems (technical or social - like, having hard talks about performance, product direction etc.)
- associating my productivity with coffee / tea - meaning - I CAN'T WORK WITHOUT MY MORNING FIX. Also, consuming more coffee / tea whenever feeling anxious or frustrated. It's a vicious cycle.

SUMMARY - try quitting caffeine at least ONCE in your life and don't be afraid. Life's short, so please, try that. You may find caffeine is your biggest enemy or your best friend. But you'll know - you're strong and you made this experiment that millions are afraid of.