Why Does Caffeine Make Me Anxious?

While caffeine is widely used to boost energy and focus, it can also trigger anxiety in many people. Caffeine is a stimulant which directly affects your brain function, resulting in nervousness, jitters, increased heart rate and anxiety. While the effects vary from individual to individual, it's worth understanding how we can mitigate such negative side-effects while still getting a clean, safe energy boost.

What's The Link Between Caffeine and Anxiety?

Caffeine is a stimulant that directly affects your central nervous system. Whether from energy drinks, coffee or pills, caffeine finds its way to your brain where it has the following effects.

1. Increased Adrenaline Production: Caffeine triggers the release of adrenaline, the same hormone responsible for the "fight or flight" response. This can lead to rapid heartbeat, sweating, and heightened nervousness.

2. Blocking Adenosine: Normally, adenosine is a chemical that promotes relaxation and sleep. Caffeine blocks adenosine receptors, preventing your body from calming down, which can contribute to feelings of restlessness and unease. This is also why you experience the dreaded 'caffeine crash', when your caffeine dose spikes and decreases rapidly after drinking energy drinks, coffee or pills. The sudden decrease in caffeine causes your adenosine receptors to become active again, causing the crashing feeling of tiredness and lethargy.

3. Higher Cortisol Levels: Excessive caffeine intake can increase cortisol, the body’s primary stress hormone, leading to a greater sense of anxiety and tension. This directly manifests as 'jitters' and uneasiness in many of us.

4. Blood Sugar Spikes and Crashes: Many caffeinated beverages, especially energy drinks, contain sugar, which causes a rapid spike and subsequent crash in blood sugar levels, exacerbating feelings of irritability and anxiousness on top of the aforementioned 'energy crash'.

Is There A Better Solution?

These days, there is a myriad of options to get your caffeine fix. STIM is the new, space-age way to get fast, convenient energy that tastes great. STIM is an oral dissolving strip which you place on your inner cheek, allowing caffeine absorption directly in your mouth and bypassing the digestive system.

1. Time Release Caffeine For A Smoother Boost: STIM is the world's first oral dissolving strip containing time release caffeine, giving you a smoother, sustained boost not possible in energy drinks, coffee and pills. Traditionally, your body absorbs the full caffeine dose at one go, resulting in a sudden, uncontrolled spike which causes anxiety, jitters and stomach upsets. But the trouble is not over yet. This 'caffeine spike' suddenly plummets resulting in the dreaded post-caffeine crash, causing tiredness and lethargy to return just as quickly.

2. No Spikes And Crashes: Time release caffeine in STIM is encapsulated in a liposomal layer, allowing the caffeine dose to be released smoothly in a controlled manner in the brain. This avoids sudden spikes and crashes, ensuring you receive the right amount of caffeine across your day.

3. Faster Absorption Avoiding Jitters: Caffeine in STIM Energy Strips is absorbed sublingually (in the mouth), meaning it bypasses the digestive system unlike energy drinks, coffee and pills. This prevents STIM from acting on your gastrointestinal tract, avoiding jitters and stomachaches experienced by many.

While anxiety and jitters are a common side-effect of caffeine intake, there are new options to get a nice, clean energy dose. STIM Energy Strips are fast, convenient and great tasting energy without jitters, crashes or stomach upsets. While you may still want to have a relaxing cup of coffee from time to time, STIM gives you a handy boost in your pocket whether at work, in class, at the gym or on long drives and rides.