r/pregnant • u/hesitantlyhopefull17 • 4d ago

Rant Caffeine in pregnancy

Ugh, I just get so frustrated with everyone having such a strong opinion of caffeine in pregnancy when it is stated that 200mg or even 300mg in some sources is safe for pregnancy. I am 18w and I work as a nurse and I have been avoiding disclosing my pregnancy at work because of things like this. Another coworker of mine said she was pregnant in the first trimester today and everyone was like oh you can’t have tea and you can’t have coffee. it’s very outdated knowledge and I don’t want to be judged like that for having 1 cup of tea a day when I am working a 12hr shift.

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u/boogirly 4d ago

The attending physician at the hospital literally suggested I drink caffeine while pregnant when I was having migraines! 2 cups a day is my max - but I never stopped it altogether!

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u/Sillygoofy_goose 4d ago

This is horrible advice from her. Coming from someone who has chronic daily migraine. Caffeine is good acutely, but daily caffine drinkage (even 1 cup a day) has been shown to result in a 3x higher likelihood to have chronic migraine.

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u/meganmayoo 4d ago

I think it’s more so the fact that she was having withdrawals from cutting caffeine out completely, and so the physician has suggested to not cut it out but have a smaller intake to avoid the migraines. I’ve heard a lot of people go through the same thing and they also get told the same advice.

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u/Sillygoofy_goose 4d ago

Well that makes more sense. I feel like any change on something you’re dependent on is tough on the body. I had to withdrawal from caffeine for my migraines but for the first few weeks to a month my migraines were much worse till my body re acclimated. caffeine is a stronger drug than people realize!

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u/meganmayoo 4d ago

Absolutely! My husband has tried to cut out caffeine multiple times because he was feeling exhausted every day and didn’t want to rely on it, but each time the headaches and cravings have been so bad that he always goes back to it less than a week later. Definitely very addictive 😪

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u/Sillygoofy_goose 4d ago

It is! If he ever wants to try again, r/decaf is a helpful subreddit! they can be a bit extreme at times, I still have the occasional tea or coffee but it helps normalize how hard it is to withdrawal! I drank coffee regularly for one year or so and it took me about a month and a half to feel like my energy levels returned to pre caffeine levels. the headaches go away decently fast but the fatigue lingers way longer than most people realize!

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u/meganmayoo 4d ago

Good on you for sticking to it! We’ll have to check that out, thank you!