I’ve read many takes that say coffee just works by blocking the receptors that make you sleepy, but my question is, why is it upon drinking coffee that I experience more energy? The feeling is that it actually gives me energy, not just a baseline state of not being tired.
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The caffeine doesn’t block sleep, it blocks the feeling of tiredness/exhaustion and by extension the urge to sleep.
It’s similar to sensations of Hot and Cold. Scientifically, there’s no such thing as Cold, just a state of being Less Hot. However, if you put a freezing spoon to someone they are going to say “That feels cold”.
In the same way, your body uses chemicals to regulate all the sensations you experience. By blocking the markers for exhaustion, you experience “Less Tired” which you feel as “More Energy”.
However, our bodies are adaptive and if you are chronically blocking the receptors, your system will begin to generate more of them. You’ll need more caffeine to experience the same wakefulness. At times where you don’t take caffeine, all those receptors will be in effect and you’ll feel crushing exhaustion. It’s important to keep tabs on your intake and occasionally go on a caffeine hiatus to let your body re-absorb those extra receptors and reset. Otherwise you’ll end up drinking pots per day just to stay functional.
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