here is a post from the adhd $ub containing a couple thousand annecdotes showing that it either makes us tired, or has no effect for most people with adhd:
(link in comments else aut0m0d flags this as being about r3dd!t drama)
one of the top comments was a guy saying he drank it to sleep at night,
and i personally wanted to test this on myself, i dont consume much caffeine regularly, i usualy have one cup of coke containing 30mg per day, but today i drank two cups of coffee (the first two of my life it, was fucking disqusting) and 3 energy drinks. i got 8.5 hours of sleep last night, and its 6pm, i feel incredibly tired, and have done all day, the most awake i felt today was in the morning just before my first cup. my heart rate is 58bpm as writing this, which is the same as usual, maybe a tiny bit more. despite me consuming about 350mg, and about half of that was chugged about 45 minutes ago, this is the most tired i’ve felt today.
i’m interested in the science behind why this happens to adhd people?
In: Biology
Personally I have adhd and don’t experience this but here’s why this is most likely to case:
People with ADHD’s brain don’t produce enough hormones to stimulate them. As a result, people with ADHD have trouble concentrating on mundane tasks because their brain is searching for external sources of stimulation. This can manifest itself with inability to concentrate, hyperactivity, impulsive behavior and insomnia.
To treat this medicinally, you generally take adderall or Ritalin, both of which are stimulants. Most people get a rush of energy when they take amphetamines but paradoxically, these meds can help people with adhd concentrate because it satiates the brain’s need to seek stimulation. Caffeine is also a stimulant so it’s not surprising that it may have a similar effect on some people with adhd.
It is also possible that some people making this claim are actually severely addicted to caffeine because they consume it all day, they don’t get quality sleep at night as a result so they’re always tired, but if they don’t get caffeine they have withdrawals, which agitate them, which is why drinking caffeine actually can help relax them or make them “sleepy.”
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