Who's staying away from caffeine?

[mrshall1027]

If you're staying away from caffeine, what do you drink besides water?  I don't drink juices because of the high sugar, not drinking a lot of soda (but I do indulge every now and then and have a Sprite Zero or Caffeine Free Coke Zero), and I'm getting tired of sparkling water.  I need ideas please!

[copilot2012]

My personal opinion is moderation. Same thing I apply to my almost two year old. I give her a lolli pop or candy but not every day. She can have a piece of cake or a small scoop of ice cream and go right to bed, she doesn't get a sugar high. My brother choose to never give sugar and when he does give his 4 year old son some...watch out. Could it be more, maybe, but he doesn't have any disorders. Just my opinion.

If you choose to breastfeed will you continue to stay away from caffeine? I personally chose to have a cup 3x a week through pregnancy and breastfeeding/pumping. I never had any problems with her reaction to caffeine in her milk etc.

Other ideas could be flavored waters, adding fruit to our water. Crystal light, lemonade, teas or iced teas. Sometimes just a splash of juice in a glass of water, or half and half.

[mrshall1027]

Jan 30, 2017 14:08:33 GMT -5 copilot2012 said:

My personal opinion is moderation. Same thing I apply to my almost two year old. I give her a lolli pop or candy but not every day. She can have a piece of cake or a small scoop of ice cream and go right to bed, she doesn't get a sugar high. My brother choose to never give sugar and when he does give his 4 year old son some...watch out. Could it be more, maybe, but he doesn't have any disorders. Just my opinion.

If you choose to breastfeed will you continue to stay away from caffeine? I personally chose to have a cup 3x a week through pregnancy and breastfeeding/pumping. I never had any problems with her reaction to caffeine in her milk etc.

Other ideas could be flavored waters, adding fruit to our water. Crystal light, lemonade, teas or iced teas. Sometimes just a splash of juice in a glass of water, or half and half.

I was much less strict when I was pregnant with my daughter.  I would drink a cup of coffee a day or skip coffee so I could have iced tea throughout the day if I was craving it.  It was the same with breastfeeding.  I also never saw any issues or reactions with her.  With this one, I'm high risk, so I'm just trying to be more cautious.  Once the baby is here and I'm breastfeeding, I will drink caffeine and not worry about it like I am now.  I also believe in moderation, with myself and our children.

[violajack]

I cut to decaf cold turkey with my first, which was a really bad idea. I was very much a danger to myself and others on the road for a good two weeks.

With my second I cut back to one cup in the morning and one in the afternoon. And sometimes did two half-cafs instead of one regular.

This time, I need both cups in the morning, and would still have three cups for the first week or so before I could get down to just two. I should probably switch to some half-caf. I will still sometimes have a black tea or coke in the afternoon. That's as much as I can cut and still function, and with a pre-schooler and a toddler, I can't not function.

[cravingchocolate05]

I fortunately get an aversion to coffee when I'm pregnant, so it makes it easier. I drink hot chocolate as a treat and then just plain water or water with fresh lemon squeezed in. I'll occasionally drink Gatorade, but it's so much sugar and I get worried about the artificial sweetener if I drink the no-sugar Gatorade.

[greenball]

I'm not - I have 8 oz every morning (I used to have 16, my doctor was perfectly fine with 8 oz)

[Deleted]

I'm not. That being said, I haven't had a cup of coffee in weeks. Just the thought makes my stomach roll. However, a strawberry refresher from Starbucks, yes please!

[bsouls]

I'm not a coffee drinker, but I drink tea. I have about three cups of tea in the morning. I drink decaf tea in the evening sometimes. Tea has less caffeine than coffee, but I've cut back on my general caffeine consumption. I didn't completely give up caffeine last pregnancy either.

[yoshijo28]

I haven't had much caffeine since November. I drink decaf coffee or water. Sometimes I'll add lemon to my water. It sounds boring now that I said it but it's what I mostly always drank. Except the coffee used to have caffeine

[yoshijo28]

Or have you tried half caf? Thats good too

[jessa1228]

I limit myself to one 8oz cup in the morning and then that's it. If I want anymore, I'll drink decaf.

I'm basically only drinking water, although lately I've been on a kick with those Sparkling Ice drinks.

[jt2378]

Yeah averaging about a cup of coffee a day, sometimes none because it turns me off. I didn't cut it out and still enjoyed it all of last pregnancy and did continue while breastfeeding and it seemed fine.

I'm having a hard time getting enough fluids this time but adding fruit helps or making sure it's ice cold

[therealbug]

I have been caffeine free since mid-August when I went into prep for this FET (which was cancelled two cycles in a row . . . ) My RE prefers no caffeine and also was worried that I had a circulation issue that was interfering with implantation. This was our last shot so I was happy to drop the caffeine.

I drink mostly water, hot chocolate as a treat, and one caffeine free coke zero a day. I don't like flavored water so that's not an option for me.

[PepperPottsJ]

Dropped caffeine cold turkey... I have an occasional hot chocolate, otherwise it's water, seltzer, or coconut water. On occasion I'll also have Califia Farms Ginger Limeade, soooo yummy!

[addymac]

I rarely drink coffee but I drink a Coke Zero every night I'm at work. I sleep like shit so I need a little bit of caffeine to get me through the night at work.

[cwbh928]

My first I was much more strict with my coffee intake.. this time around, I am okay with drinking it under the guidelines. However, it's been tough to drink it because of my morning sickness.

I do drink ice coffee from time to time, because I need that caffeine to stay energized and to minimize my headaches.

I do drink a lot of water, which is good because the first few weeks I could stomach it. I also love chocolate milk. I normally use the syrup, but opted for ovaltine malt. It has good vitamins and is 99.9% caffeine free!

Ginger ale was my best friend for a while and now I can't stand it. I have been staying away from soda.

[king26]

I have 1 cup of half caff in the mornings.

Otherwise it's water and homemade soda. I've been making grapefruit soda and ginger soda with sparkling water and a homemade syrup I've made. It's way lower in sugar then regular sodas and of course doesn't have anything artificial in it.

[yellowcat]

With my first I cut out caffeine completely in the first and second trimester (with the exception of chocolate). I never drink soda (just water) but did drink coffee and tea. This time around I have a half caf twice a day. The exhaustion hit me hard and I would not be able to function without it. I also drink decaf tea and mint tea. Have you tried making decaf ice-t (not the powder mix)? When I am out with friends who are drinking I have tonic water or seltzer with lime. That is about it.

[happyfeet9]

I freakin love coffee normally, so my last pregnancy the best I could do was to cut down to two cups per day. I didn't notice any negative effects.

This time around I can barely stomach it, so I can have at most half a cup a day. It's a blessing in disguise because I'm more concerned carrying twins this time around.

I do drink a lot of water, flavored with lime, lemon, orange, raspberries, mint, you name it. I drink some ginger ale and also herbal teas (iced preferably).