It’s 2:00 P.M.
The post lunch sugar crash has me in its clutches.
I know coffee (while delicious) may facilitate a hypomanic episode.
But I’ve gotta have something in order to survive the rest of this day, ya know?
(Throwback to a green tea fueled PTA school study sesh in two-thousand-something-with-a-teen in it….)
This is when I reach for my matcha…
I recently reviewed this on my weight loss site because it’s (you guessed it) also great for weight loss. But it happens to have the dual effect of regulating highs and lows as well. (For me at least.) And keep in mind, this is just my review. If you read up on caffeine of any kind, you’ll be told that it’ll start an episode. However, what I’ve come to learn is that body awareness and moderation are hella helpful when it comes to finding a balance. Green tea is a good compromise because it’s a nice clean buzz without the jittery craziness that comes with coffee. Also, you can dilute it to ensure less ingestion of caffeine and avert said episode. Maybe it’s because I’ve been drinking coffee for so long that green tea is like it’s mellow little sister that I can tolerate. Maybe it just affects me differently.
Or – maybe it’s because the advice to avoid it is too generic.
Seeing if there was any “science” to why my late morning matcha was so helpful without activating mania, I finally found it. Yes, caffeine can set off mania or hypomania when all things are equal. However, if you’re entering a depressive episode, it can actually help stave it off. What many of the conclusions we see drawn from research try to do is generalize information. You can’t generalize with bipolar. The name says it all. Sometimes you’re at one end. Sometimes you’re at the other. Because I’ve spend a decade now, tuning into my body to see what it needs when, I’ve naturally come to understand when it’s right to swill some green tea and when it’s going to take me on some horrible ride.
This is the stuff I drink:
After trying *so* many powders that don’t mix well and clump up, I love U Matcha.
There’s no cracky high. There’s no sudden come down. This emerald potion comes on in nice, tranquil waves of wakefulness. Each sip drives you into more awareness than the last. But instead of knocking things over and tripping over your words, you feel even keeled. Calm but “on it”. Ready to tackle your tasks with alacrity. This one’s my fave because it comes in packets that are easy to add on the go. It mixes well. You don’t overdo the serving. It’s all I buy now. Caveats are: don’t take it after noon (I don’t sleep if I take it too late), don’t do more than one (it might set off an episode – it def does for me), and don’t take it if you’re already doing okay – right in the middle. (Difficult for some of us – hi, I’m some of us – when we’re used to trying to see if “feeling awesome” can be improved upon further.) Try to take advantage of those days when you feel “awake enough” and don’t reach for caffeine at all. It can be easy to lapse into our old habits, but it’s always best to avoid something that might potentially set us off – if we can. That said, it’s better to have this stuff on hand versus a cup of jittery joe that’s almost certain to send us up the pole o’ mania.
Blood pressure issues and can’t have caffeine?
There’s an herb for that!
I’ve just begun new one for midday fade: Rhodiola Rosea.
Keep reading for my own, personal, yours-may-not-be-the-same experience!