Latest / Callum Walker | Figuring It Out / #103 - How Caffeine Impacts ADHD & What To Do About It

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#103 - How Caffeine Impacts ADHD & What To Do About It · Callum Walker | Figuring It Out

0:03
Callum Walker: If fear is the only thing stopping us from achieving our dreams and we only fear what we don't understand, then the antidote to fear is knowledge. All we have to do is find out who has the knowledge that we need to conquer our fears and achieve our entrepreneurial dreams. My name is Callum Walker, and welcome to the podcast that will help you figure it out and conquer this lonely entrepreneurial journey. Hello everybody and welcome to the podcast. So today I'm gonna be talking all about caffeine but specifically like I've spoken a fair amount about caffeine on this podcast beforehand but specifically I want to talk to you about kind of caffeine and ADHD.
0:48
Now if you have ADHD this will help you immensely and if you don't have ADHD this will also help you immensely because I think one thing with caffeine that we've got to be really like aware of is the fact that it's not just a normal drug like it is a legitimate drug. Sorry, it's not just a normal drink like it's a legitimate drug. It's a psychoactive substance that definitely changes the chemistry in our brain. And when the chemistry in our brain changes, then naturally the thoughts that we have and the way that we operate also completely changes. And I think that that's something that's not really kind of spoken about where it's just like, right, just go and have a coffee.
1:25
You know, I have this amount of coffee and whatever. But it can really kind of fuck you up if you don't control your dose of caffeine. Now I think one thing that's really important with caffeine just to start off with is that everyone does have their own tolerance to caffeine. So you do find that some people and I'm not talking about the tolerance from like an addictive perspective of, oh, I drink loads of coffee, it doesn't affect me. I mean more from like a genetic standpoint that you find that genetically some people just aren't really very sensitive to caffeine so off the back of that it means that it doesn't really kind of affect them as much.
2:01
So I think that you like One, there's a self awareness to it, but I think you kinda know whether caffeine really impacts you or not. I know like between me and Alice, my partner, caffeine doesn't really seem to have much of an impact on her, but it definitely impacts me. So I think the first thing is that for yourself, you know, in terms of like who you're coaching, it's really important to understand that caffeine will have an impact on a variety of different clients that you have in a different way. But then also for yourself that caffeine will have a different impact on you as it will with other people. So if you do find that caffeine does really kind of impact you that's really really important to not almost kind of like play it down and it's really important that you take advice from other people who are also very very sensitive to caffeine.
2:53
Now specifically I'm going to talk about it from like an ADHD perspective. So more recently what I've done is I've actually cut my caffeine down by a 100%. So I have completely massively ramped my caffeine down and I'll talk about why I've ramped my caffeine down in a second. Specifically I want to kind of talk about caffeine and ADHD and how it can actually be a real good way of self medicating if it's done correctly. So if you do it correctly you can actually self medicate your ADHD.
3:32
Now it's really important we actually understand what ADHD is. When you kind of think about ADHD the first thing that will come to your head will be like a psycho little kid running around at a kid's birthday party who's eaten far too many smarties and just caused absolute chaos and most of the time you do find that that probably was an ADHD kid. But when we look at ADHD it's not necessarily that, It's actually really primarily to do with dopamine. Now again like a lot of people think about dopamine in the wrong way they associate dopamine with just like the thing that gets you addicted to TikTok and gives you a sense of pleasure. And although dopamine may give you a feeling of pleasure, it's not necessarily actually, responsible just for pleasure.
4:25
It's actually more of a molecule of motivation. And you'll understand why it can really kind of help with medicating ADHD so to speak because what you actually find is that individuals with ADHD naturally have a lower level of dopamine in their body, which actually means that typically, although we kind of think of like an ADHD individual as someone who's scatty, chaotic, all over the shop, running around like a lunatic, you actually find that at baseline that people with ADHD can actually lack a distinct amount of motivation and drive and that's because they lack a distinct amount of dopamine. So let's say that like the normal level of dopamine in a non ADHD individual is at zero. Someone with ADHD is actually at minus two. So when we look at how caffeine kind of comes into play here, if someone's at minus two naturally, they're kind of missing out on this like this drive, this go, this I'm gonna move.
5:32
So you find people with ADHD can actually lack that motivation and that drive but what happens is that they can naturally have a brain that is seeking out dopamine because the brain is naturally low in dopamine. It's at negative two, which means that it's seeking for things that are going to take it from negative two to zero. And what caffeine does as well as multiple different things, it increases dopamine. So with the right amount of caffeine at the right dose, caffeine can actually take someone with ADHD from minus two to zero, which means that effectively you can like recalibrate. And I know for myself, if I have a cup of coffee, I'm like, oh my god, I can think.
6:14
I can think. I can operate in this world. Like and without it, I'm like, I just I'm just a zombie. I'm just a mess. Not a mess, but just I just can't really kinda get stuff, like, done almost.
6:27
Now here's where the problem lies. Go and have some coffee. I get from minus two to zero and I'm like, oh my god, I can think. I feel good. I can solve problems.
6:38
And then what happens is you then get this voice inside which then goes go and have another one and that's where the problem lies because naturally you have a brain that is seeking dopamine. You've effectively given it a substance that drives up the dopamine but then that dopamine then kind of drives up more motivation, more drive to go go and get some more. So then I go and get some more and then problem well the problem then is that then you go and take on too much caffeine which then the original bit of caffeine got you from minus two to zero, but then this caffeine then takes you from zero to plus two. And that's where caffeine can be a problem because that's where we then get hyper aroused. That's where we have too much stimulation.
7:24
So someone with ADHD naturally has a low level of stimulation. We then give it the right amount of stimulation to get from minus two to zero but then the problem is that then there's this internal drive, this craving, this addiction so to speak to go go and have another one. So you do also find this with alcohol like I don't know if you kind of noticed that you know if you ever drink alcohol you go and have a beer and you're like oh my god I feel really really good I want to maintain this level so what I'll do is I'll drink some more But what that actually does is it takes you on a steep curve down. And it's the same with caffeine that there's like the almost kind of like a harmonious dose that takes you to a certain level that you're like, yeah, can't good here. But then there's this internal chatter that says, and get some more, go and get some more.
8:09
And for me that go and get some more really, really results in some negative effects. I think the first thing and it's probably a little bit more kind of later on in the day that I get this is the anxiety. I get a lot of caffeine induced anxiety and I think again like if we look at how caffeine really operates, all caffeine does is it just heightens whatever state you're in. So if you're anxious it will make you more anxious but if you're like focused it will make you more focused or whatever. But again that only works to a certain point but what you find is that for me if I have too much caffeine I get really anxious but then also from a productivity point of view you might almost kind of think that like, right, Cal, take loads of caffeine because it'll keep me alert and focused, but I actually find that too much caffeine actually pulls me in loads of different directions.
9:02
I'll go down like a crazy rabbit hole. I'll work for like three hours and then I'm like, just worked on something that wasn't really particularly important. So I end up actually wasting a lot of time. But I think the main reason why I've really cut my caffeine down is primarily for the reason of anxiety side of things and not necessarily just the anxiety but if we almost kind of look at like running a business like running a business is incredibly uncertain. There's a lot of things that are around the corner that you don't know are around your corner and there's a lot of like anxiety that can kind of present itself off the back of kind of being a business owner.
9:45
And what I find for myself is that when I'm having a high amount of caffeine all of my fears, my worries, the potentialities that could come about they just get heightened. So it's almost kind of like caffeine kind of drives my mind to go to a place of extreme. So as an example, I've just like increased my advertising spend and if I've got loads of caffeine kind of circulating in my mind, my mind will almost go like, right, okay, you know, the normal mind without caffeine will be like okay right you know I've increased your ad spend you know that could potentially result in a little bit of loss here here and here but the caffeinated mind goes even further and is like we could lose all of our money and that's why I'm like I don't need that in my life. I don't need that in my life. But I've also been through a period where I have cut caffeine out completely and I have been fully decaffeinated and I did that during lockdown.
10:48
So for those of you who are listening to the podcast you might have heard this before but if you haven't then COVID was a really fun time for me. I think it was a fun time for everyone who was in the fitness space But I remember like, I remember when COVID happened and they basically said that all businesses that are in person like have to shut down. I was in a real problem because not only was my service face to face but also how I sold and marketed was also face to face. Yeah, I used to, the way I used to grow my business was actually through networking. So it's why I'm so hot on the referral side of things because like I grew my business before I even used social media.
11:35
Like I would literally just go to networking events, meet a load of business owners. They'd ask what do you do? I'm like, I'm a nutritionist and I help people lose weight. How many nutritionists do you ever meet in person anyway? And they're like, okay, I could do with you.
11:50
And I'm like, yeah, I know you could. Can see. And then they would sign up and then I'd get them a great result. Then their friends and family saw the result. And then they're like, where did you go?
12:00
And he's like, I went to Callum. And they're like, okay, I'll go to Callum. And then they'd signed up with me. So that's how I grew my business. It's why I've never understood like the you can only grow your business through social media.
12:09
Because I'm like, brother, for the first five years of running my business like I was crap on social media like I'd probably post like once a week maybe once every two weeks and if you scroll deep down in my content enough you'll see how rubbish the content was. But yeah, so I used to go to networking events. But the problem was that when lockdown happened, I couldn't do that. So I couldn't market, I couldn't sell and I couldn't deliver. And in a forty eight hour period, I lost 75% of my client base and it hit me.
12:45
It absolutely battered me. I battered me. I remember I locked myself in the shower for four hours and just burst out crying because I had no idea how I was going to do it. But at the time I was drinking a lot of caffeine and that anxiety, that fear and that worry, it just went, I don't know, it just went so high. And that's when I actually made the decision to cut caffeine out of my life completely.
13:09
And I was like, right, I just can't I can't have caffeine. And I also cut alcohol out completely as well. I was like, this situation is already kind of mentally hard enough. I don't need to throw any more fuel to the fire and, you know, screw my head up even further. So I went fully decaf and I went decaf for two years.
13:30
And when I say decaf for two years, I mean like I wouldn't even have a Diet Coke Because again like you forget that a diet coke's got the same amount of caffeine in it as like an espresso. So there's a decent amount of caffeine in there. So you know for two years like I went without any form of caffeinated beverage whatsoever. And I definitely felt a deep sense of peace, deep sense of calm, like everything was a lot slower. I felt a lot more present, but I also definitely missed out on that like that spark like that yeah like that that click and I definitely would say that that that is an aspect of the ADHD side of things naturally having that lower amount of dopamine but then what I did naturally was when I started drinking caffeine again I decided to go and drink a shit ton and kind of found myself back in the same sore spot.
14:24
See for about two years after being decaf I was in like a real kind of loop of like chaos caffeine cut it out, chaos caffeine cut it out. But over the years I've gradually kind of found the dose for me which is the right amount of caffeine that gives me enough to get going and be able to function but not too much that it makes me chaotic. And the only way that I've actually like done that is by experimenting. And again, like I mentioned that, you know, everyone has a different tolerance to caffeine. So some people are more sensitive to it than others.
15:04
So experimenting with that tolerance yourself is really important. But I recorded a podcast episode all on, like, the key things that you have to be aware of when it comes to caffeine. I think it's called Caffeine's Hidden Caffeine's Hidden Catch. I think it's like in the twenties, like, of my episodes. Like, it's like 20 something.
15:24
But if you if you look for an episode that's around the twenties around it, I talk about like the the difference in beans, the the way that you drink your coffee actually impacts the the amount of caffeine that you're actually consuming. So as an example, you've got two different types of bean. You have an Arabica bean and a Robusta bean. And both coffee beans have a completely different caffeine content. So a Robusta bean has twice the caffeine content to that of an Arabica bean.
15:57
So you might find that if you go to certain coffee shops, that you get a completely different buzz off of it. So as an example, I know that Starbucks use an Arabica bean. I could get a double espresso from Starbucks, but if I go to a black sheep coffee, they have robusta coffee. I could order a double espresso. It would be the same amount of coffee, but have twice the amount of caffeine.
16:19
And I found that one out in a very painful way. I was very sleep deprived. I had a double espresso from black sheep coffee and I just turned to an absolute mess. And that's what happens. Like if I have too much caffeine, it just like turns me to a complete puddle.
16:34
So so yeah. So anyway so yes. You've gotta be careful about the amount of caffeine that you're having. And again, that's beyond the scope of what I'm gonna go through on this episode. If you wanna learn more about like because again, like the way that you drink coffee, if you're having an espresso, a filter, an instant, the size of the grind, you know, all of these specific things have a real impact on how caffeinated your coffee is.
16:57
But I yeah. So so what I've found that for myself is that 18 grams of arabica so we've got like a little little scooper and basically like one scoop of that is around nine grams of beans. So two scoops of Arabica beans is the sweet spot for me. The sweet spot for me where I have enough caffeine to be able to focus but not too much that it turns me to a mess. And when I look at turning to a mess like anxiety, inability to concentrate, massive inflation of problems unnecessarily and then also as well the sleep deprivation that occurs later on in the day.
17:44
So so yeah, so just just be careful with coffee. It's really, really important that you are aware that it does have a huge impact, especially if you're ADHD. It will really impact you and also as well that the sleep deprivation side of caffeine will have a huge impact on your ability to recover not only just physically but also if you're ADHD. You know I find for myself I need much more sleep than Alice does. Like you know if I don't get my nine hours, my full on six sleep cycles like I'm in a real pickle and caffeine impacts my ability to do that.
18:25
So by cutting my caffeine out it really really ensures that I get a high quality sleep, I'm not excessively anxious but I do find that I've bear in mind I've been decaf for a prolonged time, having some coffee in my life is just real joy. It is a real joy for one. But then also I have to be really self aware when my mind goes, go and have another, go and have another, go and have another. And, and yeah, like, cause you're almost kind of chasing like false creativity that way. So, so yeah.
18:55
So yeah. So just be careful. Be careful with that around the caffeine side of things and never forget if every one of your clients gave you one new client, you've doubled your business. Have you got a client who isn't losing weight right now and you have absolutely no idea why? And maybe you're worrying that if nothing changes, they could drop off at any moment?
19:16
Well, I've got a free nutrition master class for you where I reveal the secret nutrition strategy that guarantees that that stuck client loses two to four pounds in the next seven days without lowering their calories, upping their cardio, or even tracking macros. Click the link in the description to get access to the free elite nutrition secrets masterclass and get your client moving in the right direction, stopping them dropping off today.