Coffee detox
program.

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Program Intro How Caffeine Works Caffeine Use Disorder Benefits Without Caffeine Coffee Detox Program
For many of us, that first sip of coffee in the morning is the thing that begins to wake us up for the day. It kicks off our morning. Don’t even think about getting us to communicate clearly before we have had our coffee. But have you stopped to think about why you’re drinking coffee?

I liked coffee. The smell, the taste and, more importantly, I liked the ritual.

Friends, colleagues and the sprawling cafes on every corner made me believe that high doses of caffeine would allow me to do more and do it faster.

At first, it seemed promising. I would drink a large black coffee before opening my laptop and feel an immediate, manic rush of energy. Then, a few hours later, I would crash. The solution? Just drink more. This pattern led to increased tolerance, and increased tolerance led to the need for over 400mg of caffeine a day just to function.

I was addicted. Soon, the sh*tty sleep and sympathetic nervous system activation were killing my creativity and productivity—the very things I drank coffee to support. That's right, high doses of caffeine made me worse at just about everything: I was jittery, unable to think creatively under stress and dependent on a substance that causes withdrawals severe enough to be labeled as a mental disorder by the American Psychiatric Association.

What I didn’t understand then is that caffeine blocks the brain’s adenosine receptors, which tricks it into not feeling sleepy. This is great for keeping your eyes open in a pinch, but terrible for actually allowing your body to create energy for itself—something that’s done while sleeping. It also stimulates cortisol and adrenaline, which come in handy for evading a tiger attack. But for everyday tasks like designing a website, dosing up on hundreds of milligrams of caffeine is like using a flamethrower to light a candle.

I wasn’t drinking coffee because it was actually good for me, but because culture told me it was. Eight out of 10 Americans drink coffee, and the average office worker drinks 20 cups per week, but when I learned about the science and began to question its benefits, it became obvious that I would be better off without it.

So I dropped coffee and set out to find something better.

I quit my job in Silicon Valley and traveled around the world, which kicked off years of unlearning. I finally began a lifelong journey to uncover who I am and what I wanted to do with my life. I found myself questioning the beliefs and norms that culture, parents, friends, teachers and advertising had woven into what I thought was cool, right and wrong. I started to discard what I didn't align with and introduce what did.

Realizing that my morning ritual could be more than just a vessel for high doses of caffeine, I began each day by filling up a large mug with an unsweetened powdered masala chai blend. I added turmeric to support post-workout recovery, cinnamon because it contains antioxidants, cacao for mood, lion’s mane for focus, cordyceps for natural energy, and chaga and reishi for immunity.

In the end, I had a drink that optimized my mind and body. I was feeling amazing and, with only a fraction of the caffeine found in coffee, I was sleeping again. Now I’m inviting you to question whether coffee is right for you.

And if it isn’t, this coffee detox program can help you find a healthier morning ritual, whatever that means to you.

—Shane Heath

Photo of Coffee

Get In The Know

How does caffeine work?

When we drink caffeine, the effects come on within 15 minutes. The caffeine level peaks in about an hour and for most people stays elevated for many hours. Typically, half of the caffeine is still in your body six hours later and it may take 10 hours until all the caffeine is out of the bloodstream. This metabolism is variable based on different versions of the caffeine gene, CYP1A2.

Those who have variants that make them slow metabolizers will have higher caffeine levels. This means they keep caffeine around in their body for much longer than fast metabolizers who clear the stuff quickly. This explains why some people have more side effects from caffeine than others. People who are slow metabolizers have to be extra careful about caffeine consumption because they have the highest risk of cardiovascular side effects. It may even worsen their performance instead of enhance it. There are also variants of the A2a adenosine receptor gene that can make individuals more prone to anxiety with caffeine consumption than those without the variant.

85%

It's popular

85% of people in the U.S. consume at least one caffeinated beverage each day.

$1.1k

It's expensive

The average American spends over $1,100 on coffee annually.

90%

It's a drug

90% of people on Earth consume caffeine on a daily basis, making it the world’s most-used psychoactive drug.

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Your Brain On Caffeine

It makes you stressed.

Caffeine is made by plants and acts as a defensive substance to keep small animals and insects from eating them. When we consume caffeine, it stimulates the release of the stress hormones cortisol, epinephrine (also known as adrenaline), and norepinephrine, which raises blood pressure and increases self-reported feelings of stress. A lot of people claim caffeine doesn’t give you energy, but they’re wrong. Stress hormones are designed to give you the energy to run away from danger. When we drink caffeine, we’re forcing our bodies into a stress response to get us to get moving on our work. The problem is we’re not designed to experience chronic stress all day, every day for years on end. This is where caffeine gets problematic for people. If you combine caffeine with chronic work-related stress, it’s a recipe for burnout.

It tricks your brain.

Caffeine acts as a wakefulness-enhancing drug by tricking your brain into thinking you are not tired so you can keep going. You see, caffeine looks a lot like adenosine but it has the opposite effects on the adenosine receptor. When adenosine binds its receptor, it signals the brain to sleep. But, when caffeine binds the adenosine receptor, it inhibits the binding of adenosine, which is like taking your foot off the break, keeping your body in “go-mode.” The more caffeine you drink, the more it stimulates adenosine receptors, the less sleepy you feel. The body responds by making more adenosine receptors, so most people develop tolerance to caffeine over time and end up needing more to achieve the same effects. When you go off caffeine, animal studies suggest it can take eight days for the number of adenosine receptors to return to normal in the forebrain (which controls sleep) and 30 days for the receptors to normalize in the cerebellum (the part of the brain that coordinates fitness activities).

It creates dependence.

Another thing happens when caffeine binds the adenosine receptor: it enhances dopamine (DA) signaling in the brain, by increasing dopamine receptor availability and upregulating dopamine receptors. The dopamine system in the brain is the pleasure circuit. This gives caffeine similar effects as Adderall and Ritalin: you get more interested in the stuff you are doing and you get moving. These effects are also what keeps us dependent on caffeine. The more our dopaminergic systems are activated, the more we crave the substances that stimulate them. It’s also why it’s so hard to get off the juice. It takes time for our brains to re-adjust to its normal function off of stimulants. This is why we recommend weaning off slowly and carefully.

Less is more, especially with caffeine

Drink
12oz. Starbucks® Pikes Place® coffee
Caffeine
235mg
Up to 35mg ✓
*12oz. MUD\WTR

Effects On The Body

Should you detox from coffee?

The American Psychiatric Association published Caffeine Use Disorder as a diagnosis in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.

Criteria for caffeine use disorder

  • A persistent desire or unsuccessful efforts to cut down or control caffeine use.
  • Continued caffeine use despite knowledge of having a persistent or recurrent physical or psychological problem that is likely to have been caused or exacerbated by caffeine.
  • Withdrawal manifested by the characteristic withdrawal syndrome or caffeine (or a closely related substance) is taken to relieve or avoid withdrawal symptoms.
Drinking a hot beverage with a view.
Man with headache in leather chair.
Illustration of adrenal glands

Adrenal Problems

You’re feeling burned out and stressed. Are you getting dizzy when you stand up too quickly? Are you getting muscle tremors or little eye twitches that are SO annoying? Are you feeling restless or have the jitters or feel shaky? Too much caffeine can pump out too many stress hormones. The problem with this it can backfire when the short-term stress becomes chronic and the consistently high cortisol levels lead to negative feedback on what’s called the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis.

This can cause your cortisol levels to lower over time, making you feel completely drained, chronically exhausted and burned out. That’s when you know it’s time to stop. Although coffee can reduce the risk of diabetes when consumed moderately, many people who are under chronic stress experience blood sugar irregularities when they drink coffee because of its effects on raising adrenaline and cortisol. If you experience any of the above symptoms, it’s a good idea to cut back on how much coffee you are drinking.

Illustration of a brain

Brain Chemistry

It’s well established that caffeine withdrawal can cause headaches but did you know that drinking more than three caffeinated beverages a day can lead to greater migraine frequency in susceptible individuals? If you suffer from migraine headaches you really should consider cutting back on your caffeine and doing a coffee detox.

Illustration of a moon

Sleep Problems

One of the biggest reasons you may want consider cutting back on your caffeine intake is sh*tty sleep, whether it is trouble falling asleep or trouble staying asleep to get a good night's rest. Roughly 60 million Americans are affected by insomnia and this can easily be exacerbated by drinking coffee after 3 p.m. Many people turn to coffee to promote wakefulness during the day but because of the long half-life, they are screwing up their sleep.

Because they aren’t getting as much restful sleep, they wake up more tired and turn to more coffee. The vicious cycle just continues and they end up feeling less energized on a consistent basis. There are a bunch of things that affect the relationship between sleep and caffeine including age, genetics, and the regularity of caffeine intake.

Tin of MUD.

What is MUD\WTR?

A coffee alternative consisting of 100% organic cacao, masala chai and functional mushrooms. With just a fraction of the caffeine found in coffee, you get focus, energy and immune support without the jitters, crash, dependency or poor sleep associated with too much caffeine.

Certifications
It’s also 100% USDA Organic, non-GMO, gluten free, vegan, Whole30 approved and Kosher.

Jumpstart Your Mornings

MUD\WTR Benefits

  • Focus
  • Immunity
  • Energy
  • No Jitters
  • No Crash

What you should know

Coffee Side Effects

  • Anxiety
  • Insomnia
  • High Blood Pressure
  • Addiction
  • Digestive Issues

Easy As One, Two, Free

The Program.

Content Drip

During this program you'll receive weekly emails from the MUD\WTR team to guide you through an empowering journey to living your life without coffee, whether it's forever or just for right now.

Community Support

Who wants to detox off anything alone? Not us. That's why you'll receive an invite to join our community on Facebook. Ask questions, get tips and connect with others going through the program just like you. We gotchu.

Coffee Alternative

As you wean off coffee, you'll replace your morning cup of joe with MUD\WTR. With a fraction of the caffeine found in a cup of coffee, functional mushrooms and adaptogens, you'll get sustainable energy without the jitters, dependancy and crash.

What others are saying about us

I love my MUD/WTR :rise Cacao! I’ve been drinking it for over a year now! Not only do I look forward to my every morning cup of MUD\WTR, I’m in Maui now for two weeks and I packed my MUD/WTR! I am so glad to not have the jitters that coffee always induced and I am so glad not peeing every 10 mins! MUD\WTR tastes delicious and I know that I’m filling my body with all sorts of goodness. GET OF COFFEE GET INTO MUD\WTR ! You’re welcome!

Nikki A. April 2023
Photo of Melissa Hartwig

Coffee has never been good for me (makes me unable to process mentally and irritable), yet I love it. Once I got onto MUD\WTR over a year ago, I have never looked back. Most mornings I make it as an almond milk latte as-is, or with added cinnamon and vanilla and a sweetener (honey or date syrup). Some mornings I boil my oatmeal into it and have it as breakfast. I love this stuff. I was gratified to see it served at a local coffee shop—and secretly smirking cuz I can make it at home for so much less. I used to be an avid coffee drinker… I don't drink coffee at all any more.

Rachel W. April 2023
Photo of Melissa Hartwig

I am someone that deals with anxiety, and coffee in the morning is not a good fit for me. The MUD\WTR :rise Cacao is perfect in the morning. I take it with a little creamer, and I look forward to it too. I feel more energetic and awake in the morning. I feel like my mood is better and I don't have the effects of the caffeine, and I don't have the let down in the afternoon as well. I am also a big believer in the power of mushrooms, so this fits for me just perfect.

Rebecca C. April 2023
Photo of Melissa Hartwig

Day 07

The perks and perils of less caffeine

Someone smiling

Once you know how much caffeine you are consuming and you have the right mindset in place for success, it’s time to begin implementing our method for weaning off coffee carefully.

Our gradual coffee detox plan entails cutting down on your intake over two weeks to avoid withdrawal symptoms as much as possible.

Daily Encouragement

Knowledge delivered right to your inbox.

We’re here to provide you with a proven program and a community to support you in your transition to a clearer, brighter, better-rested you. We’ve come up with a plan to help you wean off caffeine in a way that doesn't suck.

Guiding you to a better morning

In week 1, you'll learn just how much caffeine you're consuming each day. You may be underestimating your caffeine intake by a little or a whole lot.
Enter: MUD\WTR. In week 2, you'll start to replace some of your morning coffee with a bit of MUD\WTR to decrease your caffeine intake day by day.
Slowly and methodically, MUD\WTR will replace the coffee you consume in the morning until coffee is no longer on your grocery list or you're no longer swinging by your local coffee shop on the way to work. Buh-bye, java. Hello, clarity.
In week 4, we'll reflect on how you feel after transitioning off of coffee and welcome other mindful practices into your morning routine so that you can set yourself up for success daily.

How To Prepare

Get started with our
30-Serving Starter Kit.

Tin of MUD

30-Serving tin

For 30 days, you will go through an empowering journey to living your life without coffee.

 

Community Support

Who wants to detox off anything alone? Not us. That's why you'll receive an invite to join our MUD\WTR community on Facebook. Ask questions, get tips, and connect with others going through the program just like you. We gotchu.

MUD frother

Frother

Your boost of energy isn’t gone forever. You’ll receive a free frother in your starter kit to help you whip up the drink of your dreams every morning.

Frequently asked questions.

The body hates abrupt change. Caffeine withdrawal is considered a DSM-5 diagnosis and occurs after abruptly stopping caffeine. Common symptoms of caffeine withdrawal are headaches, anxiety, fatigue, decreased alertness, and depressed mood. If caffeine intake is decreased progressively however (as it is in this program), these symptoms can be avoided altogether.
We recommend asking your doctor if this program is right for you.
Yes! Whether you're getting your caffeine from coffee, energy drinks, kombucha, chocolate, or any other source... this program can help you reduce your dependence on caffeine.