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Comment by themaninthedark | Hacker News Reader

What about those of use who may or may not have ADD and have been using caffine to regulate our mood and focus....

I honestly can't tell at this point if the coffee is helping me focus and I have ADD or if I am just lazy(or depressed) and the coffee is helping get me motivated.

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Isn't it better to find out? I.e. first to stop with the caffeine, then wait until your body readjusts (e.g. a month or two), and possibly get diagnosed by a professional in case you do feel like you need help? Diagnosis doesn't necessarily mean prescription stimulant drugs.

I was using caffeine to mask my burnout. Needless to say, it only exacerbated the total feeling of burnout, and "helped" only short-term. It took me a long time to get out of the burnout, and I'm still feeling the effects. It would have been much healthier to not mask the burnout, but deal with it right there and then.

How do you deal with it? Just by taking a break from everything I would imagine.

But what if that's not possible? What if you're in the middle of getting a degree or need to financially support your family and can't take a break from work. Any insight into what "dealing with it" means for you?

You might want to get diagnosed so you can get a proper ADHD prescription. I'm told Vyvanse is like a smooth day-long caffeine high without the jitters or stained teeth. OTOH, if caffeine is working for you, it sounds like it's performing the same function ADHD medication does for my loved one.

Amphetamines generally are way stronger than coffee and can really keep you up/kill your sleep. Not that this is just from my own experience, I have ADHD and a prescription. Sleep is perhaps the biggest issue I am still dealing with.

Are you sure coffee isn't causing your symptoms? Poor mood, focus, and motivation can also be caused by poor sleep.

Great line --> "I honestly can't tell at this point if the coffee is helping me focus and I have ADD or if I am just lazy(or depressed) and the coffee is helping get me motivated."

Ill change the last bit -- "or if I am just tired and the coffee solves my cold start problem"

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