I was never a big coffee drinker.  Not out of any high minded health reasons, necessarily — I just didn’t like the way it made me feel.  Jittery, anxious, higher strung… Pretty much like your average New Yorker.  Seeing as I was doing everything I could to counteract the energy of my former city, coffee just wasn’t for me.

Now that I’m a mom, and one living on the fairer (calmer) coast, there have definitely been days when I craved a good cup of joe. I would source some great organic coffee from the cafe down the street, add coconut oil (or sometimes even some grass-fed butter… more on why that’s a must here), and still, an hour later, I would find myself a little more testy or jittery or wired.

Why does this happen? Coffee does a number on your adrenals, stimulating a fight-or-flight response that can leave you feeling wired, and then depleted.  People who drink coffee on the regular pretty much live in this state, so it’s a little less noticeable.  But that fatigue you feel before you’ve had your first cup? Or at 3pm? Or in the evening? Or pretty much anytime between your cups of coffee?  Yeah… that’s adrenal fatigue.  And it is no bueno.  In addition to messing with your body and mind, this caffeinated adrenal overexertion also stimulates the release of cortisol, which leads to higher stress levels, poor sleep, premature aging, and even weight gain.

Ok, ok, so we get why coffee isn’t the best thing in the world.  Well there’s got to be a better option out there, right? One that isn’t a pseudo-coffee hippie drink (though I definitely love me some chicory)?