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It's the number one smart drug in the
world. You'd be hard pressed to find an office that doesn't serve
copious amounts of it to it's employees. It can be used to increase
productivity significantly. More relevant to you, it can be used to
increase your ability to study.
That all being said, it's a drug. While
it may not be as heavily regulated as something like Adderall, its
screwing around with your brain chemistry. That shouldn't be taken as
lightly as many 9-5 employees treat it. By taking the time to use
caffeine properly, you can see more positive results with
significantly less risk to yourself.
(Of course, for legal reasons, this
isn't medical advice. Get professional advice before doing anything
medical.)
There are a few things you need to know
before planning to use caffeine to study.
The Obvious
Like I said
before, caffeine is a drug. Never treat it like less than that. If
you're not willing to properly research how to use it, you shouldn't
be using it in the first place. It's not magic. It's just a small
improvement when used properly. (It's not even an improvement for
everyone.)
How Do You Treat A Drug...
When I say to
treat it like a drug, I'm not kidding. If you were planning to
administer Adderall to yourself. You wouldn't take in Adderall drinks
randomly through the day. With caffeine, that's the typical approach
for many students.
You shouldn't be
drinking caffeinated beverages if you want to use caffeine for
studying. It introduces tons of new potential problems.
First of all, it's
risky. Caffeine has a relatively low lethal dose.
Second, more
caffeine is not always a good thing. When you increase the dosage too
much, it can easily overstimulate you. You might even get anxiety
that makes it impossible for you to effectively study.
Third, managing
doses allows you to actual know how effective different doses of
caffeine are. We're not all the same. Some people need more or less
caffeine to be at their peak. (Some need none.) If you don't manage
doses then you'll never be able to find the appropriate dose for you.
Fourth, you need
to be able to tell the difference between a sugar rush, caffeine
rush, and just ingesting calories. The fewer the variables you can
use, the better off you're going to be.
Yes. Not drinking
caffeine can mean no soda, no energy drinks, and significantly less
fun. If you're unwilling to do that then forget about trying to use
it any more effectively.
Cycling Caffeine
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Caffeine
seriously messes with your brain chemistry. It can become addictive.
Over time, the same dosage of it gets less and less effective. If you
ever work in an office then
you're bound to find some
employees that take 5 or 6 huge cups of coffee to get through the
morning. This is a depressing consequence of a complete addict.
Cycling is using
planning your caffeine usage for periods of time while staying free
of caffeine for other times. When you're on caffeine, you get to
enjoy all the benefits of it. While you're off caffeine again, your
body gets to readjust back to it's normal chemical levels. By
planning your cycles right, you don't have to worry about needing to
increase your dose in the future. You also get to limit your
withdrawal symptoms to however much you're willing to suffer.
The exact plans
for your cycling should depend significantly on your goals.
Experimentation
Treat your intake
of caffeine like you're doing a science experiment. You want to test
the dosages effectiveness. To properly do this, you should probably
be using caffeine in a pill form.
The most simple
experiment you can do is take a small dosage, study, and then note
how good you feel about the study session. Then take a few days off
caffeine and repeat it with a new dosage. (Include at least one day
recording how you feel without taking the caffeine.) After a few
days, look at which days seemed most effective. It's not too
scientific but it's much easier than actual full experiments.
To do a full
experiment you should do multiple trials and tests using something
like flash cards. This can be a major process with plenty of hiccups.
It's ideal but most people will probably pass on it.
I've found some of
my most effective dosages to be half a pill. Do not overestimate how
much caffeine you really need. Too much is much worse than too
little. Good luck studying when you feel like hopping up and down for
an hour and a half.
Keep in mind that
some people will study better without caffeine. (In fact, some people
could probably use a little tranquilizer. That's so far out of my
scope that I couldn't tell you anything about it.)
When To Use Caffeine
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In the ideal
scenario, you should use caffeine at least 10 minutes before your
study session. That isn't particularly easy though.
Once you down a
caffeine pill, you can start to feel a rush almost instantly. Most of
that is just in your head. Sitting and waiting 10 minutes before
studying is tough. You'll probably want to do something else for ten
minutes. That being said, after 10 minutes, you better hope you're
disciplined enough to start studying.
It's ideal to wait
a few minutes to study but it's usually more practical just to take
caffeine right before you study. You won't be at the peak of focus
when you start but you'll probably see a significant improvements by
the time you finish studying. (When you study for short periods of
time like this blog recommends, you may not even reach your peak
studying by the time you finish. That being said, it can still
improve your studying noticeably.)
This schedule
comes with some problems though. If you're studying in the afternoon
or later, any caffeine you take may interrupt your ability to sleep
at night. (I've found that I can't consume much caffeine past 2
without noticeable sleep problems.) Given the choice between caffeine
while studying or a good night sleep, always pick the good night
sleep.
So, use caffeine
in the morning before you study. The later in the day it gets, the
more natural you should be studying.
(Of course, there
may be some perfect super low dosage that can help you later in the
day but that's a set of experiments I haven't found.)
The Less Obvious Benefits
There are a
significant number of studies that show tons of assorted health
benefits of regularly consuming caffeine. It's a drug that's been
shown to help prevent a number of problems in the future. Once you
learn to properly manage the risks and benefits, it can be a very
reasonable risk to take.
That being said,
you shouldn't need it. Anyone should be able to study fine without a
stimulant. You should be doing everything in your power to prevent
dependency on it. Many studies have shown that caffeine can produce
dependency issues and those issues will make it significantly more
difficult to manage it in the future.
I personally limit
my usage of caffeine significantly these days. While the benefits can
be very noticeable, it comes at a risk the studies will never be able
to prove. Whenever I take something like that, I can't help but
wonder if I'm giving my body an excuse to get lazy without the drug.
Mentally, I'm accepting that I'm not at my peak without the caffeine.
That is just plain depressing for me.
Do I still use it?
Sometimes. Do I need it? Hell no.
Do you want to
know the secrets of studying in less than 15 minutes a day without
your grades lowering? (You don't even need the caffeine.) That's what
this blog is all about. Be sure to follow and check of the ebooks for
more information.
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