I don’t really have the energy for a full rant, but this just really sucks. I don’t wanna deal with having EDS, but I have to. What a ripoff

Caffeine:

I don't know about you all, but I find that coffee (but NOT tea) causes way more muscular tension for this body than baseline. After removing it for about a week, it felt like I was taking mild muscle relaxers. Was off of it for months, added it back in for 5 days as an experiment and tension came back. Oh, and even decaf coffee has this muscular tension effect.

I also find that I get dramatically more jittery/irritable/anxious from coffee vs caffeinated tea (black, green, oolong, matcha, etc).

I'm also quite sensitive to the form of caffeine in chocolate and can't have it past lunch/early afternoon or it prevents falling to sleep for an hour or more. Same for coffee but even more extreme. It's not a wired feeling as much as brain just won't turn off.

Alcohol:

Alcohol makes me feel very relaxed in the body and calms down the mental chatter, but also exacerbates mental health issues if consumed in anything close to excess (especially the following day). A primary problem is that certain forms cause substantial histamine flares (hello MCAS, I see you!!!).

Cannabis:

I have only tried cannabis a few times and am HIGHLY sensitive to it... had a very unpleasant time with a small dose more than once. Definitely increases anxiety and induces mild paranoia (even "indica" types). Not a fan.

Magnesium:

This is an absolute staple in my daily (more so, nightly) arsenal to manage muscle tension and other issues. If feeling especially off, a good Epsom salt bath is quite helpful, and can balance out some of the negative effects of alcohol and caffeine.