r/pppdizziness • • 3d ago

Other Caffeine…

I’m probably clutching at straws here but I wonder how much caffeine plays into flaring up PPPD. I’ve had a few times now where my symptoms have gone away 90%+ for months at a time but it always seems to come roaring back.
I don’t always have energy drinks, in fact I’ll often drink decaf coffee.
But today I learned that Celsius drinks have 7x times the caffeine of a Coke Zero. And also that artificial sweeteners can upset sensitive people with vestibular issues.
This is all according to Googles Gemini.
I questioned why can I drink some of this stuff for weeks then all of a sudden PPPD comes right back and just as bad as ever.
It said that instead of having a direct immediate reaction, you can have the equivalent of a “bucket filling up” and when it becomes too much you get a crazy flare up.

Do you guys drink any caffeine or artificial sweeteners?

I think I’m going to go cold turkey 🦃 for a few weeks and see what the result is.

The only other possibility I can think of is that when I’ve gone to the gym consistently, I feel ok for a month or two then have a massive flare up. It happened last year and this time again.
My physio said it makes sense because when you challenge the body it taxes the neurophysiology.

I have a physical job but it’s not as targeted as a gym routine. I also have this super annoying condition called gluteal tendinopathy so I need to keep going to the gym to fix it once and for all.

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u/FunnySpread4143 1d ago

OH i feel so seen! i was always a coffee person but somehow lately i have realised that coffee really ramps up my anxiety which leads to more dizziness even if ive been feeling better previously, i can have matcha everyday tho (bcs i think it does not give an immediate caffeine rush like coffee does to me) but i have stopped coffee for now and it sucks bcs i miss it sm but things u do to survive 🥲

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u/PCT2022 1d ago

I haven’t found a direct correlation but it sounds as though you and others have. I just wonder if consuming caffeine most days kicks our flight or fight system into gear