Shorten coffee's effects

September 20, 2010 7:15 AM

Is there a way to make coffee's effects wear off faster? It's just that I need to see someone and this coffee that I drank seems to be pretty strong on me today and is affecting my mood.
posted by antgly to Food & Drink (20 answers total)

I find that eating something can help if I'm too wired on caffeine.
posted by xingcat at 7:21 AM on September 20, 2010

Nope.
posted by evil_esto at 7:25 AM on September 20, 2010

Try a quick calming breath exercise? Breathe in and out, count your breaths.
posted by By The Grace of God at 7:28 AM on September 20, 2010

Seconding, well, everyone: lots of water (perhaps green tea), get something in your belly (ideally a well-balanced food with carbs, protein AND fat), do meditative breathing. Also: pop an NSAID or two if you feel as though you may get a caffeine headache (they are TEH SUCK).
posted by julthumbscrew at 7:34 AM on September 20, 2010

When I am jittery from too much coffee, I drink a tall glass of room-temp water, and eat a banana and a handful of nuts (usually salty cashews). That tends to calm my stomach and brain both down really quickly, although that could be a placebo effect!
posted by shamash at 7:38 AM on September 20, 2010

Baristas learn to drink lots of water (according to one of the competitors at a barista comp I was at a little while ago).
posted by ethnomethodologist at 7:39 AM on September 20, 2010

In general not much can be done to speed up the metabolism of drugs. You could try aerobic exercise, if that's an option.

There is some evidence that omeprazole (aka Prilosec) can speed up caffeine metabolism in some people. Omeprazole is available over the counter and in relatively inexpensive generic form, but I wouldn't go taking it just for that, though, unless a doctor recommended it.
posted by jedicus at 7:39 AM on September 20, 2010

No green tea, it also has caffeine, and I don't think you want even more caffeine in your system right now.
posted by needled at 7:42 AM on September 20, 2010

I should clarify the 'some evidence' to mean that there is also evidence against that conclusion. See here and here.
posted by jedicus at 7:43 AM on September 20, 2010

Milk sometimes calms me down.
posted by ifjuly at 8:05 AM on September 20, 2010

Breathe only through your nose—that makes it extremely hard to hyperventilate (which you may feel yourself starting to do, as you're hyped up on caffeine and can't make the effects go away).
posted by limeonaire at 8:17 AM on September 20, 2010

Do a workout. I always find that flushes my system of whatever I've got going on. It works wonders for a hangover as well, as long as you hydrate during.
posted by hepta at 8:20 AM on September 20, 2010

Big ole galss of cold milk
posted by WeekendJen at 8:27 AM on September 20, 2010

I'm not an expert, but people who drink green tea say that the L-Theanine in green tea, which seems to act as a natural stress reliever, may also mitigate the effects of the caffeine, which is also in the tea. You can get L-Theanine at a health food store.
posted by SpacemanStix at 8:50 AM on September 20, 2010

I usually just apologize to the person I'm with ("I'm sorry if I seem a little wired, I just drank some coffee that was way stronger than I thought it would be and it's making me a little jittery.") . In the past, whoever I've mentioned it to has usually said I seemed fine and then we've carried on with the conversation.
posted by otherwordlyglow at 8:51 AM on September 20, 2010

Could be nerves on top aggravating your emotions. I use this to calm down:
http://www.meditationoasis.com/podcast/listen-to-podcast/

#1 – Relaxation Break: Guided Meditation with Music. Enjoy this meditation anytime you need a deeply relaxing break.
posted by eatdonuts at 11:36 AM on September 20, 2010

Half a glass of wine.
posted by sunnichka at 2:05 PM on September 20, 2010

My husband gets super-wired on even small amounts of coffee, and he finds masturbating solves the problem. (Sorry for the NSFW response.)
posted by lollusc at 5:48 PM on September 20, 2010

I don't think its a great solution, but smoking is supposed to 'neutralize' caffeine. One reason why I couldn't drink nearly as much coffee once I gave up tobacco. Mind you nicotine will give you a pretty good buzz if you're not used to it. But it wears off quickly.
posted by Long Way To Go at 11:09 PM on September 20, 2010

For most people, the effect of caffeine will be reduced by one half about every five hours. It is eliminated more slowly in pregnant women and those on birth control pills, as well as people with reduced liver function.

Really, the only option is to wait. You can, however, make sure to take into account the stimulant's effect when deciding what to say and act, intentionally slowing yourself down a bit to avoid being too jittery.
posted by sindark at 12:44 PM on September 21, 2010