Ten years of coffee, one week off – What happened

Coffee is one of the world’s favourite daily rituals — and for many, a hard habit to break. Over a billion people drink it every day, says the data.

But what really happens if you suddenly stop drinking coffee after years of relying on it?

That’s what PK Sanjun, a Korean writer for the Japanese blog RocketNews24, wanted to find out. For ten years, he’d had two cups of black coffee a day without fail. Then, one week, he decided to give it up cold turkey.

From two cups a day to none

To be fair, it wasn’t a totally caffeine-free week — he still had iced tea and jasmine tea — but his regular coffee fix was gone. And the change hit fast.

“I felt sleepy, like I was wrapped in plastic,” he wrote. “Not foggy exactly, just constantly slow.” It wasn’t intense withdrawal, but the lack of his usual jolt was clear.

Better sleep, calmer nights

One upside? Sleep. Without caffeine in his system, Sanjun fell asleep faster and felt more rested. “I wasn’t irritable,” he added. “Sure, I wanted coffee, but nothing like what you get when quitting smoking.”

Not all addictions are equal

He makes an interesting comparison: coffee might be habit-forming, but it’s nothing like nicotine. “If you don’t smoke for a few hours, you will feel irritated. Coffee doesn’t do that. The addictive properties of one and the other are at completely different levels.”

The final verdict? Not too bad.

At the end of the week, he admitted he felt groggy and a little bored — but also more relaxed. He hasn’t decided whether to quit for good, but the break gave him perspective on how much a simple drink can shape your daily life.