A Psychologist Explains Why You Either Love Or Hate Coffee
Can you live without coffee?
polinaloves / Shutterstock So, I have a confession to make… I am a millennial and I hate coffee! I’ve never had a full cup and can barely handle a sip. I hate the taste and how strong it is. I just can’t bring myself to do it. And yes, I made it through college without drinking coffee to stay energized and keep focused. I know, how did I do it?
I know I’m in an elite group of non-coffee lovers, but we can all agree that most people in this world drink coffee.
It’s like they need it to be functional. For some people, drinking coffee is actually a lifestyle and just as much of a routine as brushing your teeth or showering. I would have to guess that most of this population is that dependent on coffee and might actually have a caffeine addiction.
But what does skipping coffee say about your personality? Does this make me, and other tea grannies, weird? And what does it mean if you love coffee to the point where you could have an IV hooked to you all day and still want more? I need answers.
According to Dr. Sanam Hafeez PsyD., a neuropsychologist, and professor at Columbia University, an appreciation for coffee could stem from your upbringing if your elders had a cup first thing in the morning.
For example, if you grew up seeing your parents and your siblings wake up and have a cup of coffee before work, smelled it all day, or noticed how many cups your friends and family consume in a day.
She claims that a lot of these habits are learned and eventually become a habit.
So basically she’s saying that we are influenced by others. And that is how we get started with this addiction or rebellion.
In an interview, Dr. Hafeez dives a little deeper into her findings and provides more of an explanation as to why we are the way we are in terms of our love or hate for caffeine.
A big question that I have, mainly due to my fascination with why people love it so damn much, is do they train themselves to need coffee (like part of their daily schedule) or do they just like how it tastes that much? In her interview with ED, she claims it could be a combination of both.
If someone starts drinking it on a daily basis, their brain gets rewired to think they need caffeine so they become dependent. (Think of your morning cup).
“Coffee provides them with the stimulation that jolts them from fatigue into action and alertness,” she explains. “If they go without they could have trouble concentrating and staying on task.”
Does this sound like you?
If you’re more like me and choose to skip out on the lengthy Starbucks line every morning, she assumes that you prefer something like tea, green juice, smoothie, or chocolate milk as an energy source instead. Or, you don’t actually need anything to help with your energy level (like me).
“Mindset and our ability to regenerate pathways in our brains have a lot to do with our physical health,” Dr. Hafeez says. This basically means our mind-body connection is strong when it comes to energy levels.
And your love of coffee is all about whether you’ve conditioned yourself to enjoy it.
And or desperately need it at particular times of the day, as well as if you don’t drink it.
Ultimately you change your pattern and create your willpower whether you are aware of it or not. So whether you depend on coffee or not, you do it to yourself. And that sounds like all the proof I need to believe this psychologist!
Brittany Christopoulos is a writer and journalist who typically covers lifestyle, health, and wellness. For more of her lifestyle pieces, visit her on Twitter.