Dear Cinnamon Cup Coffee Community,

It is with uttmost sadness and regret that I write to inform you that I am no longer drinking the bean. No more shall the bitter yet earthy taste of coffee pass my lips. No longer will I wax lyrical about perfect crema or the chocolate berry taste of a new blend at my local. No longer will I make a perfect camp coffee on a Jetboil with an expresso machine, or listen to the delightful hum of my Smeg coffee machine creating my third morning brew.

No longer will I feel the bite and kick of the caffeine bronco jump and buck through my veins. No longer will I have a cappucino moustache, coffee breath, or spill coffee grounds over the kitchen bench. No longer will I argue the merits of coconut or oat milk with coffee, and how it is much better than soy or cow's milk.

Why, you may ask, extending sympathy toward my plight. What madness as possessed you? Is there something you have done wrong?

My poor adrenal glands are fed up. They just can't cope anymore. Whilst other people can have coffee on an IV drip, one sip sends my heart racing and my adrenals heading again toward burn out, where I am so far fatigued that not even a good Yirgacheffe can get me going. No, I need licorice tea, and hops, and other sedative brews. At a pinch, a good cup of English breakfast. I need to take care of those little glands, responsible for hormones that help regulate my response to stress, my metabolism, immune system, and you know, my quality of fucking life.

I'm already feeling better. Sure, I had a week's worth of crying, and headaches, but I am getting over it now. A strong cup of cacao and reishi seems to do the trick. I feel more even-keeled, more calm, less jittery, and it's sure nice to NOT feel like I'm having a heart attack every waking moment.

My question to you Coffee Cup crew is: do you accept posts that talk about the coffee I can't drink, the cafes that my husband drinks coffee at, or the various other delightful coffee subsitutes, like a really good chai, or a turmeric latte?

Because, dare I say it, I have realised yet again that there are other drinks that please and nourish me and give me a little get up and go - caffeine just can't join the party anymore.