Why Coffee Isn’t Giving You Energy Anymore

If you feel like coffee used to give you energy but now just leaves you tired, foggy, anxious or reaching for cup number three by 11am, you are not imagining it! Trust me, I've been there.

I'm Adam, and for over 5 years, I drank coffee not realising the negative impacts it had on my lifestyle. I struggled to sleep, developed stomach problems and ultimately developed a dependency on coffee and caffeine that did more ham than good.

Coffee will stop working the way it used to. And there are real physiological reasons why. Here’s what’s actually happening in your brain and body, how caffeine slowly loses its effect over time, and what you can do to get your energy back.

The Cycle: Coffee, Spike, Crash, Repeat

For a lot of people, coffee starts off as magic. A warm mug, a rush of alertness, focus, motivation. Then time passes, routines build, stress increases, sleep gets patchier and suddenly coffee is not doing what it used to.

Instead of energy, you get:

• The jitters

• Anxious buzzing

• A crash 90 minutes later

• A fog you try to fix with more coffee

Eventually you are drinking coffee just to feel normal. Not energised. Not focused. Just a disappointing baseline. So what happened?

 

1. Your Brain Has Built Caffeine Tolerance

Caffeine works by blocking adenosine, the chemical that makes you feel tired throughout the day. Blocking adenosine makes you feel alert. But your brain is smart. When it sees adenosine being blocked every day, it responds by creating more adenosine receptors. More receptors = more tiredness signals. So now you need more caffeine just to get the same effect you used to get from one cup.

This is why:

• Your first coffee used to hit like a miracle

• Now it takes two or three cups to feel anything

• And if you skip it, you feel like you got hit by a small bus

That is tolerance. And it is brutal.

2. Caffeine Raises Cortisol (Your Stress Hormone)

Caffeine triggers your fight-or-flight stress response. This is great if you are being chased by a magpie. Less great if you are trying to answer emails. When cortisol rises repeatedly:

• Your nervous system becomes overstimulated

• Your body feels wired, not energised

• Your sleep quality gets wrecked

• Your baseline fatigue worsens

This is the exact opposite of actual, sustainable energy.

3. Coffee Can Disrupt Sleep (Even When You Fall Asleep Fine)

You might think, “But I can drink coffee at 3pm and fall asleep no problem.” The problem is not falling asleep. It is staying in deep, restorative sleep. Caffeine reduces slow-wave sleep, the phase where your brain repairs, resets, and restores your energy systems.

Less deep sleep = more tired the next day. More tired = more coffee. More coffee = less deep sleep again. The cycle repeats.

4. Coffee Doesn’t Create Energy. It Borrows It.

Coffee does not produce energy. It borrows energy from your future self by delaying fatigue signals. Your body still accumulates tiredness in the background. When the caffeine wears off, all that tiredness returns at once. That heavy, foggy crash feeling is that debt coming due. Coffee is a credit card. And your nervous system is paying interest.

5. Your Body Might Be Asking for a Gentler Energy

You don’t need more stimulation. You need energy that comes from:

• Nervous system calm

• Steady blood sugar

• Restorative sleep

• Cellular ATP production

• Less cortisol, not more

 

So What Do You Do Instead?

You do not need to quit coffee overnight. You do not need to become a herbal tea person.
You do not need to suffer. You simply swap your second coffee of the day. Not the morning ritual one. The 11am or 2pm cup. The one that makes you feel shaky or tired after. This is the coffee that is wrecking your nervous system. Replace it with something that gives calm, stable, sustainable energy.

Meet Mushrooms: Calm Energy That Actually Feels Good

Cacao and mushroom blends are a coffee-free, low-caffeine alternative made with organic functional mushrooms and botanicals. It gives you focus and energy, without the spike or the crash.

What’s inside:

• Lion’s Mane: supports memory and mental clarity

• Cordyceps: supports natural energy at the cellular level (ATP)

• Reishi: calms the nervous system and smooths stress responses

• Raw Cacao: chocolatey, rich, grounding, and mood supportive

What’s not inside:

• Coffee beans

• Synthetic stimulants

• The nervous system chaos

The result:

Energy that feels like:

• Clear thinking

• Steady focus

• Mood balance

• A nervous system that isn’t being yanked around

Like the best version of you. Just without the caffeine rollercoaster.

 

How to Switch Without Withdrawal

Do this for one week:

 

Most people notice within 3–5 days:

• More stable energy

• Less afternoon crash

• Better sleep quality

• Less tension in the chest

• More relaxed focus

Then, if it feels good, you can lower your morning coffee too. But you don’t have to rush. Your nervous system will guide you.

If coffee is no longer helping, that doesn’t mean something is wrong with you. It means your body is ready for a different kind of energy.

A calmer one.
A steadier one.
A sustainable one.

Mushrooms lets you keep the ritual, without the crash.

FAQs

Why does coffee make me tired now?

Your brain has adapted by increasing adenosine receptors. You are not broken. Your body is responding normally to daily caffeine.

Do I have to quit coffee entirely?

No. Just replace the cup that makes you feel bad. That is usually the mid-morning or afternoon one.

Will mushrooms give me real energy?

Yes. Cordyceps supports ATP production (actual cellular energy). Lion’s Mane supports cognitive clarity. Reishi reduces stress load. It is a different type of energy, but a better one.

Do mushrooms taste like.... mushrooms?

No. When mixed with cacao, it tastes like a rich, earthy, dark latte. Most people say, “I expected weird and got delicious.”