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Coffee is the second most traded goods in the world due to how popular it is becoming. Many people will recognize the statement that life simply couldn’t go on without caffeine. As our routines become busier and we need to fit more into every day, the amount of coffee we consume increases. Coffee is second only to oil, which is another fuel source for the human race.
Modafinil is a new substance that is increasing in popularity due to the fact it works in a similar way to coffee. Both substances work to keep us alert and awake in order to aid our lifestyles. However, Modafinil works much better and faster than coffee making it many people’s number one choice for a productivity boost during the day. As both are highly effective at keeping us alert, many people want to mix the two for an even better workday.
About Modafinil: What Is It?
Modafinil is a eugenic substance that works in a very similar way to caffeine. It is considered to be a stimulant due to the way it impacts the central nervous system due to the fact it promotes wakefulness and alertness.
A lot of people take Modafinil to fight fatigue and boost their overall productivity and motivation during the workday. Modafinil works by increasing the dopamine levels in the brain, which is how we feel more awake when we take it. Modafinil is typically prescribed for serious sleep conditions, such as sleep apnea and narcolepsy, to keep patients awake and functioning during the day. However, it is a substance that is becoming more popular for its off-label uses.
Students, business workers, and general high-flying people now buy Modafinil online regularly to help them get through deadlines and projects. Modafinil delays sleepiness and allows you to work harder and longer than before. This is why it is becoming popular in certain circles.
Modafinil vs. Coffee: Which Works Better?
There are a lot of similarities between Modafinil and coffee, but there are also a lot of significant differences.
Before we can fully understand the differences between Modafinil and coffee, we first need to understand how they impact the body. In order to do this, we need to learn how the body works to keep us awake.
The brain operates through a complex series of chemical reactions and electrical impulses. These reactions and impulses react with each other to push everything our brains and bodies can do, including homeostasis, imagination, and memory.
As well as these two forms of reactions, our brain also runs with different neurotransmitters and various other factors that can impact the way we behave, perform and feel.
To make things a little simpler to understand, we need to look into the two halves of the brain and the central nervous system. These two halves are the sympathetic (SNS) and the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS).
The Two Sides Of Our Nervous System
In order to learn more about how Modafinil and caffeine work, we need to learn how our body works.
1. The Sympathetic Nervous System (SNS)
The SNS is the part of the nervous system that is responsible for the stimulation of the body and mind.
This is half of the nervous system that makes us feel awake during the day and can heighten our physical ability when we need it most. It is often overstimulated during stressful or challenging situations.
2.     The Parasympathetic Nervous System (PNS)
The PNS is basically the opposite of the SNS and is used to counteract the effects of this half. This part of the nervous system is used to put the body into a state of relaxation.
The PNS is the part of the nervous system that allows our body to return back to normal after we have been through stress. As it gets our body back to normal, this half of the nervous system also works to increase the recovery of body functions such as digestion and immune system.
Modafinil, Coffee And The SNS
Both Modafinil and coffee are considered to be stimulants as they produce most of their effects on the neurotransmitters in the SNS.
As both of these stimulants increase activity within the SNS, they make us feel awake as they interact with the parts of the brain that controls this. Stimulating nerve signals and making them run faster, which occurs when we drink a cup of coffee or take Modafinil, allowing us to work better and be more focused.
However, the way Modafinil and coffee impacts the SNS is different.
How Does Caffeine Work?
Caffeine is a molecule that makes us feel awake by blocking adenosine, which is a compound that naturally builds up in our system throughout the day.
Adenosine is a byproduct of a healthy nervous system that is designed to make us feel sleepy at the end of the day. If you have a healthy nervous system, your adenosine levels rise they will slow down your nerve cells and adds a delay to their performance.
Caffeine makes us feel awake as it occupies the receptor that takes adenosine so it cannot absorb it. This prevents us from feeling sleepy and stops our body from entering relaxation.
Consuming coffee also causes the stress response process, which in turn activates the SNS.
Although the impact of caffeine on our internal receptors is significantly less when compared to cortisol, which is our in-built stress modulating hormone, it still does impact us in a way that will be noticed.
This is part of the reason why you can feel anxious, jittery and sick when we drink too much coffee. Caffeine essentially puts us in a stressful situation to keep us alert and focused, which is why too much coffee can cause noticeable adverse effects.
How Does Modafinil Work?
Modafinil keeps us alert and awake by overriding our internal biological clock which helps us feel awake.
This biological clock operates through a series of carefully balanced hormones and neurotransmitters, as well as being triggered by routine and daylight exposure.
Modafinil makes us feel more awake and alert when consumed as it overrides this natural process. When we take Modafinil, a compound called orexin is stimulated which is used to trigger wakefulness in the SNS.
Taking Modafinil will also increase the levels of dopamine within your brain. Dopamine is one of the main neurotransmitters in the brain and is used to regulate a whole range of emotions, moods, and functions.
Dopamine is also an essential part of the brain’s reward center which is where routines and habits are formed.
Modafinil actually has an additional benefit over caffeine in terms of keeping us awake as it increases the levels of dopamine in our central nervous system. As dopamine increases our focus and operates directly in the central nervous system, Modafinil is an overall better wakefulness stimulant.
Can I Use Coffee AND Modafinil?
Modafinil and coffee can be mixed, in order to keep you more alert and awake during the workday, but you need to be careful when doing so.
As with all stimulants, taking more or mixing your dosage can leave you victim to adverse side effects. Caffeine and Modafinil are considered to be the same kind of substance, as both are stimulants, and this can cause issues when you mix or consume too much.
Although both coffee and Modafinil produce the same effects of alertness and wakefulness, they do this in different ways. It is this different mechanism that makes Modafinil and coffee suitable to mix.
The way that these stimulants will affect you will differ depending on the reason behind why you are tired. If you are suffering from increased adenosine, then you will find that drinking coffee will make you feel more alert than consuming Modalert 200, a Modafinil product available online.
However, if you are suffering from a poor sleep-wake cycle, then you are going to benefit more from taking Modafinil than you ever could from drinking coffee throughout the day.
As coffee and Modafinil work in different ways and stimulate other areas of the brain, they can be mixed to deliver an even better feeling. Many people choose to mix the two to keep them going throughout the workday.
How To Mix Coffee And Modafinil
There are two main ways you can mix coffee and Modafinil safely throughout the day.
1. Tea, Coffee, And Modafinil
Coffee
Coffee is perhaps the most popular way of consuming caffeine throughout the day and is one of the easiest ways to mix Modafinil.
The way to mix the two safely is to consider how much caffeine you are consuming and therefore how much Modafinil you actually need. An average cup of coffee can contain around 100mg of caffeine, which can take around six hours to pass through your system.
In order to feel the full effects of coffee and Modafinil, it is recommended that you consume a maximum 200mg of coffee every six hours. Alternatively, you could have a smaller cup of 100mg every three hours.
This means that on average you will be having one cup of coffee every three hours throughout the day.
Green, Oolong And Black Tea
Tea is another way of getting caffeine into your system, but it can come with its own set of downfalls.
There is plenty of caffeine in tea, but the reason it doesn’t feel the same as coffee is due to the fact that caffeine has poor solubility in water. In order to get more caffeine out of your tea, you need to steep it for an incredibly long time.
Unlike coffee, the temperature of the water used in tea and how long it has been brewed for has a great impact on the flavor. In high temperatures and long steeping times, the bitter and undesired flavors of tea come to surface.
If you want to use tea for caffeine you need to make sure that it has been brewed properly. You should brew your tea for over five minutes to extract as much caffeine as possible.
The average 250ml cup of tea will contain around 27mg of caffeine, which means that in order to consume the recommended 200mg every six hours you need to drink a cup of tea every hour.
Yerba Maté
If you want to try something different while still consuming a good level of caffeine, then you should consider Yerba Maté.
Yerba Maté is a South African herbal tea that is high in caffeine and other related alkaloids, making it great to mix with Modafinil.
One of the best things about this herbal tea is the fact that it has fewer side effects than other caffeine-containing herbs. This is due to the presence of theobromine, which is an alkaloid that is also present in chocolate.
Theobromine has similar effects to caffeine in terms of how it stimulates the brain, but it also provides some additional benefits that make it overall better to consume. These additional benefits include regulating the spikes in blood pressure and anxiety that can be caused by consuming caffeine.
An average cup (250ml) of Yerba Maté contains around 30mg of caffeine.
2. Caffeine Pills, Powders, And Modafinil
Caffeine pills are an easy and effective way of mixing with Modafinil. Caffeine pills and powder caffeine allow you to make a precise dosage, which is easier to mix with Modafinil.
Caffeine pills and powders come in a range of doses, including 15, 50, 100 and even 200mg.
If you want to mix caffeine pills with Modafinil, we recommend taking around 100mg every three to six hours for an additional boost.
How To Stay Safe When Mixing Modafinil And Coffee
No matter whether you’re using drinking coffee, tea or taking caffeine pills there are some important things you need to remember.
The most important thing in any treatment is to keep yourself safe and prevent adverse side effects as much as you can.
Pay Attention to Timing
Caffeine can be taken at any time of the day for an additional boost. However, when you are mixing it with Modafinil is it incredibly beneficial to spread it out.
As we discussed earlier, caffeine operates by blocking the reception of adenosine which makes us feel tired when it builds up. The levels of adenosine increase as the day goes on, meaning it may be better for you to consume caffeine later on in the day.
Many people who choose to mix Modafinil and coffee will typically use Modafinil in the morning, which is the recommended time of day to take this stimulant, along with a small dosage of caffeine. This can come in the form of a small cup or a 100mg pill.
As the adenosine levels pick up, another cup of coffee will be required in the afternoon to keep the feeling of alertness going.
Start Small
As with any kind of new treatment or programme of stimulants, it is always recommended to start small and give yourself time to get used to it.
Everyone is different which means that we will all have a different reaction to mixing Modafinil and coffee. When starting any kind of treatment, you should remain mindful and pay attention to how you feel throughout the process.
The only thing we can offer in this circumstance is basic guidelines, although these can be adjusted to suit your own needs.
If you start small with a 100mg caffeine and 200mg of Modafinil and find this to be too stimulating, then you should try an even smaller dosage next time. If you are struggling to get your dosage right of both caffeine and Modafinil, then you should consider spacing out your consuming and take a break if necessary.
No matter what dosage you try, you need to remember that the goal isn’t to prevent sleep. Sleep is very important, and we all need it, meaning preventing it can be incredibly damaging.
The goal of mixing both caffeine and Modafinil is to feel more productive, alert and focused.
Anxiety Management
The most common side effect of mixing coffee and Modafinil is increased anxiety, due to the way they impact the central nervous system.
Anxiety is one of the main side effects of both caffeine and Modafinil especially when they are consumed in excess.
The levels of anxiety that you experience can be reduced through some lifestyle changes, it is likely that you may still experience it from time to time when mixing Modafinil and coffee or even when just taking Modafinil.
One of the best ways to control anxiety is to pay attention to your breathing, as this is impacted when your body enters the fight or flight mode. Learning how to breathe properly will encourage the PNS, which is focused on relaxation, to get to work. This will help decrease your blood pressure, heart rate and a general sense of panic.
Simply taking some time to focus on how you are breathing and making sure that you are taking deep, slow breaths during times of anxiety can force your body to enter the relaxation state.