What would you do if you were in a new country and all of a sudden your body betrayed you?

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Your legs became weak, your heart rate increased to the point where it started to expel from your chest...

Your forehead filled with hot sweat, your hands shaking, your vision cloudy....

DOES THAT SOUND LIKE A NIGHTMARE?

YA! I think so too... actually, I know so too.

Would it make a difference if it was in your own country, your own city or even your own neighborhood?

Before we go on, this is NOT your typical I got drugged in a bar story no, this is an unsuspecting, take over of my body that I genuinely was not prepared for and now, wish I had been more careful.

I know you all are thinking I ended up in some crazy situation like my days back in the DR I was telling you about but I assure you, this COULD HAPPEN TO YOU!

The story:

I was walking around Hong Kong, seeing the streets and the sights and I was whirled up in the business of the city. It's such a stark contrast to what I am used to in Bali so I was indulging to the fullest! I was at a shopping center, hiding out from the rain when my friend said:

"We should go get a cold brew!

I drink cold brew here and there when I'm at home in Bali but it's organic, local and small batch. Usually it gives me a boost and I'm buzzing my way around with an open heart and no problem.

That said, I joyfully accepted because I was pretty dang tired from all the travel.

"Where do we get some?"

"Follow me! I know a great place that's super cool."

So next thing you know, I'm on my way, excited to have a happy pick me up coming my way.

We walked in and it was a trendy place, filled with people from all over the world. That's when I noticed the unforgettable logo.

Look, I try never to openly judge companies negatively but the truth is, I prefer to support small, local, organic and sustainable initiatives opposed to giant corps.

That said, I was pretty surprised to find myself here but I thought, why not just let go of those thoughts and just enjoy the ride.

Next thing you know, I am belly up to the bar, ordering a cold brew infused with nitro.

What? They're doing that now?

That means they are taking coffee and adding nitrogen to it... that's kind of like adding redbull to vodka in a way of taking things to the next, next level! -_-

Drink, drink, drink. La, la, la. OK, WOAH! Everything was going pretty fast, pretty fast. I mean that kicked in hard in a hurry!

I decided half of that bad boy would be fine and I carried on my lovely day, somewhere between wired and drunk until 4am. I COULD NOT SLEEP!

Next day...

Since I could not sleep last night, the first thing on my mind was get another one. (EEK... addiction much?)

I went about my day for a couple of hours but I could not shake that horrible grogginess so I went on my way to get a re-up!

Meet my demise:

The Colombian brew tasted so sweet going down that I found myself enjoying the chocolatey notes until it was all gone!

I rushed to the bathroom and checked my pupils in the mirror. I felt like I was whacked out of my mind. My thoughts were so fast, I couldn't even think. My body was literally buzzing. I got myself stuck in a stall, staring into space wondering what the hell I just drank.

I recorded a video of myself talking to the camera in the bathroom saying I felt like I was on some sort of crazy drug.

I ran outside, was dancing in the rain, in the street hyped up on more energy than I could process.

Next thing you know, I was on the ground... my legs weren't working, my head was pounding, my heart was threatening to leave my body and my system was in chaos.

Cue anxiety and body breakdown.

I managed to lug myself to a park, I knew I needed somewhere to de-stress and connect to nature.

To be honest, I was afraid I was going to die and I was begging the natural energy around to help me.

People were staring at me as I clung to the tree, whispering to it like a deranged lunatic off of my rocker...

My body was doing things my body doesn't normally do. My eyes, my heart, my brain and my limbs had gone rogue.

I felt trapped in my body, hopeless in my heart and out of control of my mind.

I couldn't lift my head without falling over. I could barely make it to the public restroom where I sat by the base of the toilet with my face hanging over the water, begging anyone who would listen above, around or within to let me get through this.

My friends were freaking out, scouring the internet, trying to figure out what to do with my zombie-self.

Here's what we ended up finding out.

YOU CAN, I REPEAT, YOU CAN, OVERDOSE FROM CAFFEINE. It's not a joke.

I know, I am the one who should know this and I do know this but how could I ever think that I would be displaying severe overdose symptoms from one cup that's meant for a normal person?

Well, first of all, caffeine builds tolerance so because I don't drink it very often, I am going to be more affected to it.

Second of all, nitro increases the level of caffeine available in your body and it goes into your body to be processed before you can get it out which means you could be taking a long trip.

Here's the stats:

What I drank: 280 mg.

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Recommended Daily Dose:
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Is it safe?

For this question, I am going to site Dr. Axe as my primary source but I researched link after link after link and what I learned was, it depends on your body, the dose and the source.

What I can tell you firsthand:

I barely could get from that tree to the train that I needed to take to get back home.
It took me about 3 hours of lying on that tree/on the floor of the toilet/drinking as much water as I could to get the strength to move slowly to the track.
I couldn't convince myself to eat anything, my stomach was rejecting everything I tried.
When I got back to my hotel, I put my hand on my heart and closed my eyes.
It was night when I woke up and I felt like I had the worst hangover of my life.
I wasted an entire day of my trip trying to stay awake and ended up sleeping all day!

Please be careful in this busy world we live in!

I forgot how fast this world moves, how much we can push and pull ourselves to make deadlines, get what we need to done but your body is your temple and you only get one! It serves you! Take care of it, without it, you are helpless!

Full disclaimer:

I am in no way, shape or form blaming this on any particular person or company involved... my goal in sharing this is to spread awareness to this high level addictive substance that we all whirl around consuming- we need to moderate our intake and consume with caution. Anything in excess can be dangerous. That said, remember your body is different than everyone else's body and my body for example, went into full on defense mode from 1 large cup.

Update:

I didn't feel myself again until the day after the following day (so I needed one full day rest after this to get right again.)

It was an incredible reminder to me to be impeccable with what I put in my body! Sometimes I let travel throw me off but this was a true lesson to show me that I need to respect my body and my health no matter where I am or what I am doing in the world!

There are a lot of companies, products and services out there that are fueled by making money, not necessarily making improvement to our lives, it's important to remember that and make an effort to support people who are really taking care of the health of not only people but the environment as well.

I hope this doesn't scare you, but reminds you to always be careful and trust your body!

I just did a huge cleanse when I got back to Bali and it's taken me some time to fully get back on track but I am back in action again so look out for me here! <3

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