> What I’ve seen over the years from occasionally being around coffee drinkers in the morning didn’t look like joy. It looked like addicts, unable to function and singularly focused, until they acquired coffee in the morning. When outside of their normal environment with quick and easy coffee, this seemed like an annoying burden to deal with.

It's shocked me that this view isn't more common. Caffeine dependence often looks like addiction to me too, and I honestly don't think it should be as normalized as it is. People should know what they are getting into before they get hooked on the stuff.

I'm personally somewhat dependent on ADHD meds, but at least I've known that and made an informed decision. If I stop them suddenly, it takes me around a week to return to normal-ish levels of energy, but other than that I don't have any headaches or pain or anything. I think for me that's more than acceptable.