Energy drinks are an interesting suggestion, but wouldn't the mega-dose of caffiene have a negative effect on your vascular system too? Possible it would lower INR (due to the diuretic effect as well as increased heart rate, pumping your blood thru the filter of your liver more quickly...that's just a guess though.)
Red Bull never did give me wings, but it did give me a nasty migraine. I guess we coumadin users have to settle for getting high on life, as everything buzz-inducing is a no-no. Even if there were a safe, vein-friendly way to achieve it, the buzz itself could make you fall or bash your head. So my bed-spinning days are over (thank God!), but not my drinking days. I just enjoy the finer points of imbibing; a slowly sipped cocktail in social settings, or a glass of wine or two with a nice meal. Beyond that it's soda water on the rocks with a twist of lime!

I have been assured by medical staff in the past that there is no negative impact on the INR levels. And I'm not talking mega-doses here, I already said above to never drink more than the daily intake, which is generally no more than 2 drinks at a time.

Here's an article about Red Bull and blood clots that you might find interest in:

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/health&id=6328046

Regards,
Tom in Connecticut

Yow! Interesting post, Tom.

Also, sports medicine has told me that anything which makes the leg tense is bad, and might lead to another clot.

I do have one or two cups of coffee, but never two in a row, even now that I am off coumadin.

Another issue I post about a few times a year: I have... heard from, er, friends... that coumadin and medical marijuana is not a great mix, and heparin and weed is even worse.

These... er, friends told me that nothing will make you feel quite as stupid as when you have a major paranoia head rush from some sticky green and realize that, like, wow, man, you have to give yourself an injection of something kinda like rat poison in your stomach, and there's no one home but the dog if you spaz out and wind up breaking the needle or something.

Oh, yeah, and sometimes you'll have these kind of queasy hallucinations and have to get some friend on the phone for an hour or so till things wear off.

Yeah... I went with one or two drinks throughout my nearly two years on Coumadin, and it worked out fine.

Very interesting about the possible connection to clotting. I think there's a world of stuff that messes with our blood that we are not aware and any combination can set the wheels in motion for a clot.

Red Bull bothers my gut so I try to stay away from it. I stay away from caffeine in general because of the effect on my gut, one of the joys of having ulcerative colitis. Anyhoo, I miss it. I love coffee. I like the whole ceremonial aspect of it, you know. Just going to the local coffee shop down the block and having coffee with a friend. I drink decaf just so I can hold a cup in my hand. Even if I didn't have gut issues, Id stay away from the caffeine. It gets my heart rate going which reminds me of how I felt when I had the PE. Kind of a little flashback that chills me a bit.

I have one or two glasses of wine every couple of weeks with dinner. When I'm out for a long night, I do the soda water and lime like LauraLu. And over the holidays, I did one or two strong, strong martinis. But seriously, there's not much I miss about drinking. I know that I'm a more interesting, engaging, attractive person when sober. Most people are. I'm a stereotypical "ugly" drunk. Like, I'm a really good time until I cross this very thin line where someone either says just the wrong thing or gives me what I perceive to be the stink eye and then I want to kick everyone's ass. And I didn't mellow with age. No one wants to see a middle aged woman wanting to fight guys in the parking lot. Well, maybe Cats "friends" do.

Good times are to be had without having to get some kind of buzz on. You really have an awareness of you who are in social situations when everyone else is loaded and you are not. You see yourself through these people, which is a freakin eye opener for sure.

Who needs mind altering whatever???? (drugs or alcool)
The thing about that is,when you come back to reality, it's still the same, it sucks!!!
You can only escape reality for a little while, then it becomes an addiction...
Is it worth it?