Editor’s Note: Coffee was supposed to help me power through my day. Instead, it wrecked my sleep and left me feeling more burnt out than before. Then I discovered MUD\WTR. Read my full review below…
My Life Before MUD\WTR:
I’m an audio editor for a few trending news podcasts, so the deadlines land fast and furious at all hours. I WFH in my studio, so I relied way too much on caffeine to power me through. Thank goodness my local coffee shop had my triple espresso morning order down, so I didn’t have to put it into words. Brain fog? Talk about brain sludge.
Editing demands razor-sharp precision — ironically, coffee was totally throwing mine off. I was trapped in a vicious caffeine cycle that was wrecking my adrenals and my sleep. Plus, after my 3rd or 4th cup, it was like straight-up acidic rot swirling in my gut. I had to switch to something else before my insides dissolved. So I hunted for a gut-friendly solution that isn’t too Spartan and tastes good.
My friend Riley swears by this functional mushroom-based coffee alternative called MUD\WTR. Supposedly, it boosts energy, focus, immunity, and mood — all with a fraction of the caffeine and none of the crash. That’s a lot to promise in one cup, I thought. And it probably tastes like mud.
Riley was reading my mind when he told me MUD\WTR has a 30-day money-back guarantee and free U.S. shipping. I had nothing to lose — the subscription would more than pay for itself if I could kick my daily espresso habit.
He said that MUD\WTR’s best-selling Starter Kits come in four terrific blends — Original, Matcha, Turmeric, and Rest — to support various needs. Right then, I ordered the OG kit on my phone.
Then I Tried MUD\WTR:
When I opened my box, the first thing I noticed was “support your local sunrise.” Yeh. Couldn’t recall the last time I saw dawn rise over the rooftops of Brooklyn. The packaging is awesome, positive. It has everything I needed to get started: a 30-serving tin, a free USB-rechargeable frother, and a guidebook with recipes and healthy habit info.
I added a tablespoon of MUD\WTR to hot water and a spoon of honey since it’s unsweetened. Gave it a good stir — then hit it with the frother to smooth out the grit and get that foam going.
Then came the moment of truth. Yummm. It’s earthy, a bit chocolatey, and slightly spicy. Like chai and hot cocoa had a sweet love child. Toss a little extra chai in there and whammm! I can drink it all day.
I was obsessed. Of course, I went down the MUD\WTR rabbit hole to discover it’s built on a base of masala chai — black tea, ginger, cardamom, cloves, nutmeg, and black pepper — that’s blended with 100% organic cacao. Each serving includes 2,240 mg of functional mushrooms that are organic and USA-grown for one powerhouse formula: Cordyceps (energy), Chaga (immunity), Reishi (stress), and Lion’s Mane (focus) which contains natural agents that help boost the production of nerve growth factor (NGF) in the brain.
When I swapped my usual 3 cups of morning coffee for MUD\WTR, that first week hit hard. The caffeine drop (35mg vs. coffee’s 95mg per cup) gave me some withdrawal pains — headaches, brain fog, and irritability. I felt less wired, but also way less sharp those first few mornings. But since I’m guilty of late-afternoon coffee runs, my sleep improved almost immediately.
By week three, I stopped missing the buzz. I can stay in the zone all day and blast through those edits with laser focus (could be the Lion’s Mane doing its thing). My energy is solid straight through the day and night when I’m on deadline. The jitters and self-doubt? Gone. And my gut-health is in great shape.
I’ve been a MUD\WTR junkie for a good few months and rarely hit my local cafe. Now I zip into the gym feeling like the version of myself I used to daydream about. It’s not that I’m anti-coffee — I still have a cup or two here and there — but I’m no longer chained to it.
MUD\WTR is not just a coffee alternative — it’s brain fuel that’s easy on your entire system. A lasting habit accompanied by a better mindset. Drink different — and you just might think different too.